Busting Brackets
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Mid-major Basketball: Early 2020-21 preview for Belmont Basketball

By Drew Schmelzer

JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA - MARCH 21: Adam Kunkel #5 of the Belmont Bruins reacts on the bench in the second half of play against the Maryland Terrapins during the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at VyStar Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena on March 21, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
JACKSONVILLE, FLORIDA - MARCH 21: Adam Kunkel #5 of the Belmont Bruins reacts on the bench in the second half of play against the Maryland Terrapins during the first round of the 2019 NCAA Men's Basketball Tournament at VyStar Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena on March 21, 2019 in Jacksonville, Florida. (Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images) /
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DAYTON, OHIO – MARCH 19: Grayson Murphy #2 of the Belmont Bruins (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images)
DAYTON, OHIO – MARCH 19: Grayson Murphy #2 of the Belmont Bruins (Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) /

Preview of Bruins backcourt

Belmont returns one of the best and most seasoned mid major backcourts in the country and that is what wins games in March. Grayson Murphy (9.8 Pts, 7.4 Reb, 6.2 Ast) and Adam Kunkel (16.5 Pts, 2.8 Reb, 2.6 Ast), both First Team All-OVC from a season ago comprise one of the most balanced backcourts statistically in college basketball. Murphy is the best defender in the OVC averaging 3 steals per game and ranked first on the Bruins in assists, but he is also a jack of all trades type point guard.

His 7.4 rebounds per game last season not only led Belmont but also make him the best rebounder from the point guard position in the country. He’s not a shooter, but that’s where Kunkel comes in. His 2.5 3-point makes, and 2.6 free throw makes are both tops for Belmont, and while not on Murphy’s level, he is a solid rebounder for a guard. Alexander can lean on the junior duo all day to run his high-octane offense.

While you can’t ask for much more in a backcourt, there are reinforcements. Nick Hopkins (5.6 Pts, 1.6 Reb, 1.2 Ast) is coming off an interesting junior season where he only played 13 minutes per game which was a four minute decrease from the season before. His 3-point percentage dipped from 38% to 33% from his sophomore to junior seasons and he takes a lot more threes than he does from inside the arc, so his playing time as a senior will depend on him raising that percentage. It’s going to have to get better considering who is behind him.

There are high hopes for incoming freshman Jacobi Wood. All Wood did in his senior season at Cleveland High School was earn Tennessee’s AAA Mr. Basketball while averaging 28 points per game and leading his team to a 33-1 record. Wood was garnering late interest (no offers yet) from Power 5 programs but stuck with what felt like home, the feeling many have when visiting the 93 acres of beauty the Belmont campus sits on.

Mitch Listau (2.8 Pts, 0.8 Reb, 0.8 Ast) will challenge Hopkins and Wood for playing time backing up Murphy and Kunkel.

The other piece to the backcourt that makes Belmont potentially even more dangerous is the expected next steps for two 6’6 wings in junior, Tate Pierson (3.1 Pts, 1.2 Reb, 0.5 Ast) and sophomore, Ben Sheppard (2.9 Pts, 2.2 Reb, 0.6 Ast). Both saw action in key spots last season, but the depth of the Bruins made it difficult to carve out a role larger the 11 minutes per contest. Pierson is a Brentwood, TN native and led the team in 3-point percentage a in 2019-20 while Sheppard is more apt to play inside the 3-point line and is a better rebounder. They should both see expanded roles in 2020-21.

There is a lot to like about Casey Alexander’s backcourt, and again, good experienced guard play is what takes mid major programs places in the NCAA Tournament.