SMU Basketball: 2017-18 season preview for the Mustangs

Non-Conference Highlights

Nov. 22-24: Battle 4 Atlantis (Northern Iowa in the first round)

Dec. 2: USC

Dec. 5: at TCU

Dec. 18: Boise St

SMU has a challenging non-conference slate which is highlighted by the Battle 4 Atlantis tournament. The Battle 4 Atlantis is known as one of the most challenging Thanksgiving tournaments and that is especially true this season. SMU starts with a solid Northern Iowa team. The Mustangs will be favored and are the better team overall, but the rest of the bracket is daunting. Two top-10 teams (Arizona and Villanova) and a top-20 team (Purdue) lurk and could give SMU a serious challenge. The Mustangs will be the underdogs against any of those three, but stealing an early season win will go a long way in March.

A Dec. 2 battle against USC will also prove to be a difficult game. USC brings back all of their prominent players, most notably NBA prospects Chimezie Metu and skilled PF Bennie Boatwright. The Trojans also have a quality backcourt which consists of senior PG Jordan McLaughlin, sophomore De’Anthony Melton, and senior wing Elijah Stewart. USC is a top-10 caliber team, but the Mustangs will luckily play them at home in what should be a must-watch contest.

Playing at TCU should not be overlooked. The Horned Frogs are a top-25 caliber team who, like USC, returns all players of note from an NIT championship squad. The dynamic backcourt of Jaylen Fisher and Alex Robinson get most of the attention, but skilled center Vladimir Brodziansky and double-double threat Kenrich Williams will also pose problems.

Lastly, Dec. 18 against Boise St could be a trap game. The Broncos should finish in the top half of the Mountain West and playing them before Christmas break could lead to some problems. If SMU can avoid a bad loss and knock off at least one marquee opponent (Villanova, Arizona, Purdue, USC, TCU), they should be in good shape for a second consecutive tournament appearance.