Texas State ready to defend Sun Belt title in 2021-22

If you’ve ever wondered how vital a role Mason Harrell plays for Texas State, Thursday night gave you a good idea.

Harrell and San Jose State transfer forward Nate Lacewell were sidelined with injuries during the Bobcats’ exhibition against the St. Mary’s Rattlers inside Strahan Arena. Harrell, who was selected to the 2021-22 Preseason All-Sun Belt First Team, was replaced in the starting lineup by Navarro College transfer guard Drue Drinnon.

It was a tough spot for Drinnon to be put in as a player who is still learning the system and hadn’t played in front of a San Marcos crowd. He led the team with four assists in a 52-43 win, but Texas State’s offense sputtered all night, shooting 21-62 from the field and committing 19 turnovers.

It’s a glimpse of what one of the Bobcats’ biggest challenges will be this year. Though the maroon and gold return four starters from a team that just won the conference regular season championship, they also lost six players to graduation and the transfer portal, leaving the team with 1,442 minutes to fill.

To contend for another league title, Texas State will need to replicate its depth from a season ago with a bench full of mostly new faces.

“I think the most important thing for us to do is to leave last year in the past and for us to focus on moving forward and finding out what's the narrative, what type of adverse situations are going to kind of help … reveal character,” head coach Terrence Johnson said. “We had some really good basketball players last year. And I think we have some talented guys this year, but (we've been trying to improve our) knowledge. So we're trying to make sure that our new guys pick up on the subtle nuances of our offense, the terminology of our defense.”

The Bobcats’ four incumbent starters will retain their respective roles. Harrell and Caleb Asberry, a fellow senior guard and preseason all-conference Second Team selection, will form one of the toughest backcourts to guard in the Sun Belt, both players able to score from almost anywhere. Fifth-year senior guard Shelby Adams will continue to be a stabilizing presence on the team and a rugged defender.

Fifth-year senior forward Isiah Small nearly left to join a high major school in the offseason but pulled his name out of the transfer portal on July 13. He remains the team’s main source of energy, someone who swats shots, cuts off passing lanes, fist pumps after a dunk and shoulder shimmies after canning 3-pointers. Johnson said it wasn’t too difficult welcoming him back into the fold.

“It was challenging, because it's so much uncertainty. But at the end of the day, you have to credit Isaiah for coming back … We don't see that a whole lot,” Johnson said. “I think Isiah is a phenomenal young man. I think he's a Bobcat for life. I think he's a true ambassador for this community and he loves being here. So I'm happy that he's here.”

Senior Nighael Ceaser and sophomore Nate Martin will split Texas State’s minutes at center. Ceaser didn’t start in any of the 25 games he played in last season but was usually a part of Johnson’s closing lineups in crunch time. Martin made 22 appearances in his rookie season but Johnson said plans to at least double the 8.2 minutes per game Martin averaged.

Seemingly every other spot in the rotation is up for grabs, though. Drinnon will likely take over for former guard Marlin Davis, who was added to the coaching staff as a graduate assistant, as the third guard behind Harrell and Asberry. Northern Oklahoma College-Tonkawa transfer Tyrel Morgan also figures to be an important contributor.

“He's standing out a lot,” Adams said. “Great potential, you know, great defensively. And he's the hardest person I had to block out since I've been here in my five years.”

Johnson will have tough choices to make when Small comes off the floor. During Thursday’s exhibition, Small exited the game and went to the locker room with trainers twice dealing with severe cramps. The head coach tried running Ceaser and Martin together, a lineup that provides suboptimal spacing on offense since neither big is much of a threat from long range. Johnson also tried sliding 6-foot-3 Adams and 6-foot-5 Morgan up to the four spot, providing better spacing on offense but surrendering size mismatches on defense.

Lacewell could be a candidate for those minutes. Johnson said he didn’t want to establish a firm timetable to return for Lacewell or Harrell after the scrimmage, but is hopeful he’ll have both back in the next week or two. Sophomore guard Dylan Dawson, Blinn College transfer guard Davion Coleman and junior guard Darien Jenkins — who redshirted last year with a season-ending injury — all saw action in the scrimmage but might have a tougher time carving out a role when Harrell is healthy.

A cloud of uncertainty loomed of Texas State a year ago, stemming from the fallout of former head coach Danny Kaspar’s resignation. The team still went on to finish the season 18-7 overall and earn its first Sun Belt trophy.

The cloud’s been lifted with Johnson’s interim tag removed, and the Bobcats could be more motivated than ever to reach the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1997 after getting upset by Appalachian State in the first round of last year’s conference tournament.

“I feel like for the guys returning, we knew we were right there,” Harrell said. “We know the steps we gotta take to get there and I think the game last year is something that would drive us this year and just keep us more focused.”