Wheeling, W. Va. - On Wednesday, the Mountain East Conference released their annual Men's Basketball preseason poll, ranking all 10 teams in the conference. With a mix of returners and young talent, the Wheeling University Men's Basketball team ranked seventh in this year's poll, after going 6-12 overall and 5-11 in conference play last season.
The Cardinals will be entering their second season under Head Men's Basketball coach Chris Richardson, as they look to fight their way back into the MEC Playoff tournament for the second season in a row. Last year, they defeated Alderson Broaddus in the first round, and headed to a quarterfinal round match-up with the University of Charleston. They would fall 86-49, but showed that they can compete with some of the best teams in the conference.
Some of the key pieces of last year's team are returning again in 2021 with graduate student Jordan Reid and seniors Jarret Haines and Jay Gentry each coming back in 2021-2022. Reid was third in the MEC in scoring last season, with 352 points, while averaging 22 points per game. Haines followed in right behind him, with an average of 18.1 points per game, and finished top ten in the conference with 59 assists during the season. All three players will be chasing the 1,000-point mark for their careers this season, adding intrigue to watching them night in and night out.
Joining this veteran group are six members of the 2021-2022 recruiting class, who hope to factor in throughout the season. Among this group are Brunswick High School's all-time leading scorer Tre Massey, Wheeling Park star D.J. Saunders, and All-State West Virginia standout Deuce Blake. Each player brings their own dynamic to the team, and will factor into Wheeling's growth over the course of the season.
After their final warm-up of the season in an exhibition game against Northern Kentucky on Tuesday, the Cardinals officially open their season on Friday when they head to West Liberty University to battle East Stroudsburg as part of the West Liberty Atlantic Regional Crossover. They conclude the opening weekend against Winston-Salem on Saturday, and are right back out on the road against Malone and Akron on November 17th and 18th. With four games in six days, Wheeling will be tested early in the season before their home opener on November 20th against Notre Dame College.
The opener will be one of just four home games for the Cardinals in 2021, as they get a chance to show their resilience on the road. However, when the calendar flips to 2022, there is plenty of action inside the Alma Grace McDonough center with nine home games spanning January and February. They take on MEC rivals Concord, Fairmont State, and Alderson Broaddus in February, before wrapping up the regular season on February 26th with senior day against rival West Liberty University.
Richardson is excited about the pieces he has coming back, and how his team is showing growth from last season to this season.
"Like a lot of teams in the Mountain East we have a lot of pieces coming back and that's exciting because of the way we regrouped after battling through last season," said Richardson. "I'm excited that we have a full season and I'm excited that we have our top two scorers back. Any time you have that much experience coming back, you are excited."
The Wheeling University Men's Basketball team plays one more exhibition against Northern Kentucky on Tuesday, before opening up their season on Friday at the West Liberty Atlantic Region Crossover against East Stroudsburg at 7:30 PM.
