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Belmont Basketball: 2022-23 season preview and outlook for the Bruins

By Harry Schroeder

Nov 22, 2021; Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; Belmont Bruins head coach Casey Alexander reacts to a play against LSU Tigers during the first half at Pete Maravich Assembly Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports
Nov 22, 2021; Baton Rouge, Louisiana, USA; Belmont Bruins head coach Casey Alexander reacts to a play against LSU Tigers during the first half at Pete Maravich Assembly Center. Mandatory Credit: Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports /
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Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles transfer guard Keishawn Davidson Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports
Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles transfer guard Keishawn Davidson Petre Thomas-USA TODAY Sports /

Projected starters for Belmont Basketball

Ben Sheppard – Guard

Belmont’s lone returning starter is a great one. Ben Sheppard led the Bruins in scoring and Alexander raves about his defensive abilities. The 6’6 senior was an Ohio Valley Conference all-league honoree and named to the league’s all-defensive team.

Alexander calls Sheppard the model of how a player can develop from part-time freshman to star player and now he is a great foundation piece to build on.

Keishawn Davidson – Guard

Landing Tennessee Tech transfer Keishawn Davidson filled a huge hole in the Bruin starting lineup. The 6’2 guard was a ‘do-everything’ player for the Golden Eagles. Davidson ranked in the Ohio Valley Conference’s top ten in six different categories.

While playing 32 minutes per game the Tennessee native averaged 10.4 points, 3.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists and led the OVC in assist-turnover ratio.

Drew Friberg – Forward

Friberg is the perfect fit for the three-point oriented Bruins. The Princeton grad-transfer led the Ivy League in three-point field goals (75) while converting 40 percent of his long-distance attempts. The Ivy League doesn’t allow graduates to play and he needed a new team.

At 6’7 Friberg could find himself spending some time in the post.

E.J. Bellinger/Michael Shanks – Guard

Alexander’s ‘four-out’ offense will utilize a wave of perimeter players. Bellinger and Shanks are athletic guards with good size and a lot of experience in Bruin program. Bellinger (senior) and Shanks (junior) have virtually identical statistics averaging three points per game while making 46 percent of their shots.

Even Brauns – Center

If Alexander utilizes a true center Brauns and fellow junior Frank Jakubicek spent the last two seasons backing up Muszynski and each came to Belmont with outstanding high school resumes. At 6’9 Brauns is three inches taller than Jakubicek. Both players played around eight minutes per game for last year’s second-place team.