Conference Carolinas Men’s Basketball Offseason Report

It may be summer but college basketball programs never truly hit an 'offseason.' There's almost always some kind of action for each of the 24 D2 basketball conferences, and something to discuss, including a 2015-16 review, BennettRank and how each program performed versus the pre-season polls. There have been coaching changes key losses. There are players to watch for once the season gets underway.

We now shift our focus to the Southeast Region, starting with Conference Carolinas.

2015-2016 Conference Carolinas Standings | BennettRank (BR) Recap

NCAA Tournament Recap

SOUTHEAST REGIONAL QUARTERFINALS (First Round)

Lenior-Rhyne 83, King 79

Coaching and Membership Changes

Belmont Abbey: Former Ball State and Lehigh head coach Billy Taylor takes the reins as head coach at Belmont Abbey. Taylor replaces Martin Unger, who resigned in March after compiling an 11-45 record in two seasons.

“With the addition of Coach Taylor to our staff, we not only have identified and successfully recruited a leader of young men with a proven track-record, we have achieved our objective of enhancing the culture within our department and the College as a whole.” Belmont Abbey Athletic Director Stephen Miss.

Emmanuel (Ga.): The NCAA D2 Membership Committee formally removed Emmanuel from the membership process due to unspecified issues regarding their transition from the NAIA. According to the NCAA, “Emmanuel already had been required to repeat one year of the process and was seeking to advance to the third year. However, Division II legislation permits a school in the membership process to repeat only one of the required minimum three years. If a school cannot complete the requirements in a four-year span, it is removed from the process and must wait one year to reapply.”

Southern Wesleyan: The NCAA officially granted full membership to Southern Wesleyan after the school successfully completed their transition from NAIA. Southern Wesleyan will now become eligible for both Conference Carolinas and NCAA post-season competition starting this season.

"This three-year membership process has made SWU stronger, better and more unified than ever before. I am proud of the perseverance and tenacity of our transition team which includes so many people from many different departments across campus, our local community leaders, our alumni, our coaches and our student-athletes.” — SWU AD Chris Williams

All-Conference Carolinas Selections

Key Losses

Austin Anderson, Lees-McRae: 17.5 ppg (First Team)
Dontrell Brite, G, Mount Olive: 16.7 ppg (First Team)
Dominique Byrd, F, Barton: 12.0 ppg (Second Team)
Brolin Floyd, G/F, Limestone: 15.5 ppg (Second Team)
De'Vonte Jenkins, F, Pfeiffer: 13.1 ppg (Second Team)
Ray Chen, G, Belmont Abbey: 16.0 ppg (Third Team)
Mike Moore, F, Mount Olive: 12.3 ppg (Third Team)
Dominique Reed, F, Mount Olive: 13.1 ppg (Third Team)

Key Returnees

Shaq Dance, Sr. G/F, Limestone: 16.9 ppg (First Team)
C.J. Good, Sr. G, King: 16.6 ppg (First Team)
Hunter LeVeau, Sr. F, King: 14.9 ppg (First Team)
Joby Glymph, Sr. G, Erskine: 18.5 ppg (Second Team)
Danny Shand, Jr. G, Barton: 14.1 ppg (Second Team)
Justin Dotson, Sr. F, North Greenville: 15.4 ppg (Third Team)
Andrew Guerrero, Sr. G, Pfeiffer: 16.6 ppg (Third Team)

Circle the Date

Nov. 11, King vs. Lincoln Memorial at Tusculum: The Tornado open the season with a daunting task as they face the national runners-up from last season, Lincoln Memorial, as part of the Conference Carolinas – South Atlantic Conference challenge.