Wrenball Preview

Year One of the Brian Earl Experiment at William and Mary showed promise, as the Tribe debuted a new coach, an entertaining, up-tempo style of play and a return to the top half of conference standings. 

Following a successful run at Cornell, Earl convinced a handful of key contributors on a roster that had scuffled along under previous coach Dane Fischer to stick around and to give him and his system a chance. The holdovers and a wave of transfers produced the program’s first winning record since 2020 and the Before Times, pre-Covid, when Tribe all-timer Nathan Knight roamed the landscape. William and Mary finished 17-15 overall and a spunky 11-7, good for fourth place, in the distended patchwork that is the Coastal Athletic Association. 

The Tribe’s calling card was pace and perimeter shooting. More than half of their shots were 3-point attempts. They were third in the nation in 3-point attempt rate (.517). They were fifth nationally in 3-point field goal shots per game and tied for 15th in 3-pointers made per game. Seven players attempted at least 80 shots from behind the arc. They were also 45th in “pace” – the number of possessions per 40 minutes – and second in the CAA in scoring (77.7 ppg) (Brief aside: I’m well aware that “Tribe” is a singular nickname and therefore an “it” and not a “they;” I adhered to that inconvenient propriety for 30 years in my previous life and I’m thankful that management here at the digital tree fort is more grammatically lenient). 

Encores and continuity are tricky in the new era of NIL and rampant player transfers, components that prematurely drove away championship coaches Jay Wright at Villanova and Tony Bennett at Virginia. By nature, transfers are upperclassmen and sometimes graduate students with one or two years of eligibility remaining. Coaches often aren’t simply filling a few roster spots with a transfer or a couple of freshmen recruits, but bringing in a vanload of fresh faces who see opportunity and are happy to wear the school laundry for a season or two. 

Such is the case in Williamsburg. The Tribe cycled out eight players from last season’s team, including five of the top seven scorers. They lost 80 percent of their scoring and almost 70 percent of their rebounding. Earl brought in eight new players – seven transfers and a freshman, nearly all of whom are guards and wings with perimeter chops and decent shooting eyes. Returning leaders are a trio of seniors, 6-4 Kyle Pulliam (9.9 ppg, .313 pct from 3-point range), 6-5 Chase Lowe (8.4 ppg, 5.2 rpg) and 6-2 Kyle Frazier (4.7 ppg, 33 pct 3-point shooter). Newcomers who figure to contribute include 6-7 junior wing Tunde Vahlberg Fasasi from LaSalle (5.9 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 34.8 pct 3-pt shooter), 6-6 graduate student Jo’El Emanuel from Fairleigh Dickinson (11 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 36 pct from 3), 6-6 graduate student Cade Haskins from Dartmouth (9.6 ppg, 3.5 rpg), 6-4 junior Reese Miller from Blinn CC (41.6 pct 3-point shooter) and 6-0 graduate student Jhei-R Jones from D2 Winona State (10.9 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 3.1 apg). 

Two additions who may have outsized importance are junior transfer Kilian Brockhoff, a 6-9, 235-pound German making his third stop after seasons at UC Santa Barbara and Saint Louis, and Kaleb Spencer, a 6-8, 225-pound freshman from, believe it or not, here on the sandbar and who did a year’s prep work at highly regarded Fork Union Military Academy in Virginia. 

For all of Earl’s reliance on a quick pace and perimeter shooting, his system requires a solid post presence for offensive balance and rim protection. It’s not a coincidence that the Tribe limped home last season, losing its last four and six of its last nine, after a season-ending injury to productive 6-8 forward Noah Collier. Without a consistent backup, opponents took advantage at both ends, extending their defense to challenge W&M shooters and working inside on offense. 

Earl’s frequent all-court pressure is designed more to goose pace than to turn over opponents and generate easy offense; the Tribe committed almost as many turnovers as they forced last season, and though they scored a lot, they also allowed a lot (76.4 ppg) and their field goal defense was in the bottom half of the conference. Makes for interesting viewing. 

The Tribe opens at home Nov. 3 vs. Georgian Court University, which I believe houses the athletic department for Downton Abbey, and has non-conference dates against state rivals Richmond, Old Dominion, Radford and Norfolk State. There’s a trip to Queens, N.Y., to face Rick Pitino and St. John’s, as well as road games at George Washington (G:TB Northern Va. chapter alert!), Duquesne and Bowling Green, and a date versus Texas El Paso at a Jacksonville, Fla., tournament. 

William and Mary was picked fourth in the CAA behind Towson, defending tournament champ UNC Wilmington and College of Charleston. Earl set a worthy standard in his first season, but again he must identify a cohesive rotation from among a slew of newcomers and returnees eager to make a significant impact. If the “bigs” develop, the Tribe has a chance to build on last year and not simply hoist and hope.