With the early signing period now in the books, we wanted to run through the important questions with our HoopSeen.com staff. What non-power conference program stands out to you as a group that might bring positive changes to that particular school?

Carter Wilson: It’s hard to pick against UMass here. The Minutemen have a top-30 class led by Louisiana duo Dejon Jarreau and Brison Gresham (pictured above) as well as two guys who play their high school basketball in-state in Unique McLean and Chris Baldwin. Derek Kellogg has only been to the NCAA Tournament one time in his head coaching tenure at UMass, and the Minutemen have only been to the dance once since the turn of the century. This is a group that they can certainly build around and get back to the NCAA Tournament with.

Garrett Tucker: Wofford has emerged as a consistent, top program in the SoCon. The Terriers’ 2016 class is very talented and will continue to keep Mike Young’s program at the top of the list year in and year out. They will continue to bring the excellence that Wofford has garnered in the past few years.

Dishon Lowery, Kevon Tucker, and Nate Hoover make up a solid nucleus for Wofford. They will bring a winning attitude, and all three players bring a different style of scoring. Lowery is great on the boards and will get some easy buckets; Tucker isn’t the most athletic kid around, but he knows how to get his shots and score; Hoover will be a dangerous shooter from behind the arc.

Corey Evans: Does Gonzaga count? I mean, the question entailed what non-power conference program and last I checked, the WCC wasn’t a power conference. Hence, the four-person class headed to Mark Few’s program is quite impressive. They landed a pick-and-pop, top-100 recruit with Zach Collins and dabbled in the Windy City in nabbing a guy that hit 13 3s in one July contest this past summer in Zach Norvell. Those two in itself are quite the pulls. However, the Zags weren’t done just yet where they recently added big man Jacob Larsen and my favorite sleeper recruit on the west coast this fall in Killian Tillie. The 6-foot-9 forward has an impeccable stroke from deep and with more strength gained, could become what Kyle Wiltjer is known for in recent years in Spokane. Add it all up and while Gonzaga could lose its entire frontcourt next year, the incoming prospects have more than enough talent to keep things moving forward for the west coast power. 

Jusitn Young: I like what the SoCon did as a whole. Led by Samford, yes Samford, the league has a nice influx of high-level talent. Tristan Chambers, Josh Sharkey and Justin Hopkins will be a fun group of guards to watch over the next five years. I like Wofford’s class a lot, too.