The following article was previously published on The Flat Hat’s website during the week of Oct. 23. However, due to an unforeseen technological glitch, it was removed from the website for a period of time and was re-uploaded today, Nov. 8.
William and Mary’s men’s basketball team is about two weeks from the beginning of its 2023-24 season.
In its last season, the Tribe had a 13-20 record, and were 7-11 in Coastal Athletic Association conference play. Most of its wins were in home games, as they went 11-5 compared to its away record of 1-14. While this may not have been the season the Tribe wanted, the team is preparing for a different outcome this year.
While many teams rely on a group of seniors to lead them, the Tribe differs, having only a single senior in Jake Milkereit. Hailing from Dallas, Tx, Milkereit is looking forward to his final season with the Tribe. Regarding the roster of the team this season, he expressed optimism and anticipation of the team’s newcomers.
“Out of all the teams at William and Mary I’ve been on, I think we have the most talent this year in terms of depth,” Milkereit said. “Every guy on our roster has a chance to play significant minutes, and that’s something we haven’t had in the past.”
Freshman guard Jayden Lemond is one of these newcomers. Lemond is from Marietta, Ga and attended his prep years at Blair Academy in New Jersey. In his prep career, Lemond was a three-star recruit that was ranked 34th nationally in his recruiting class. He was a major contributor at Blair Academy and helped lead them to the state finals.
The second newcomer for the Tribe this year is freshman forward Tai Hamilton. He only played basketball for the last two years of high school, but nonetheless was selected for the Queen City All-Star game in 2023 and led the state of North Carolina with 4.6 blocks per game in the 2021-22 season.
Amongst these newcomers, graduate student Sean Houpt joins the Tribe as a transfer from Florida Institute of Technology. Houpt spent his prior years at Florida as a guard and earned the title of D2CCA All-South Region Second Team. He started all 28 games in his senior season and hopes to make a change in the Tribe’s record.
Junior Caleb Dorsey also joins the Tribe after his career at Pennsylvania State from 2020-23. Dorsey is joining the Tribe for this season and will play with his younger brother junior Gabe Dorsey. Sophomore Trey Moss is also joining the Tribe after two seasons at South Florida.
While the Tribe has many new faces, it still has many crucial returning players. Notably, junior forward Noah Collier, who started every game for the Tribe last season before having his season cut short due to injury, hopes to be back at full force to impact the Tribe this year.
With new players and a new outlook, the Tribe is ready to make an impact this season. Even though the Tribe has a younger roster this year, it has variety and depth.
The Tribe’s first game of the year is Nov. 6 against Regent at Kaplan Arena in Williamsburg, Va.