Demorest, GA – Despite 14 of the Lions 17 players being underclassmen, the Piedmont College Men’s Basketball team enters the 2014-15 season with a surprising amount of experience. All five starters from the end of last season return to the hardwood including the three leading scorers from the 2013-14 campaign.
Head Coach Greg Neeley returns for his second season at the helm of the Lions and felt that the beginning to his career at Piedmont was a strong start. “We set the tone for what we are going to be about as a program,” Neeley stated. “I’m really proud of how we set our foundation and now that those things are in place I think we can really focus on being as good as we can be on the basketball side.”
Those five returning starters are Chase England, Jordyn Propst, Brian Edwards, Jessie Jenkins and Peyton Luken with all but Jenkins entering their sophomore season at PC. Though they might still be considered underclassmen, Neeley says they are serving as leaders on this team.
“We can tell an added sense of maturity this season,” Neeley said. “Those guys know what to expect and that’s something we did not have last year. I think that’s been reflected in their work ethic every day.”
Those players helped lead the Lions to a 9-16 season in 2013-14 and finished just one spot outside of the USA South conference tournament. This season, Piedmont was selected to finish 9th in the league but Neeley knows it will take better than that to advance to the tourney.
“Our hope is to finish somewhere in the top eight and most importantly be playing our best basketball at the end of February,” Neeley said. “I don’t think there’s a big difference between finishing first and eighth. The top eight teams make the tournament and when you’re in, you’re in. Then you’ve just got to try and win three games in a row.”
Contributing to the youth of this sqaud are six freshmen that have been added to the mix including a few who may see early playing time to fill needs on the court. Justin Vallejo, a 6′ 6″ forward, is expected to contribute as a presence around the rim and proved his worth leading the team in rebounds with 5 in the exhibition against Mercer.
“All six of those guys [freshmen] have been great,” Neeley stated. “Their work ethic has been good. They are gym rat guys, which is something that we value, and we have been impressed.”
The Lions will be put to the test beginning the year taking on Division I Presbyterian on the road in Clinton, S.C. Tuesday night at 7:30 p.m. on the Big South Network.
For more information on the Piedmont men’s basketball program, follow Piedmont on Twitter (@PiedmontLions), like theLions on Facebook (facebook.com/PiedmontCollegeLions), or sign up for the Lions’ Roar text-messaging score & news alerts through the “All-Access” pulldown menu on the main page at PiedmontLions.com.
