Busting Brackets
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NCAA Basketball: Ranking teams in the 2019 Charleston Classic

By Mychal Hunter

CINCINNATI, OHIO - FEBRUARY 24: Tyrique Jones #0 of the Xavier Musketeers celebrates after the 66-54 win over the Villanova Wildcats at Cintas Center on February 24, 2019 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)
CINCINNATI, OHIO - FEBRUARY 24: Tyrique Jones #0 of the Xavier Musketeers celebrates after the 66-54 win over the Villanova Wildcats at Cintas Center on February 24, 2019 in Cincinnati, Ohio. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images) /
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TULSA, OKLAHOMA – MARCH 22: The Buffalo Bulls cheer squad attends. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images)
TULSA, OKLAHOMA – MARCH 22: The Buffalo Bulls cheer squad attends. (Photo by Harry How/Getty Images) /

5. Buffalo Bulls

The Bulls are perhaps the biggest wildcard in this tournament. Coming off of a historic 32-win season in 2018-19, the Bulls are replacing head coach Nate Oats along with arguably the greatest group of seniors to ever come through the program.

C.J. Massinburg, Nick Perkins, Jeremy Harris, Dontay Caruthers, and Montell McRae have all moved on and taken their combined 2,182 points from last season with them. Massinburg, the MAC Player of the Year in 2018-19, is now the second all-time leading scorer in program history going back to 1982-83. There is a legitimate argument that he was the greatest player to ever come through the program.

The news is not all bad for the Bulls, however. Jim Whitesell takes over the big seat and leads a still-talented team into the 2019-20 season. Jayvon Graves enters his junior campaign as the alpha after a sophomore season that saw him average 9.7 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.9 assists and shot north of 37% from deep. Davonta Jordan also returns this season bringing an elite defensive presence on the perimeter. Jordan’s 1.5 steals per game and 95.2 defensive rating means that the Bulls have the potential to once again be one of the best defensive teams in the country. (For those who may not understand defensive rating, it is the estimate of points allowed per 100 possessions. For a comparison, ACC Defensive Player of the Year De’Andre Hunter had a D-Rating of 94.9 last season.)

Their perimeter talent doesn’t end there. Antwain Johnson returns to Division 1 after a year at the JUCO level. Johnson was a double-digit scorer at MTSU in 2017-18 and averaged nearly 16 points per game last season at Chipola. His 3-point percentage dipped at the JUCO level, but he is a career 37.3% shooter from deep at D-1 level in 67 career games.

Former top-150 recruits Ronald Segu and Jeenathan Williams also return for their sophomore seasons. While neither averaged double-digit minutes as freshmen last season, each saw action in 36 games. Expect an expanded role for each. Keep an eye on Gabe Grant as well: the 6-foot-6 swingman was a prolific scorer at the JUCO level for a couple of years before becoming a bit player at Houston in 2017-18.

There are some questions regarding their frontcourt, but we will have to wait and see how that plays out.

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