2020–21 SMU Mustangs men's basketball team

2020–21 SMU Mustangs men's basketball
NIT, First Round
Conference	American Athletic Conference
Record	11–6 (7–4 AAC)
Head coach	Tim Jankovich (5th season)
Assistant coaches	Jay Duncan Yaphett King John Cooper
Home arena	Moody Coliseum

2020–21 American Athletic Conference men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
Wichita State	11	–	2		.846			16	–	6		.727
No. 6 Houston †	14	–	3		.824			28	–	4		.875
Memphis	11	–	4		.733			20	–	8		.714
SMU	7	–	4		.636			11	–	6		.647
Cincinnati	8	–	6		.571			12	–	11		.522
UCF	8	–	10		.444			11	–	12		.478
Tulsa	7	–	9		.438			11	–	12		.478
South Florida	4	–	10		.286			9	–	13		.409
Temple	4	–	10		.286			5	–	11		.313
Tulane	4	–	12		.250			10	–	13		.435
East Carolina	2	–	10		.167			8	–	11		.421
† 2021 AAC tournament winner Rankings from AP poll

The 2020–21 SMU Mustangs men's basketball team represented Southern Methodist University during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Mustangs, led by fifth-year head coach Tim Jankovich, played their home games at Moody Coliseum on their campus in University Park, Texas as members of the American Athletic Conference (AAC). They finished the season 11–6, 7–4 in AAC play, to finish in fourth place. They lost in the quarterfinals of the AAC tournament to Cincinnati. They received an invitation to the NIT where they lost in the first round to Boise State.

Previous season

The Mustangs finished the 2019–20 season 19–11, 9–9 in AAC play, to finish in seventh place. They entered as the No. 7 seed in the AAC tournament, which was ultimately cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[1]

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
C. J. White	13	G	6'5"	185	Junior	Little Rock, AR	Walk-on; transferred to Little Rock[2]
Isiaha Mike	15	F	6'8"	215	RS Junior	Scarborough, ON	Played professionally[3]
Grant Youngkin	20	G	6'3"	190	RS Junior	Washington, D.C.	Walk-on; not on team roster

Incoming transfers

Name	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Yor Anei	F	6'10"	235	Junior	Overland Park, KS	Transferred from Oklahoma State. Anei was granted a waiver for immediate eligibility on December 16 and will have two years of remaining eligibility.[4][5]

2020 recruiting class

SMU did not sign any recruits for the 2020 class.

2021 recruiting class

College recruiting information (2021)
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Jalen Smith PG	Orlando, FL	Oak Ridge High School	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	08/30/20[6]
	Star ratings: Rivals:   247Sports:    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "SMU 2021 Basketball Commitments". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 31, 2020. "2022 Team Ranking". Rivals.com. Retrieved August 31, 2020. "2021 SMU Mustangs Basketball 24/7 Sports Commits". 247sports.com. Retrieved August 31, 2020.

Preseason

AAC preseason media poll

On October 28, The American released the preseason poll and other preseason awards.[7]

Coaches Poll
Predicted finish	Team	Votes (1st place)
1	Houston	99 (2)
2	Memphis	90 (2)
3	SMU	80
4	Cincinnati	77
5	South Florida	61
6	Tulsa	50
7	Wichita State	44
8	UCF	37
9	East Carolina	34
10	Temple	18
11	Tulane	15

Preseason awards

• All-AAC First Team – Kendric Davis
• All-AAC Second Team – Tyson Jolly

Roster

2020–21 SMU Mustangs men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown G 0 Tyson Jolly 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS Sr Trinity Valley CC Muskogee, OK F 1 Feron Hunt 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Jr DeSoto High School DeSoto, TX G 2 Darius McNeill 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 185 lb (84 kg) RS Jr California Houston, TX G 3 Kendric Davis 5 ft 11 in (1.8 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr TCU Houston, TX G 4 Charles Smith IV 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 185 lb (84 kg) So Wheeler High School Atlanta, GA G 5 Emmanuel Bandoumel 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Jr Hill College Quebec City, QC G 10 Yor Anei 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Jr Oklahoma State Overland Park, KS G 14 William Douglas 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) 193 lb (88 kg) RS Jr Christian Brothers High School Memphis, TN F 21 Jahmar Young Jr. 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 215 lb (98 kg) RS So DeSoto High School DeSoto, TX F 22 Isiah Jasey 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 250 lb (113 kg) Sr Texas A&M Killeen, TX G 23 Alex Tabor Jr. (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 175 lb (79 kg) So Charlotte Country Day Charlotte, NC F 24 Everett Ray 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 220 lb (100 kg) RS Jr Trinity Christian Academy Irving, TX F 25 Ethan Chargois 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 235 lb (107 kg) Sr Union High School Tulsa, OK G 33 Darius McBride 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) RS Fr Westlake High School Cedar Park, TX	Head coach Tim Jankovich (Kansas State) Assistant coach(es) Jay Duncan (Northwood) Yaphett King (Cal State Fullerton) John Cooper (Wichita State) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on Injured Current redshirt Roster Last update: August 20, 2020

• Preseason: Tyson Jolly decided to opt out for the season.
• January 23, 2021: Tyson Jolly decided to rejoin the team for the remainder of the season.[8]

Schedule and results

The Mustangs began a series with Dayton in Dayton, Ohio beginning in the 2020–21 season.[9]

COVID-19 impact

Main article: Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on sports

Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the Mustangs' schedule was subject to change, including the cancellation or postponement of individual games, the cancellation of the entire season, or games played either with minimal fans or without fans in attendance and just essential personnel.

• Two previously scheduled games were postponed (vs. Arizona State and @ UNLV) were postponed to the 2021–22 season.
• The game @ South Florida scheduled for February 20 was moved to Dallas.[10]

Schedule

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Regular season
November 25, 2020* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Sam Houston State	W 97–67	1–0	33 – Davis	7 – Hunt	6 – Chargois	Moody Coliseum (1,530) University Park, TX
November 30, 2020* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Texas A&M–Corpus Christi	W 91–54	2–0	19 – Hunt	11 – Chargois	11 – Davis	Moody Coliseum (1,501) University Park, TX
December 2, 2020* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Houston Baptist	W 102–75	3–0	20 – tied	11 – Hunt	13 – Davis	Moody Coliseum (1,507) University Park, TX
December 5, 2020* 1:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Dayton	W 66–64	4–0	21 – Davis	6 – Davis	3 – Davis	UD Arena (0) Dayton, OH
December 8, 2020*		Vanderbilt American/SEC Alliance	Postponed due to COVID-19 issues[11]					Moody Coliseum  University Park, TX
December 16, 2020 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		East Carolina	W 70–55	5–0 (1–0)	13 – Davis	5 – Chargois	1 – tied	Moody Coliseum (1,564) University Park, TX
December 30, 2020 1:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Temple	W 79–71	6–0 (2–0)	17 – McNeill	9 – Chargois	5 – Davis	Liacouras Center  Philadelphia, PA
January 3, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPN2		No. 5 Houston Rivalry	L 60–74	6–1 (2–1)	23 – Davis	12 – Hunt	4 – Davis	Moody Coliseum  University Park, TX
January 6, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPNU		Cincinnati	L 69–76	6–2 (2–2)	14 – Davis	10 – Hunt	14 – Davis	Moody Coliseum (1,568) University Park, TX
January 11, 2021 2:00 p.m., ESPN+		Temple	W 79–68	7–2 (3–2)	20 – Davis	11 – Hunt	8 – Davis	Moody Coliseum (1,417) University Park, TX
January 20, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at Tulane	Postponed due to COVID-19 issues[12]					Devlin Fieldhouse  New Orleans, LA
January 23, 2021 1:00 p.m., ESPNU		at UCF	W 78–65	8–2 (4–2)	21 – Davis	8 – Hunt	9 – Davis	Addition Financial Arena (1,394) Orlando, FL
January 26, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPNU		at Memphis Previously scheduled for January 14	L 72–76	8–3 (4–3)	15 – Jolly	6 – Jasey	6 – Davis	FedExForum (2,157) Memphis, TN
January 28, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN2		Memphis	W 67–65	9–3 (5–3)	17 – Hunt	6 – Jolly	8 – Davis	Moody Coliseum (1,698) University Park, TX
January 31, 2021 12:00 p.m., ESPN		at No. 6 Houston rivalry	L 48–70	9–4 (5–4)	11 – Davis	8 – Hunt	4 – Davis	Fertitta Center  Houston, TX
February 3, 2021 8:00 p.m., ESPNU		at Tulsa Previously scheduled for February 13	W 65–63	10–4 (6–4)	22 – Davis	12 – Hunt	10 – Davis	Reynolds Center (100) Tulsa, OK
February 6, 2021 11:00 a.m., ESPNU		South Florida	Postponed due to COVID-19 issues[10]					Moody Coliseum  University Park, TX
February 8, 2021 4:00 p.m., ESPN2		at East Carolina	W 71–56	11–4 (7–4)	25 – Davis	9 – Hunt	8 – Davis	Williams Arena (51) Greenville, NC
February 17, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Tulane	Postponed due to severe weather[13]					Moody Coliseum  University Park, TX
February 20, 2021 11:00 a.m., ESPNU		South Florida	Postponed due to COVID-19 issues[14]					Moody Coliseum  University Park, TX
February 23, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPNU		UCF	Postponed due to COVID-19 issues[14]					Moody Coliseum  University Park, TX
February 25, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPN2		at Wichita State Previously scheduled for February 28	Postponed due to COVID-19 issues[15]					Charles Koch Arena  Wichita, KS
February 28, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		Wichita State Previously scheduled for January 17	Postponed due to COVID-19 issues[14]					Moody Coliseum  University Park, TX
March 4, 2021 6:00 p.m., ESPNU		at Cincinnati	Cancelled due to COVID-19 issues[16]					Fifth Third Arena  Cincinnati, OH
March 7, 2021 2:00 p.m., ESPN+		Tulsa	Cancelled due to COVID-19 issues[17]					Moody Coliseum  University Park, TX
AAC tournament
March 12, 2021 2:00 p.m., ESPN2	(4)	vs. (5) Cincinnati Quarterfinals	L 71–74	11–5	35 – Davis	12 – Chargois	4 – Davis	Dickies Arena (778) Fort Worth, TX
NIT
March 18, 2021 8:00 p.m., ESPN	(3)	vs. (2) Boise State First round – Memphis bracket	L 84–85	11–6	23 – Davis	7 – Davis	12 – Davis	Comerica Center (836) Frisco, TX
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central.

Awards and honors

American Athletic Conference honors

All-AAC First Team

• Kendric Davis

All-AAC Third Team

• Feron Hunt

Source:[18]

References

1. "Men's Basketball 2019-20 Season In Review". smumustangs.com. SMU Athletics. April 1, 2020. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
2. Stoia, George (July 28, 2020). "UALR men's basketball picks up SMU transfer". arkansasonline.com. Arkansas Democrat Gazette. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
3. @JonRothstein (July 7, 2020). "SMU's Isiaha Mike tells me that he will sign with an agent and remain in the 2020 Draft" (Tweet). Retrieved July 9, 2020 – via Twitter.
4. Embody, Billy (July 20, 2020). "SMU announces Oklahoma State transfer Yor Anei". 247sports.com. Retrieved August 17, 2020.
5. Bieler, Des (December 17, 2020). "NCAA grants blanket waiver to transfer athletes, most of whom can play right away". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 22, 2020.
6. Evans, Corey [@coreyevans_10] (August 30, 2020). "Three-star guard Jalen Smith just committed to SMU, he tells @Rivals" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
7. "Houston Tabbed as 2020-21 American Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Favorite". theamerican.org. October 28, 2020. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
8. Blum, Sam (January 29, 2021). "SMU guard Tyson Jolly opens up on struggles that kept him away from team, why he rejoined Mustangs". dallasnews.com. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
9. "SMU Adds Home-And-Home With Dayton". smumustangs.com. SMU Athletics. May 8, 2020. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
10. "The American Announces Men's Basketball Schedule Changes". theamerican.org. January 27, 2021. Retrieved June 22, 2024.
11. Embody, Billy (December 2, 2020). "SMU Basketball Game vs. Vanderbilt Canceled". 247sports.com. Pony Stampede. Retrieved December 3, 2020.
12. "Tulane-UCF Game Scheduled for Dec. 30 Postponed". theamerican.org. January 18, 2021.
13. "The American Announces Changes to Men's Basketball Schedule". February 16, 2021.
14. "The American Announces Men's Basketball Schedule Changes". theamerican.org. February 18, 2021.
15. "The American Announces Men's Basketball Schedule Changes". theamerican.org. February 22, 2021.
16. "SMU-Cincinnati Men's Basketball Game Scheduled for March 4 Cancelled". February 28, 2021.
17. "The American Announces Changes to Final Weekend of Regular Season". theamerican.org. March 2, 2021.
18. "American Athletic Conference Announces Men's Basketball Honors". theamerican.org. March 10, 2021. Retrieved June 22, 2024.