Wright State is off to a 3-7 start, with Division I wins over Tennessee Tech last Saturday and at Purdue-Fort Wayne on Dec. 2.
The Raiders have only played one high major in Purdue on Nov. 16, falling 96-52. Wright State has also played at Marshall, vs. George Washington and at Cleveland State.
Wright State went 18-6 overall and 16-4 in the Horizon League last year. They lost only center Loudon Love, who averaged 16.6 points and 10.1 rebounds per game.
Overview
Wright State has three players in double figures with wing Tanner Holden (19.2 points per game), power forward Grant Basile (17.5 ppg) and point guard Trey Calvin (12.7).
Former Grand Canyon transfer Tim Finke, a small forward, and freshman center AJ Braun round out the starting lineup. Sophomore wing Andrew Welage and freshman point guard Keaton Norris have played in all 10 games this season off the bench.
Rankings
Richmond is No. 299 in the NET rankings this season.
ESPN’s College Basketball Power Index (BPI) has the Raiders currently ranked No. 204 overall, and NC State is No. 91.
KenPom.com has Wright State at No. 196, and NCSU checks in at No. 89.
RealtimeRPI.com has NC State ranked No. 125 in the country, and Wright State is No. 314.
Shooting
Wright State is shooting 43.4 percent from the field, 27.2 percent on three-pointers and 77.9 percent at the free-throw line.
Calvin and Finke lead the way on three-pointers with 15 made apiece. Calvin is shooting 35.7 percent from beyond the arc, and Finke is at 30 percent. No other player has made more than six three-pointers this season. The top three leading scorers — Holden, Basile and Calvin — all shoot at least 80 percent from the free-throw line.
Rebounding
Wright State has a minus-4.1 rebounding margin this season. The Raiders are averaging 33.3 rebounds per game.
Basile leads the way with 9.2 rebounds per game, with Holden and Finke both at 5.5 rebounds a contest. Basile has proven to be a good offensive rebounder with 25 in 10 games.
Defense
Opponents are averaging 76.9 points per game this season. Teams are shooting 45.7 percent from the field and 32.1 percent from three-point land.
Basile has blocked 15 shots this season, and Holden leads the way with 17 steals. The Raiders have 59 steals and 33 blocks this season. Finke was named to the Horizon League all-defensive team.
Depth
Wright State played three players off the bench in the 72-63 win over Tennessee Tech last Saturday. The aforementioned Norris and Welage were joined by senior post player James Manns, who is 6-7 and 210 pounds.
Welage is averaging 3.5 points and 1.9 rebounds in 14.2 minutes per game. Norris has chipped in 1.7 points and 1.7 assists in 21.1 minutes a contest. Manns has played in three games this season, and has nine points and four rebounds on the season.
Star Watch
Tanner Holden had three offers in the class of 2019, and has thrived at Wright State. He picked the Raiders over offers from Marshall, Winthrop, Akron, Cleveland State, Toledo and Ohio.
Holden’s father, Rodney Holden, was a star for Marshall, but the Thundering Herd went in a different direction. Tanner Holden was also an accomplished football prospect for Wheelersburg (Ohio) High. Naturally, Holden tied his season-high for points with 25 against Marshall this season.
The 6-6, 185-pounder has averaged in double figures in all three years for Wright State. He’s averaging a career-high 19.2 points, 5.5 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game this season. He’s shooting 53.2 percent from the field but isn’t a big three-point threat, going 5 of 10 from beyond the arc in 10 contests.
Holden has scored at least 12 points in every game but one. He has scored at least 20 points in six contests.
Holden scored in double figures in every game but three last year. He had a season-high 24 points against both Youngstown State and Oakland last year. Holden also had four double-doubles last year.
Likely Starters
NC State
PG — 3 Cam Hayes (6-3, 180, Soph., 12.0 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 2.5 apg)
SG — 0 Terquavion Smith (6-4, 160, Fr., 12.5 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 1.8 apg)
SF — 1 Dereon Seabron (6-7, 180, R-Soph., 19.8 ppg, 10.6 rpg, 2.9 apg, 1.9 spg)
PF — 4 Jericole Hellems (6-7, 200, Sr., 14.5 ppg, 4.2 rpg, 1.7 apg, 1.5 spg)
C — 21 Ebenezer Dowuona (6-11, 225, Soph., 4.2 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 0.0 apg, 2.7 bpg)
Wright State
PG — 1 Trey Calvin (6-0, 165, Jr., 12.7 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 2.3 apg, 1.3 spg)
SG — 2 Tanner Holden (6-6, 185, Jr., 19.2 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 2.8 apg, 1.7 spg)
SF — 24 Tim Finke (6-6, 215, Jr., 8.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 2.0 apg)
PF — 0 Grant Basile (6-9, 225, Jr., 17.5 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 1.7 apg, 1.5 bpg)
C — 12 AJ Braun (6-9, 230, Fr., 6.9 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 0.7 apg)
Numbers Of Note
3 Postseason trips for coach Scott Nagy in five years at Wright State (112-56). He reached the NCAA Tournament in 2017-18, and the NIT in 2018-19 and 2019-20.
6: Games where point guard Trey Calvin has scored in double figures this season. He had 28 points and three three-pointers in the loss to Cleveland State.
423: Career points for former NC State guard Julius Mays at Wright State in 2011-12. He averaged 14.1 points per game and then he became a graduate transfer at Kentucky.
Game Within The Game: Wright State’s Grant Basile vs. NC State’s Jericole Hellems
Wright State junior power forward Grant Basile has built off of last year’s success.
Basile jumped to 15.0 points, 7.0 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game last year, where he started 15 of 24 games played. He shot a blistering 61.7 percent from the field and an impressive 20 of 42 on three-pointers for 47.6 percent. Basile ended last year with 35 points and 14 rebounds in a 94-92 overtime loss vs. Wisconsin-Milwaukee in the Horizon League Tournament.
Basile’s shooting numbers have dipped this season, particularly from three-point land at 6 of 40 for 15 percent. He’s improved to 17.5 points, 9.2 rebounds and 1.5 blocks per game this season, starting all 10 games.
The 6-9, 225-pounder from Pewaukee, Wis., had 23 points and 15 rebounds in a 85-75 loss at Cleveland State on Dec. 4. He exploded for 37 points in a run-and-gun 96-88 loss at Marshall on Nov. 12.
One of the few teams to shut down Basile this season has been Purdue, who held him to 3 of 14 shooting for seven points in a 96-52 loss on Nov. 16.
The 6-7 Hellems will give up size against Basile, and will need to stay out of foul trouble. He’s second on the team with 14.5 points per game and is averaging 4.2 rebounds a contest. He’s shooting 38.2 percent from the field and 39.0 percent on three-pointers (23 of 59).
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