2023–24 Sam Houston Bearkats men's basketball team

2023–24 Sam Houston Bearkats men's basketball
Conference USA regular season champions
Trojan Classic champions
ConferenceConference USA
Record21–12 (13–3 CUSA)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
  • Justin Bailey (3rd season)
  • Brendan Foley (1st season)
  • Jake White (1st season)
Home arenaBernard Johnson Coliseum
Seasons
2023–24 Conference USA men's basketball standings
Conf Overall
Team W   L   PCT W   L   PCT
Sam Houston 13 – 3   .813 21 – 12   .636
Louisiana Tech 12 – 4   .750 22 – 10   .688
Western Kentucky † 8 – 8   .500 22 – 12   .647
Liberty 7 – 9   .438 18 – 14   .563
UTEP 7 – 9   .438 18 – 16   .529
New Mexico State 7 – 9   .438 13 – 19   .406
Middle Tennessee 7 – 9   .438 14 – 19   .424
Jacksonville State 6 – 10   .375 14 – 18   .438
FIU 5 – 11   .313 11 – 22   .333
† 2024 CUSA tournament winner

The 2023–24 Sam Houston Bearkats men's basketball team represented Sam Houston State University in the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Bearkats, led by first-year head coach Chris Mudge, played their home games at the Bernard Johnson Coliseum in Huntsville, Texas as first-year members of the Conference USA.

Previous season

The Bearkats finished the 2022–23 season 26–8, 14–4 in WAC play to finish in second place. They defeated California Baptist in the quarterfinals of the WAC tournament before losing to Grand Canyon in the semifinals. They received an at-large bid to the National Invitation Tournament. There they defeated Santa Clara before losing to eventual champion North Texas in the second round.

On March 24, 2023, head coach Jason Hooten left the school to take the head coaching position at New Mexico State.[1] On April 3, the school named assistant coach Chris Mudge the team's new head coach.[2]

Offseason

Departures

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Reason for departure
Ronald Mitchell Jr. 0 G 6'3" 180 Junior Philadelphia, PA Transferred to Langston
Kaosi Ezeagu 1 F 6'10" 255 Junior Brampton, ON Transferred to New Mexico State
Qua Grant 2 G 6'1" 190 Senior DeSoto, TX Graduated
Jacoby Bishop 5 G 6'2" 195 Sophomore New Waverly, TX Walk-on; not on team roster
Javion May 11 G 6'2" 190 Senior Chicago, IL Graduated
Tristan Ikpe 12 F 6'6" 210 Senior Deer Park, TX Graduated
Donte Powers 24 G 6'2" 170 Senior Starkville, MS Graduated
Giovanni Emejuru 33 F/C 6'10" 270 RS Freshman Leicester, England Transferred to Siena

Incoming transfers

Name Number Pos. Height Weight Year Hometown Previous school
Owen McGlashan 0 F/G 6'7" 210 GS Senior Marlton, NJ Saint Anselm
Davon Barnes 2 F 6'5" 215 Junior Memphis, TN Texas Southern
Marcus Boykin 5 G 6'1" 185 Junior Clinton, NC Barton College
Kingsley Ijeoma 14 F 6'8" 200 Sophomore Houston, TX Kilgore College
Lewis Rowe 21 F/C 6'10" Junior Adelaide, Australia New Mexico JC
Souleymane Doumbia 31 C 6'11" 235 Senior Abidjan, Ivory Coast TCU

2023 recruiting class

College recruiting information
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
C. J. Beaumont
PF 		Palm Beach Gardens, FL Palm Beach Prep 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 185 lb (84 kg) May 16, 2023 
Star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2023 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved October 17, 2023.

2024 recruiting class

College recruiting information (2024)
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Erik Taylor
CG 		Orlando, FL The Rock School 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Jul 20, 2023 
Star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

Roster

2023–24 Sam Houston State Bearkats men's basketball team
Players Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown
G/F 0 Owen McGlashan 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) GS Don Bosco Prep
Saint Anselm 		Marlton, NJ
G 1 CJ Beaumont 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Fr Palm Beach Prep West Palm Beach, FL
G 2 Davon Barnes 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 215 lb (98 kg) Jr Collierville HS
Texas Southern 		Memphis, TN
G 3 Lamar Wilkerson 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jr Ashdown HS
Three Rivers College 		Ashdown, AR
G 4 Anthony Wrzeszcz 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) So Wasatch Academy Gdynia, Poland
G 5 Marcus Boykin 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Jr Trinity Christian School
Barton College 		Clinton, NC
G 10 Damon Nicholas Jr. 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr Duncanville HS Ducanville, TX
G 11 Bryce Cook 5 ft 7 in (1.7 m) 160 lb (73 kg) Fr Sunrise Christian Academy
SMU 		Arlington, TX
G 13 Jaden Ray 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Sr Midwest City HS
Northern Oklahoma College 		Midwest City, OK
F 14 Kinglsey Ijeoma 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 200 lb (91 kg) Jr Southern California Academy
Kilgore College 		Houston, TX
F 21 Lewis Rowe 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Jr Prince Alfred College
New Mexico JC 		Adelaide, Australia
G 24 Derrick Brown (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 175 lb (79 kg) Jr St. Pius HS
Navarro College 		Houston, TX
F 25 Cameron Huefner 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr St. Peter's College
Pittsburg State 		Adelaide, Australia
C 31 Souleymane Doumbia 6 ft 11 in (2.11 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Sr TCU Abidjan, Ivory Coast
F 40 Kian Scroggins 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Jr Raymore–Peculiar HS Raymore, MO
Head coach
Assistant coach(es)
Legend
  • (C) Team captain
  • (S) Suspended
  • (I) Ineligible
  • (W) Walk-on

Roster

Schedule and results

Date
time, TV 		Rank# Opponent# Result Record High points High rebounds High assists Site (attendance)
city, state
Exhibition
October 29, 2023*
2:00 p.m. 		at North Texas
Charity Exhibition 		L 53–56 
 13 – Ray   11 – Doumbia   1 – Tied  The Super Pit (5,000)
Denton, TX
Non-conference regular season
November 6, 2023*
6:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Pacific W 64–57  1–0
  15 – Wilkerson   7 – Tied   4 – Ray  Alex G. Spanos Center 
Stockton, CA
November 9, 2023*
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Utah Valley
C-USA/WAC Alliance 		L 73–79 OT 1–1
  20 – Wilkerson   8 – Nicholas Jr.   8 – Ray  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (1,187)
Huntsville, TX
November 12, 2023*
2:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Oklahoma State L 70–85  1–2
  16 – Barnes   7 – Tied   3 – Ray  Gallagher-Iba Arena (5,843)
Stillwater, OK
November 17, 2023*
8:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Ole Miss L 67–70  1–3
  22 – Barnes   7 – Tied   5 – Ray  Tad Smith Coliseum (4,445)
Oxford, MS
November 20, 2023*
6:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Troy
Trojan Classic 		W 88–86 OT 2–3
  25 – Wilkerson   10 – Nicholas Jr.   8 – Ray  Trojan Arena (2,321)
Troy, AL
November 22, 2023*
1:30 p.m. 		vs. Grambling State
Trojan Classic 		W 86–68  3–3
  21 – Barnes   5 – Tied   7 – Boykin  Trojan Arena (132)
Troy, AL
November 25, 2023*
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Paul Quinn W 78–61  4–3
  19 – Barnes   9 – McGlashan   6 – Boykin  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (567)
Huntsville, TX
November 29, 2023*
8:00 p.m., P12N 		at Arizona State L 61–78  4–4
  15 – Nicholas Jr.   11 – Scroggins   6 – Ray  Desert Financial Arena (6,090)
Tempe, AZ
December 3, 2023*
5:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Lamar W 90–70  5–4
  24 – Wilkerson   7 – Barnes   7 – Ray  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (794)
Huntsville, TX
December 9, 2023*
6:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Missouri State L 60–69  5–5
  16 – Barnes   11 – Nicholas Jr.   4 – Nicholas Jr.  Great Southern Bank Arena (3,821)
Springfield, MO
December 12, 2023*
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Louisiana–Monroe W 63–62  6–5
  16 – Ray   9 – Nicholas Jr.   2 – Tied  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (599)
Huntsville, TX
December 15, 2023*
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Texas State L 60–73  6–6
  16 – Wilkerson   7 – Doumbia   2 – Tied  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (714)
Huntsville, TX
December 20, 2023*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Grand Canyon
C-USA/WAC Alliance 		L 64–76  6–7
  11 – Barnes   8 – Doumbia   3 – Ray  GCU Arena 
Phoenix, AZ
December 28, 2023*
7:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Texas Tech L 60–96  6–8
  18 – Barnes   6 – Scroggins   5 – Ray  United Supermarkets Arena (12,271)
Lubbock, TX
January 2, 2024*
4:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Dallas W 93–53  7–8
  20 – Nicholas Jr.   9 – McGlashan   4 – Tied  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (616)
Huntsville, TX
Conference USA regular season
January 6, 2024
4:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Louisiana Tech W 81–77  8–8
(1–0) 		 24 – Wilkerson   9 – Nicholas Jr.   5 – Wilkerson  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (1,183)
Huntsville, TX
January 10, 2024
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Western Kentucky W 78–74  9–8
(2–0) 		 21 – Wilkerson   7 – Ray   7 – Ray  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (714)
Huntsville, TX
January 13, 2024
5:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Middle Tennessee W 60–51  10–8
(3–0) 		 27 – Wilkerson   13 – Nicholas Jr.   1 – Tied  Murphy Center (3,227)
Murfreesboro, TN
January 20, 2024
6:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Liberty L 66–82  10–9
(3–1) 		 23 – Wilkerson   7 – Scroggins   3 – Ray  Liberty Arena (4,005)
Lynchburg, VA
January 25, 2024
6:30 p.m., CBSSN 		New Mexico State W 79–67  11–9
(4–1) 		 20 – Barnes   9 – Doumbia   5 – Tied  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (2,546)
Huntsville, TX
January 27, 2024
4:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		UTEP W 60–56  12–9
(5–1) 		 16 – Wilkerson   13 – Nicholas Jr.   4 – Barnes  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (1,993)
Huntsville, TX
February 1, 2024
8:00 p.m., CBSSN 		at Western Kentucky W 79–77  13–9
(6–1) 		 21 – Barnes   7 – Barnes   5 – Tied  E. A. Diddle Arena (3,757)
Bowling Green, KY
February 3, 2024
1:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at FIU L 61–68  13–10
(6–2) 		 11 – Barnes   8 – Tied   3 – Barnes  Ocean Bank Convocation Center (1,179)
Miami, FL
February 8, 2024
6:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at Jacksonville State L 68–79  13–11
(6–3) 		 15 – Huefner   4 – Tied   9 – Boykin  Pete Mathews Coliseum (2,121)
Jacksonville, AL
February 15, 2024
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		FIU W 70–56  14–11
(7–3) 		 14 – Wilkerson   8 – Doumbia   6 – Ray  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (1,395)
Huntsville, TX
February 17, 2024
6:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		Liberty W 83–73  15–11
(8–3) 		 16 – Barnes   6 – Tied   4 – Ray  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (1,547)
Huntsville, TX
February 22, 2024
8:00 p.m., CBSSN 		at New Mexico State W 79–58  16–11
(9–3) 		 25 – Wilkerson   8 – Scroggins   8 – Ray  Pan American Center (10,392)
Las Cruces, NM
February 24, 2024
8:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		at UTEP W 65–54  17–11
(10–3) 		 14 – Huefner   10 – Doumbia   4 – Ray  Don Haskins Center (5,010)
El Paso, TX
March 2, 2024
7:00 p.m., ESPNU 		Middle Tennessee W 81–64  18–11
(11–3) 		 23 – Barnes   8 – Scroggins   5 – Ray  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (2,423)
Huntsville, TX
March 7, 2024
8:00 p.m., CBSSN 		at Louisiana Tech W 72–66  19–11
(12–3) 		 14 – Ray   6 – Tied   8 – Ray  Thomas Assembly Center (3,092)
Ruston, LA
March 9, 2024
2:00 p.m., ESPN+ 		Jacksonville State W 81–73  20–11
(13–3) 		 22 – Doumbia   11 – Doumbia   3 – Tied  Bernard Johnson Coliseum (2,442)
Huntsville, TX
Conference USA tournament
March 13, 2024
5:30 p.m., ESPN+ 		(1) vs. (9) FIU
Quarterfinals 		W 78–59  21–11
  15 – Barnes   13 – Scroggins   4 – Ray  Von Braun Center (628)
Huntsville, AL
March 15, 2024
11:30 a.m., CBSSN 		(1) vs. (5) UTEP
Semifinals 		L 63–65  21–12
  14 – Tied   6 – Tied   3 – Ray  Von Braun Center 
Huntsville, AL
*Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
All times are in Central.

Sources[3]

References

  1. ^ "Sam Houston's Hooten to coach New Mexico St". ESPN.com. 2023-03-25. Retrieved 2023-04-04.
  2. ^ Weaver, Morgan. "Sam Houston will hire Chris Mudge as its next head basketball coach". www.kbtx.com. Retrieved 2023-04-04.
  3. ^ "2023–24 Men's Basketball Schedule". Sam Houston. Retrieved October 17, 2023.