Lipscomb Basketball: 2018-19 season preview for the Bison

Following one of the most successful seasons in program history and their first-ever NCAA berth, Lipscomb brings back all five starters for a year with high expectations.

What happens the year after a program’s first-ever NCAA Tournament appearance? Are expectations higher than usual or do fans expect a letdown after the previous year’s emotional highs?

With all five starters back from a 23-win squad, expectations are sky-high for the Lipscomb Bisons as they enter the season after their first NCAA Tournament bid as the favorites in the ASUN Conference.

Following a thrilling ASUN Final victory over former tournament darlings FGCU, the Bisons found themselves dancing in March for the first time against mighty North Carolina.

The game went as expected, but more importantly the foundation was set, and almost all of Lipscomb’s main contributors were returning.

That ASUN title game clash with FGCU featured four of the five ASUN First-Team All-Conference members. But as FGCU lost both of their honorees, Lipscomb returns the high-scoring, inside-out duo of seniors Garrison Mathews and Rob Marberry. Mathews was the ASUN’s leading scorer at 21.5 points per game last season, and Marberry was seventh at 15.9 per contest.

Also returning for the Bisons are hard-nosed point guard Kenny Cooper, glue guy Michael Buckland, glass-cleaner Eli Pepper, and sharpshooter Matt Rose, the top six scorers from a year ago. Plus, fifth-year senior Nate Moran returns from injury after sitting out last year. Moran was Lipscomb’s starting point guard for three seasons before a rash of injuries.

In fact, as a team, the Bisons return the most career points among all Division I teams at a combined 6,040, with Kansas State a  distant second at 4,650 points.

With so much experience on the squad, the Bisons enter the 2018-19 as the ASUN’s clear favorites, as perennial favorite FGCU lost stars Brandon Goodwin and Zach Johnson and newcomer Liberty adjusts to a new conference.

Key dates for the Bisons nonconference schedule include trips to play major conference schools (Nov. 17 at SMU, Nov. 20 at TCU, Dec. 12 at Louisville, Dec. 30 at Clemson) and matchups with traditional mid-major powerhouses (Dec. 1 at Middle Tennessee, Nov. 15 and Dec. 4 against Belmont, Dec. 21 against Vermont) offer plenty of chances at gaining quality wins.

But, like any mid-major team with tournament dreams, winning the conference tournament is likely the only option.

Lipscomb will score a lot of points with a veteran-heavy squad this season, so they should be high on the list of must-watch mid-majors for the year.