NCAA Basketball: 20 sophomores under pressure to break out in 2020-21

Romeo Weems – DePaul Blue Demons

To replace the outgoing Paul Reed and lesser-known transfers, the Blue Demons have brought in a whopping five transfers this offseason. The one with the most potential impact would be guard Javon Freeman-Liberty, but he still needs a waiver to play next season. Either way, the most important player on the roster may be Weems, a former top-50 prospect who averaged 8.0 ppg and 4.9 rpg as a freshman.

A brutal stretch to start Big East play limited Weems’ numbers overall but there were a number of games where he showed All-Conference potential. Already a 30 mpg consistent starter, look for the 6’7 wing to take a bigger role on the offense and be a candidate for 2021 early draft entrant.

Dylan Van Eyck – Iona Gaels

With Hall of Famer Rick Pitino coming on board, expect a ton of eyes on how he recruits and develops players for the MAAC program. One of them is Van Eyck, a 6’9 forward who started 13 games and averaged 3.5 ppg and 4.2 rpg.

The graduations of both Tajuan Agee and Mohamed Thiam opens the frontcourt up for Van Eyck to have a big sophomore campaign. And now with Pitino at the helm, don’t be surprised if he ends up as an All-MAAC performer either this or next year.