Richmond Spiders
2021-2022 Overall Rank: #53
Conference Rank: #3 A-10
Richmond had a great season in 2019-2020, going 24-7 overall and finished A-10 play with a 14-4 record. Their off and on 2020-2021 campaign did not go quite as well, but the Spiders were sitting at 13-5 overall before losing their last three games, including an opening loss to Duquesne at the conference tournament. Coach Chris Mooney does lose his top scorer, but everybody else is back and this is a very experienced group that should be ready to jump up the A-10 standings.
2020-21 Record: 14-9, 6-5
2020-21 Postseason: NIT
Coach: Chris Mooney
Coach Record: 288-231 at Richmond, 330-270 overall
Key Departed Players:
Blake Francis, Guard, 16.1 ppg
Key Returning Players:
Grant Golden, Senior, Forward, 12.7 ppg
Jacob Gilyard, Senior, Guard, 12.3 ppg
Nathan Cayo, Senior, Forward, 12.2 ppg
Tyler Burton, Junior, Forward, 12.0 ppg
Connor Crabtree, Junior, Guard, 4.8 ppg
Andre Gustavson, Senior, Guard, 4.4 ppg
Matt Grace, Senior, Forward, 3.3 ppg
Souleymane Koureissi, Senior, Forward, 2.6 ppg
Isaiah Wilson, Sophomore, Guard, 1.8 ppg
Dji Bailey, Sophomore, Guard, 1.8 ppg
Nick Sherod, Senior, Guard, dnp last season
Key New Players:
Malcolm Dread, Freshman, Guard
Jason Nelson, Freshman, Guard
Marcus Randolph, Freshman, Guard
Liam Weaver, Freshman, Guard
Projection:
The return of Nick Sherod will help replace the scoring lost with the departure of Blake Francis. Sherod averaged 12.7 points and 5.4 rebounds two years ago before missing last season with an ACL injury. He should again be one of the best shooters in the A-10. Jacob Gilyard knows a thing or two about shooting three-pointers. The point guard hit 48 last season in just 23 games. Despite his 12.3 points and 5.0 assists, it is his 3.6 steals per game that really stand out. Tyler Burton is the big man that can shoot the ball. The 6-7 junior also led the team with 7.6 rebounds and added 12.0 points and 1.1 steals. Nathan Cayo is another 6-7 forward, while Grant Golden is the big man who eats up space in the paint. The 6-10, 255 pounder is the team’s top returning scorer at 12.7 points per game and added 6.0 rebounds. Last year Coach Mooney relied very heavily on his five starters. That could be the case again this time around, but there is experienced depth here. Connor Crabtree and Andre Gustavson will join three-star recruits Malcolm Dread and Jason Nelson to give the team plenty of options on the perimeter and forwards Matt Grace and Souleymane Koureissi are seniors who played in all 23 games last season. The Atlantic 10 is going to be tough this year, but if Richmond can stay healthy, they have the potential to be right in the mix for a spot in the NCAA Tournament.
Projected Postseason Tournament: NIT
By the Numbers:
Scoring Offense: 74.7 (87th in nation, 3rd in conference)
Scoring Defense: 69.0 (132, 8)
Field-Goal Percentage: 47.2 (36, 2)
Field-Goal Defense: 46.1 (282, 13)
Three-Point Field Goals Per Game: 7.5 (142, 6)
Three-Point Field-Goal Percentage: 35.7 (79, 3)
Free-Throw Percentage: 72.7 (99, 4)
Rebound Margin: -5.0 (315, 12)
Assists Per Game: 14.2 (95, 6)
Turnovers Per Game: 10.5 (11, 1)
