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Our last cupcake of this four-game stretch is East Texas A&M, formerly named Texas A&M Commerce as of a few weeks ago, a Southland Conference school now in its third year of D1 basketball after head coach Jaret von Rosenberg led the Lions to three D2 NCAA Tournaments in five seasons.
Prior to coaching at East Texas A&M, Jaret von Rosenberg had local ties after he was a three-year starter at Hartford and also started his experience coaching at the D1 level for two seasons with John Gallagher at Hartford.
Like many mid-majors that lack talent, the Lions strategy is to win the perimeter game by having more perimeter shot attempts than their opponent. On offense, the Lions try to eliminate mid-range looks (expect threes, drives and post-looks) while their defense uses a full-court press, not to generate quick turnovers, but to stretch out possessions and force teams to rush in the halfcourt where the Lions defense works hard to force teams to work inside.
In the backcourt, fifth-year senior guard Khaliq Abdul-Mateen is the Lions’ heart-and-soul and is a physical, fearless guard who isn’t afraid to attack the rim and make a hard foul. Scooter Williams Jr. was ranked as a top-40 JUCO prospect by JUCOrecruiting.com and is the team’s 6’5 210 point guard that can do a little bit of everything on the court, although his long-distance shooting is suspect. Sophomore Evan Phelps is a pesky, undersized combo guard who is probably the team’s most aggressive defender and he’s off to an efficient start on offense.
East Texas A&M’s frontcourt is deep and versatile. DeMarco Bethea was an All-Conference selection at the JUCO level and is best known for his touch under the basket. Starting his career playing two seasons at Georgia, fifth-year senior Josh Taylor is a bouncy athlete that played last season at the NAIA level, but was a full-time starter at ETSU the year prior. He’s a willing scorer from anywhere on the court. Starting his career at East Carolina and then Bryant, Tay Mosher is a big stretch forward off the bench.
After already playing Iowa and Texas A&M, expect ETA&MU to not back down based on their style of play and new-look roster. With McNeese State expected to be one of the best mid-majors in the nation and SFA returning to the conference after a stint in the WAC, the Southland is expected to be at its most competitive level in a few years and ETA&MU is looking to compete amongst the top teams in the conference.
Prior to coaching at East Texas A&M, Jaret von Rosenberg had local ties after he was a three-year starter at Hartford and also started his experience coaching at the D1 level for two seasons with John Gallagher at Hartford.
Like many mid-majors that lack talent, the Lions strategy is to win the perimeter game by having more perimeter shot attempts than their opponent. On offense, the Lions try to eliminate mid-range looks (expect threes, drives and post-looks) while their defense uses a full-court press, not to generate quick turnovers, but to stretch out possessions and force teams to rush in the halfcourt where the Lions defense works hard to force teams to work inside.
In the backcourt, fifth-year senior guard Khaliq Abdul-Mateen is the Lions’ heart-and-soul and is a physical, fearless guard who isn’t afraid to attack the rim and make a hard foul. Scooter Williams Jr. was ranked as a top-40 JUCO prospect by JUCOrecruiting.com and is the team’s 6’5 210 point guard that can do a little bit of everything on the court, although his long-distance shooting is suspect. Sophomore Evan Phelps is a pesky, undersized combo guard who is probably the team’s most aggressive defender and he’s off to an efficient start on offense.
East Texas A&M’s frontcourt is deep and versatile. DeMarco Bethea was an All-Conference selection at the JUCO level and is best known for his touch under the basket. Starting his career playing two seasons at Georgia, fifth-year senior Josh Taylor is a bouncy athlete that played last season at the NAIA level, but was a full-time starter at ETSU the year prior. He’s a willing scorer from anywhere on the court. Starting his career at East Carolina and then Bryant, Tay Mosher is a big stretch forward off the bench.
After already playing Iowa and Texas A&M, expect ETA&MU to not back down based on their style of play and new-look roster. With McNeese State expected to be one of the best mid-majors in the nation and SFA returning to the conference after a stint in the WAC, the Southland is expected to be at its most competitive level in a few years and ETA&MU is looking to compete amongst the top teams in the conference.