NC State opens season with rebuilding Mount St. Mary's
Game facts
Mount St. Mary’s (0-0) at NC State (0-0)
Game time: Tuesday, Nov. 6, 7 p.m. — PNC Arena in Raleigh
Television: ACC Network
Probable starters
NC State
PG — 11 Markell Johnson (6-1, 175, Jr., 8.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 7.3 apg, 1.7 spg)
SG — 13 C.J. Bryce (6-5, 195, R-Jr., 17.4 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 3.0 apg in 2016-2017 at UNCW)
SF — 24 Devon Daniels (6-5, 200, R-Soph., 9.9 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.7 apg in 2016-2017 at Utah)
F — 2 Torin Dorn (6-5, 210, 5th-Sr., 13.9 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 1.4 apg, 1.0 spg)
C — 33 Wyatt Walker (6-9, 240, R-Jr., 12.9 ppg, 9.7 rpg, 1.5 apg in 2016-2017 at Samford; two games played last year)
Mount St. Mary’s
PG — 0 Vadd Morse (6-0, 155, Fr.)
SG — 1 Jalen Gibbs (6-3, 180, Soph., 3.3 ppg, 1.7 rpg, 0.4 apg at Drake last year)
G — 35 KJ Scott (6-4, 205, 5th-Sr, 12.6 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 3.0 apg, 1.3 spg in seven games at Texas Southern last year)
F — 22 Nana Opoku (6-8, 186, R-Fr.)
C — 42 Malik Jefferson (6-9, 230, Fr.)
Mount St. Mary’s
Location: Emmitsburg, Md.
Nickname: Mountaineers
2017-18 record: 18-14 overall, 12-6 Northeast Conference (NEC)
2017 postseason: None
Coach: Dan Egelstad (first year at Mount St. Mary’s and 104-34 overall in five years)
Notes
Mount St. Mary’s overview: The Mountaineers reached the NCAA Tournament in 2016-2017, but took a step back last year after losing point guard Elijah Mitrou-Long to Texas and wing Miles Wilson to Miami. The latter was dismissed from the Hurricanes this fall.
Head coach Jamious Christian, a former Shaka Smart assistant coach at VCU, went 67-39 in the Northeast Conference during his six years there. He elected to leave his alma mater for Siena last offseason.
New coach Dan Engelstad returns to Mount St. Mary’s, where he was an assistant coach from 2007-2010. He went 104-34 overall at Southern Vermont the last five years in Division III basketball.
The offense will have a new look without star point guard Junior Robinson, who attended Mebane (N.C.) Eastern Alamance High. He averaged 22.0 points per game last year, and led the team in scoring in all but four games.
The Mountaineers will play at NC State, at Maryland (Nov. 18), at St. John’s (Dec. 5) and at Minnesota (Dec. 30) as part of playing 11 road games among first 15 contests.
Mount St. Mary’s was picked last in the NEC preseason coaches poll.
Backcourt: Transfers Jalen Gibbs, who received a waiver from the NCAA, and graduate transfer K.J. Scott are expected to bolster Mount St. Mary’s guards unit.
Gibbs, who arrived from Drake, averaged a modest 3.3 points and 1.7 rebounds per game, but showed his scoring potential by getting 23 points in a 87-81 win over Hood in an exhibition game.
The Waldorf, Md., native cracked double figures in three games for Drake last year, including a career-high 16 points in a 93-74 win over Omaha on Dec. 9, 2017.
Scott played in seven games at Texas Southern before suffering a season-ending injury. He averaged 12.6 points per game and shot 37.6 percent from the field and 28.6 percent on three-pointers. Scott had 17 points and four three-pointers in a 114-71 loss to Kansas on Nov. 21, and added 14 points at Clemson three days later. He suffered his injury Nov. 30.
Scott played all 35 contests in 2016-2017, and chipped in 10 points a contest as the fourth-leading scorer for the Tigers. Scott and Texas Southern reached the NCAA Tournament, losing to North Carolina — he had a team-high 19 points and shot 4 of 8 from beyond the arc in a 103-64 loss. He shot a much better 35.9 percent on three-pointers and 44.0 percent overall on the season.
Freshman point guard Vado Morse, who attended the Bullis School in Maryland is expected to round out the trio of perimeter players starting for Mount St. Mary’s. He averaged 23 points per game his senior year. Morse had 13 points and four assists in the win over Hood.
Sophomore guard James West IV, freshman point guard Damian Chong Qui and sophomore wing Brandon Leftwich are expected to provide depth.
Frontcourt: Sophomore Omar Habwe is technically the Mountaineers’ top returning player at 2.6 points and 1.5 rebounds per game.
Two freshmen are expected to start for Mount St. Mary’s, and both had double figures against Hood. Center Malik Jefferson of Hopewell (Va.) High had 10 points and 11 boards against Hood, and forward Nana Opoku of Woodbridge (Va.) Potomac High chipped in 12 points and six boards.
Jefferson’s twin brother, Jalen, plays forward for the Mountaineers. He helped lead Hopewell to the state finals last year.
The slender Opoku redshirted a year ago, and averaged 11.3 points and 3.4 blocks per game his senior year at Potomac High, and they won the state title his junior year.
The 6-6, 225-pound Habwe shot 56.3 percent from the field his freshman year, and he made 7 of 19 on three-pointers. He had 11 points against both North Florida and Fairleigh Dickinson last year.
Habwe added 11 points and five boards in the win over Hood.
Sophomore center Ace Stallings, who is 6-10 and 230 pounds, and freshman Martin Poulsen of Denmark spelled the starters in the exhibition game.
——
Mount St. Mary’s schedule/results
——
• Talk about it inside The State of Basketball
• Subscribe to our podcast on iTunes
• Learn more about our print and digital publication, The Wolfpacker
• Follow us on Twitter: @TheWolfpacker
• Like us on Facebook
Manage privacy settings