Experienced Army men's basketball team feeling confident: Preview, roster, schedule
WEST POINT – With experience, roster depth and improved ability to score, Army seventh-year head coach Jimmy Allen is feeling pretty good about his basketball team.
The Black Knights lost only two starters and return seven of their top nine scorers from a team that finished .500 in the Patriot League and 15-16 overall.
Army opens play on Monday with a visit by Division III Keystone and a Saturday home game with Stonehill, a new member of the Northeast Conference.
“We’re excited and ready to play,’’ Allen said.
Guard Jalen Rucker is the guiding piece, a preseason all-star who dishes as well as he shoots – in his all-star sophomore year he led the team in scoring (17.1 points per game), ranked second in assists (97) and had nearly half of the team’s three-point goals (84).
“He's worked his tail off to continue to improve,’’ Allen said. “There’s going to be some nights where he’s going to be really, really good and have to score a lot for us, but I think we need to have a more balanced offensive look and that’s going to allow him more opportunities and more space to play.’’
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Charlie Peterson, a 6-foot-9 junior, will lead a big-man unit that features eight players at 6-8 or taller. He ranked third in scoring (8.2) and led in rebounds (5.8), grabbing 61 offensive boards. For all his positives, Allen believes Peterson is capable of more.
Chris Mann is one of just two seniors. He is physical and has played well during the preseason. Mann, with 20 starts last season, contributed 7.9 points and 3.7 rebounds. He is a matchup problem, able to score on smaller defenders inside and drawing bigger men out to the perimeter.
Junior Matt Dove is expected to contribute more – the 6-10 forward is stronger and has matured physically, Allen said. Junior Jared Cross can become a consistent 3-point threat (he had 14 last season). Sophomore Isaiah Caldwell was proficient in handling the ball and his defense on the perimeter. Forwards Abe Johnson, a physical junior, and Nolan Naess, who saw good minutes as a freshman, are expected to contribute as well.
Last season Army scored one more point than it allowed. Allen expects his team to play with pace, show more versatility and spread the wealth on offense. “We will be harder to guard,’’ he said. Allen believes his team will show itself well on defense – especially up front – but maybe not press as much.
“I think it will be a really fun team to watch,’’ Allen said.
Allen expects to get production from his class of six freshmen, including three from the Academy prep school. Ethan Roberts, a 6-5 forward from Illinois, and Coleton Benson, a 6-1 guard from Texas, have figured prominently during the preseason.
Army has been picked for fifth in the Patriot League preseason coaches and sports information directors poll. Colgate is the clear favorite, followed by Boston University, Lehigh and Navy. Trailing Army are Loyola, American, Bucknell, Holy Cross and Lafayette.
Army’s non-league slate includes home games with U.S. Merchant Marine Academy, Wagner and New Jersey Tech. A challenging road slate has Siena, William & Mary, Rhode Island, Stony Brook and Central Connecticut. The Black Knights head to London for a pair of Thanksgiving week games with Princeton and either Manhattan or Northeastern.
Army and Colgate are the only Patriot teams to finish in the top five each of the past three seasons. However, the Black Knights have yet to even reach the Patriot finals since joining in 1990-91 and has never played in the NCAA tournament.
“It’s nice to be consistent,’’ Allen said, “but we want to take that next step. Our goal is to play great basketball.’’
Twitter: @KenMcMillanTHR
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Roster
Seniors – No. 4 Chris Mann, F; No. 52 Ben Jensen, F
Juniors – No. 1 Jalen Rucker, G; No. 10 Zach Lezanic, G; No. 22 Kwabena Davis, G; No. 24 Jared Cross, G; No. 34 Charlie Peterson, F; No. 44 Matt Dove, F; No. 53 Zach Rocco, G; No. 54 Abe Johnson, F
Sophomores – No. 0 Isaiah Caldwell, G; No. 5 Griff Lamb, F; No. 12 Blane St. Clair, G; No. 31 Blake Barker, G; No. 33 J.T. Dougherty, F; No. 35 T.J. Small, G; No. 41 Nolan Naess, F; No. 42 Luke Benson, G; No. 55 A.J. Allenspach, F
Freshmen – No. 2 Coleton Benson, G; No. 3 Jaden Ellis, G; No. 15 Jorn Everson, F; No. 23 Ethan Roberts, F; No. 25 Chanse Perkins, F; No. 43 Jackson Mayo, G
Head coach: Jimmy Allen
Assistants: Nick Thorsen; Doug Novak; Joshua Hayes; Jesse Flannery; Evan Manning
Schedule
November
Mon. 7 – Keystone (9-16, 6-8 Div. III Colonial States), 7:30 p.m.; Sat. 12 – Stonehill (15-12, 10-9 Div. II Northeast 10), 1 p.m.; Wed. 16 – at Siena (15-14, 12-8 Metro Atlantic, third), 7 p.m.; Sat. 19 – at William & Mary (5-27, 4-14 Colonial, ninth), 4 p.m.; Sun. 20 - vs. Radford (11-18, 7-9 Big South, T-third North Div.), at Williamsburg, Va., 2 p.m.; Thur. 24 - at London Basketball Classic vs. Princeton (23-7, 12-2 Ivy, first), 2:30 p.m. ET; Sat. 26 - at London Basketball Classic vs. Manhattan (15-15, 8-12 Metro Atlantic, T-seventh) or Northeastern (9-22, 2-16 Colonial, tenth), 2:30 p.m. or 5 p.m.; Wed. 30 - U.S. Merchant Marine Academy (15-10, 12-4 D3 Skyline, first North Div.), 6 p.m.
December
Sat. 3 - Wagner (21-6, 15-3 Northeast, second), 1 p.m.; Wed. 7 – New Jersey Tech (11-18, 6-12 America East, ninth), 7 p.m.; Sat. 10 - at Rhode Island (15-16, 5-12 Atlantic 10, eleventh), 2 p.m.; Sun. 18 – at Stony Brook (18-13, 10-8 America East, third), 1 p.m.; Tues. 20 – at Central Connecticut State (8-24, 4-13 Northeast, T-eighth), 7 p.m.; Fri. 30 – Lehigh* (13-19, 10-8, fourth), 6 p.m.
January
Mon. 2 – at Lafayette* (10-20, 7-11, T-seventh), 7 p.m.; Thur. 5 – at Loyola* (14-16, 8-10, sixth), 7 p.m.; Mon. 9 – Colgate* (23-12, 16-2, first), 7 p.m. (CBS Sports Network); Wed. 11 – American* (10-22, 5-13, T-ninth), 6 p.m.; Sat. 14 – at Boston University* (22-13, 11-7, third), 1 p.m.; Wed. 18 – vs. Bucknell* (9-23, 5-13, T-ninth), 6 p.m.; Sat. 21 – Navy* (21-11, 12-6, second), 1:30 p.m. (CBS Sports Network); Wed. 25 – at American*, 7 p.m.; Sat. 28 – Holy Cross* (9-22, 7-11, T-seventh), 1 p.m.
February
Wed. 1 – at Lehigh*, 7 p.m.; Sat. 4 – at Bucknell*, 7 p.m.; Wed. 8 – Loyola*, 6 p.m.; Sat. 11 – at Navy*, 1:30 p.m. (CBS Sports Network); Wed. 15 – at Colgate*, 7 p.m.; Sat. 18 – Lafayette*, 1 p.m.; Wed. 22 – Boston University*, 6 p.m.; Sat. 25 – at Holy Cross*, 2 p.m.
Home games at West Point’s Christl Arena; overall and league marks and league placing are included; asterisk marks Patriot League game; most games will air on WBNR (1260-AM) and WLNA (1420-AM), full schedule TBD, plus video on ESPN Plus (subscription)
This article originally appeared on Times Herald-Record: Army men's basketball feeling confident: Preview, roster, schedule
