Newberry, S.C. - The Newberry College men's basketball program will be kicking off the 2021-22 season this weekend as they host the UNC Pembroke Braves on Friday at 7 p.m and the Golden Bulls of Johnson C. Smith on Saturday at 6 p.m. in the Newberry Classic.
The Wolves are coming off of a 9-6 season that was highlighted by a 71-66 victory over Lincoln Memorial who were ranked No. 4 in the country at the time.
Newberry is led by a trio of key returnees in TJ Brown, QuanDaveon McCollum, and Marcus Ford with both Brown and McCollum receiving Preseason First-Team All-South Atlantic Conference honors. Brown averaged 19.3 points on 44.1 percent from the field while McCollum put up 18.6 points and 9 rebounds per game. McCollum also led the SAC in rebounding and double-doubles. Ford also averaged 12.4 points per game, but he had been averaging 17 points and scored a season high of 27 points on two occasions before having his season derailed by an injury.
The Wolves will also be looking for other players to step up, such as Andrew Robinson and Tai Giger who have already proven to be capable scorers in their own right, averaging 6.6 and 8.4 points respectively.
The Wolves hope to open the season with a pair of victories this weekend in Eleazer arena before an early start to conference play when they travel to face Mars Hill on Wednesday Nov. 17.
