SoCon Basketball: Ranking of 25 best players from last decade (2013-23)

By Joey Loose | Aug 25, 2023

Mar 23, 2019; Jacksonville, FL, USA; Wofford Terriers guard Fletcher Magee (3) leads his team in a huddle before their game against the Kentucky Wildcatsin the second round of the 2019 NCAA Tournament at Jacksonville Veterans Memorial Arena. Mandatory Credit: John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports /

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SoCon Basketball Davidson Wildcats forward De’Mon Brooks Kim Klement-USA TODAY Sports /

5. De’Mon Brooks

Brooks is a 6’7 forward from Charlotte who stayed near home, playing his college ball at Davidson. In actuality, Brooks played with the Wildcats for their last four seasons in the SoCon before joining the A-10 in 2014. What this also means is that we’ll only be focusing on Brooks’ senior season today, though it was quite the final campaign.

After emerging as a potent scorer and rebounder earlier in his career, Brooks had his finest effort as a senior, averaging 19.0 points and 7.1 rebounds a game. He led Davidson to a regular season title and had plenty of great performances throughout that season. While the Wildcats fell short in their final SoCon Tournament, Brooks went out on a high note, scoring a career-high 29 points against Missouri in the NIT in his final collegiate game.

Brooks had one of the most productive careers in the SoCon in recent memory; we didn’t mention his pair of SoCon Tournament MVPs and previous trips to the Big Dance. As a senior, he was named the league’s Player of the Year for a second time in his career, emerging as a top-level scorer and shooter while at Davidson. Brooks was fantastic and likely could’ve topped this list had we included a few more seasons, becoming yet another star for those Wildcats.