New Horizons

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Good morning. Today’s Field of 68 Daily is written by Sean Paul (follow him at @SeanPaulCBB).

Let’s get to the news.

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1. Are we headed for another Horizon surprise?

Take your best guess at who’ll win the Horizon … because it’s a total toss-up. Few people predicted Robert Morris winning the regular-season title and the tourney title last season, so we might have a repeat surprise.

Let’s look at the contenders.

Milwaukee should be good and entertaining. The Panthers brought in a pair of established scorers: Seth Hubbard, who went for 8.4 ppg at Toledo last season, but did average 14.1 ppg two seasons ago at Western Michigan. The other is former NJCAA POY, Amar Augillard, who scored 20+ points in four of 11 games with Fresno State last season.

Still, forwards Faizon Fields and Senou Konneh will be the keys. Fields averaged 6.7 ppg and 4.9 rpg in 18 mpg, while DePaul transfer Konneh adds untapped potential. Can he deliver?

I’d take my shot on the Panthers as the team to beat. Bart Lundy can coach and he has two dudes who can really score it.

Another contender is Wright State, which made some interesting portal moves. The Raiders replaced top scorers Brandon Noel and Alex Huibregste with Merrimack’s Bryan Etumnu (8.4 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 2.1 bpg) and Vermont’s Sam Alamutu (5.6 ppg, 6.6 rpg). Those two could make the Raiders a top-tier defensive unit.

As for scoring, maybe TJ Burch (4.5 ppg at Ball State) or Dominic Pangois (6.2 ppg at Stephen F. Austin) can help. But the Raiders will need to be a legit top-100 level defense to make a run for the Horizon title.

Also, I wouldn’t sleep on Cleveland State. First-year coach Rob Summers brought in a talented squad via the portal.

It starts with the versatile duo of Akron transfer Josiah Harris and GW transfer Dayan Nessah. The 6-7 Harris can shoot it, but was a poor 27% from the floor and 33% from 3. He needs to use his size to his advantage and score inside more. Nessah looks like a portal steal — if his 17.7 ppg, 9.3 rpg effort during the FIBA U19 was any indication.

The guard play will determine how far the Vikings advance. They brought in stud NAIA guard Tre Beard (19.1 ppg at Shawnee State) who shot 47% from 3. Ice Emery, who averaged 9.4 ppg at Western Carolina, also should play a lot.

Finally, I have to mention Robert Morris. The Colonials lost league POY in Alvaro Folguerias, plus Amarion Dickerson, Josh Omojafo, Kam Woods, and DJ Smith — all five starters.

Coach Andy Toole struck JUCO gold last year with Dickerson. He'll hope to do the same with 5-10 guard Albert Vargas (17.4 ppg) and Jeremiah Littlejohn (18.2 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 4.0 apg). Both were very efficient at the JUCO level.

Plus, IU Indy transfer DaSean Goode (7.8 ppg, 6.0 rpg) and North Carolina A&T transfer Nikolaos Chitikoudis (10.8 ppg, 9.3 rpg) will make a good frontcourt.

2. Kentucky’s managing high expectations (and injuries)

What’s a Midwest basketball trip without a stop in Lexington? Jeff Goodman and Rob Dauster ended their road swing by talking to Kentucky coach Mark Pope and his players on Tuesday.

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