NC State fans might not know much about Bethune-Cookman, but they could recognize athletic director/coach Reggie Theus.
Theus was a decorated play at UNLV and was the No. 9 overall pick in the first round of the 1978 NBA Draft to the Chicago Bulls. He became an all-star in Chicago and played from 1978-84, but was traded to the Kansas City Kings to make room for another shooting guard arriving in town — Michael Jordan. He played in the NBA from 1978-91 and averaged 18.5 points and 6.3 assists per game, including four years where he averaged at 20 points per game or at least seven assists a contest.
Theus then became a TV star when he played a coach the popular Saturday morning show “Hang Time.” Theus had the itch to return basketball in a real capacity. He became an assistant coach at Louisville under Rick Pitino (2003-05), and then was hired as head coach at New Mexico State, Cal-State Northridge and now Bethune-Cookman. He also was an NBA assistant coach in the NBA from 2007-11.
Bethune-Cookman plays at NC State at 6:30 p.m. Thursday at historic Reynolds Coliseum on RSN. The Wildcats are 1-7 with a 81-75 win over Bryant on Nov. 20.
Overview
Bethune-Cookman has played a steady diet of mid-majors and two high-majors in going 1-7. They’ve lost at South Florida, Middle Tennessee State, Utah, Air Force, Liberty, Seton Hall and UCF.
The team didn’t have a season last year due to Covid. The squad went 16-14 overall and 10-6 in the MEAC in 2019-20. The Wildcats are now in the SWAC.
Rankings
Bethune-Cookman is No. 319 in the NET rankings this season.
ESPN’s College Basketball Power Index (BPI) has the Wildcats currently ranked No. 334 overall, and NC State is No. 83.
KenPom.com has Bethune-Cookman at No. 353, and NCSU checks in at No. 73.
RealtimeRPI.com has NC State ranked No. 100 in the country, and Bethune-Cookman is No. 270.
Shooting
Bethune-Cookman is shooting 41.1 percent from the field, 30.2 percent on three-pointers and 66.0 percent at the free-throw line this season.
Star guard Joe French is really the lone three-point threat, and he’s gone 22 of 54 from beyond the arc for 40.7 percent. He also has made 15 of 17 at the free-throw line. Wing Damon McEntire has only attempted five three-point field goals this season (making three).
Rebounding
Opponents have out-rebounded Bethune-Cookman 35.4-29.5 this season. The loss of post player Kevin Davis after one game has affected the Wildcats. He had 11 boards in the 75-54 loss at South Florida on Nov. 9.
Post player Dylan Robertson leads the team with 5.0 rebounds per game, and guards McEntire and Marcus Garrett have both grabbed at least 11 offensive rebounds this season.
Defense
Opposing teams are averaging 75.5 points per game and shooting 48.5 percent from the field and 34.7 percent on three-pointers.
McEntire has 20 steals and Garrett is second with 11, and Robertson has a team-high 10 blocks this season.
Depth
Six players came off the bench in the 81-45 loss at Central Florida on Sunday. However, three played more than three minutes — Southern Illinois forward transfer Jakolby Long, freshman point guard Mikey West and redshirt junior point guard Collins Joseph.
West is averaging 5.4 points and 2.3 assists in 19.8 minutes per game. He has 18 assists and 15 turnovers this season. Joseph chips in five points, three rebounds and 1.9 assists in 21.9 minutes a contest. Long comes off the bench for 22.6 minutes per game, and added 5.2 points, 3.2 rebounds and a team-high 2.4 assists per game.
Star Watch
Sophomore guard Joe French is easily the biggest threat on Bethune-Cookman.
The 6-5, 180-pounder from Orlando, Fla., torched Seton Hall for a career-high 30 points and 4 of 7 on three-pointers in a 84-70 loss Nov. 28. He also had 25 points and seven rebounds against Liberty, and 20 points in the win over Bryant.
French ranks in the top three in the SWAC in scoring (15.9 points), field-goal percentage (45.5), three-point field-goal percentage (40.7), three-pointers per game (2.8) and field-goal attempts (12.4).
French’s three-point shooting isn’t a fluke. He made 43.5 percent of his three-pointers his freshman year in 2019-20. He also has made 33 of 36 career free-throw attempts.
Likely Starters
NC State
PG — 3 Cam Hayes (6-3, 180, Soph., 12.3 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.3 apg)
SG — 0 Terquavion Smith (6-4, 160, Fr., 10.6 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.0 apg)
SF — 1 Dereon Seabron (6-7, 180, R-Soph., 20.4 ppg, 10.6 rpg, 2.8 apg, 2.4 spg)
PF — 4 Jericole Hellems (6-7, 200, Sr., 15.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 1.4 apg, 1.0 spg)
C — 21 Ebenezer Dowuona (6-11, 225, Soph., 4.1 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 0.0 apg, 2.6 bpg)
Bethune-Cookman
PG — 3 Marcus Garrett (6-1, 195, Jr., 9.1 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 0.8 apg, 1.4 spg)
SG — 30 Joe French (6-4, 180, Soph., 15.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg, 0.8 apg)
SF — 5 Damani McEntire (6-4, 190, Jr., 9.4 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 1.6 apg, 2.9 spg)
PF — 22 Dylan Robertson (6-9, 205, Sr., 8.6 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 0.6 apg, 1.3 bpg)
C — 13 Calvin Paulina (6-7, 250, Jr., 2.0 ppg, 1.8 rpg, 0.3 apg)
Numbers Of Note
0: Home games this season for the Wildcats. The streak comes to an end next Wednesday against Johnson (Fla.). The last home game was a 72-70 overtime win over Florida A&M on March 5, 2020.
1: NIT appearances for Bethune-Cookman, which happened in 2011.
33.4: Minutes per game for senior post player Dylan Robertson, which ranks fourth in the SWAC.
Game Within The Game: Bethune-Cookman’s Damani McEntire vs. NCSU’s Terquavion Smith
The veteran Damani McEntire, who is 6-4 and 190 pounds, went to Chatham (Va.) Hargrave Military Academy, which is where NC State coach Kevin Keatts formerly coached.
The Indianapolis, Ind., native has played in 41 games at Bethune-Cookman, but is having his best start. He’s averaging 9.4 points, 4.1 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 2.9 steals per game through seven contests. McEntire is shooting 43.4 percent from the field and 85 percent at the free-throw line.
McEntire poured in 20 points, added five rebounds, four assists and seven steals in the 86-55 loss to Utah. He also reached double figures in three other games.
NC State freshman wing Terquavion Smith made his first college start due to the injury of Casey Morsell. If Morsell can’t go, Smith will start once again. He had 17 points in the loss against Louisville. He is averaging 10.6 points and 3.6 rebounds per game, and is shooting 38.9 percent from the field, 32.5 percent on three-pointers and 45.5 percent on free throws.
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