South Alabama men’s basketball coach Matthew Graves said at the Sun Belt Conference’s basketball media day that the Jaguars will rely on a committee approach to scoring after losing their top three scorers from last season.
The event featured all 11 of the conference’s men’s basketball head coaches. Graves is entering his second season at South Alabama.
“I’m very excited about my second year in the Sun Belt,” Graves said. “I’m looking forward to the improvements that we can make to our program.”
Replacing Rubit and Allen
The departed scorers include Augustine Rubit and Antoine Allen, who completed their careers last season.
“We don’t know where we’re getting our scoring. That’s probably our biggest concern this year,” Graves said. “You’re not going to replace an Augustine Rubit with one or two guys, it’s going to take a committee.”
Graves described his roster as “extremely young” and inexperienced and said the coaching staff is still evaluating how players fit together, a process he expects to continue once games begin.
Williams Expected to Take on Larger Role
Graves singled out Ken Williams as a player he expects to be key this season after what he called a strong offseason. He said Williams will likely draw one of the opponent’s better defenders each night.
Graves also said he has seen more buy-in from the roster, staff and managers. “There’s a better vibe and more togetherness,” he said.
Newcomers
Graves said two newcomers have stood out early. Junior college transfer John Brown is expected to play minutes at small forward and give the Jaguars size on the wing, which Graves said the team lacked last season. Freshman point guard Taishaun Johnson has added quickness on the perimeter and the ability to get the ball into the paint, Graves said.
Tafari Whittingham is returning from offseason surgery. Graves said Whittingham is fully participating in practice but is still several weeks away in terms of conditioning.
Point Guard and Depth
Graves said Barrington Stevens would be the starting point guard if the Jaguars played today.
South Alabama has 10 scholarship players, which Graves said breaks down to five guards and wings and five post players. “Guys will get opportunities, and what they do with those opportunities will ultimately determine how many minutes they play,” he said.
Faster Pace
Graves said the Jaguars have emphasized scoring in transition after ranking among the Sun Belt’s least productive teams in transition scoring last season. He said the team will look to push the ball in 3-on-2 and 4-on-3 situations to supplement its half-court offense.
Exhibition Opener
South Alabama hosts the University of Mobile in an exhibition game Nov. 6 at the Mitchell Center. Tipoff is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.
