Andy Enfield’s 10th season as head coach of Southern California tips off Monday in Los Angeles against his former program, Florida Gulf Coast.

USC embarks on the 2022-23 campaign in the familiar spot of replacing key talent from the prior season: After losing one-and-done standouts-turned-NBA lottery picks Onyeka Okongwu and Evan Mobley in 2019-20 and 2020-21, respectively, the Trojans replace three-year key contributor Isaiah Mobley heading into this year.

However, a veteran backcourt provides a foundation for USC to reach a third consecutive NCAA Tournament and potentially contend for a Pac-12 title. Versatile wing Drew Peterson (12.4 points per game) and defensive stopper Boogie Ellis (12.5) finished as two of the team’s top three scorers a season ago, and Peterson finished third in rebounds (6.2) and tied for first in assists (3.3).

“They’ve had outstanding careers so far,” Enfield said of Peterson and Ellis during Pac-12 media day in October. “We’re looking forward to them leading our group of sophomores and freshmen.”

The incoming corps of freshmen made up a highly rated signing class, which has become the standard for USC in recent years. Ranked No. 9 nationally by 247Sports, the group includes 5-star center and 7-foot-1 pro prospect Vince Iwuchukwu.

As for the sophomores, the group includes Reese Dixon-Waters, a primary contributor off the bench a season ago, and Kobe Johnson, who was voted a team captain.

Before his tenure at USC, Enfield led Florida Gulf Coast to national prominence in 2013 as the first-ever No. 15 seed to reach the Sweet 16 of the NCAA Tournament. The team earned the moniker of “Dunk City” for its entertaining style of play.

The Eagles proved not to be one-year wonders, reaching the NCAA Tournament twice more after Enfield’s departure. They welcome a new head coach this season in Pat Chambers, formerly of Penn State and a longtime assistant to Jay Wright at Villanova.

Chambers inherits a trio of capable shooters from a team that won 22 games a season ago: Cyrus Largie, who knocked down almost 51.8 percent of his shots from the floor in 2021-22, while Caleb Catto (54) and Austin Richie (56) combined to make 110 3-pointers.

Chambers praised Catto as “the glue” speaking the Naples Daily News in the fall.

“Everybody respects him, everybody trusts him, everybody loves him,” Chambers said. “To have somebody like that as a new coach to lean on, to be able to ask questions, that’s really vital as we transition here headed into the season.”

–Field Level Media

Kentucky coach John Calipari is trying to hold down early-season expectations for his No. 4 Wildcats.

They will open the season Monday night by hosting Howard, and Calipari posted a video on Twitter in which he cautioned that the team might not be on schedule right out of the gate.

Key players, including center and reigning National Player of the Year Oscar Tshiebwe and preseason All-SEC guard Sahvir Wheeler, have missed time in preseason practice with injuries, perhaps slowing the team’s efforts to build early-chemistry.

“We’ve got the player of the year and another first-team all-conference (player),” Calipari said. “We’ve got good young guys, but let me explain to you and you know I’m honest about stuff. We’re not where we need to be right now and I’m looking at November and December saying, ‘We could be a little shaky.'”

Kentucky is excited about the return of guard CJ Fredrick, who missed all of last season after transferring from Iowa because of hamstring surgery.

“I tell people that this year off actually kind of was like a blessing in disguise,” Fredrick said. “I was able to get my body in much better shape. The Big Ten and SEC are way different, so I was able to get in shape for what this kind of style of play was going to be like.”

Calipari praised Fredrick for his hard work and leadership.

“He moves his team, he plays so hard, he talks on defense,” Calipari said. “It’s nice when you have older guys that really know what they’re doing out there.”

Forward Jacob Toppin, like his coach, cautioned that Kentucky has “a long ways to go.”

But, he added, “Once we click fully, I think we’re going be one of the best defensive teams in the nation.”

They’ll be facing a Bisons team that last season led the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference in scoring (76.4 points per game), 3-point shooting percentage (35.9) and free-throw shooting percentage (74.5).

Howard (16-13, 9-5 MEAC last season) was picked to finish third in the MEAC.

Sophomore guard Elijah Hawkins was named to the All-MEAC Preseason First Team and junior forward Steve Settle III was named to the second team.

Hawkins was named MEAC Rookie of the Year last season after he led the conference in assists per game (5.6). He was 15th in the country in steals per game (2.21). Settle started 28 of 29 games last season and was named to the All-MEAC second team.

Junior forward Jordan Wood who stood out the most in exhibitions wins against Bowie State (114-77) and Multnomah (81-69). Wood led the team in scoring in both games, averaging 21 points.

“We’ve talked to him about taking strides and having a breakthrough with his training,” coach Kenneth Blakeney said. “He’s achieved every benchmark that we’ve set for him and I see him growing with his confidence daily.”

Blakeney said his team benefited from facing Multnomah’s zone defense for the entire 40 minutes.

“For the first time we had a chance to play against a zone,” Blakeney said. “It was great for us to take a step in our development and growth.”

–Field Level Media

Kansas State plays its first game under the leadership of coach Jerome Tang on Monday as the Wildcats welcome Texas-Rio Grande Valley to Manhattan, Kan.

Tang, a longtime assistant at Baylor where he was part of the 2021 national championship run, brings a load of enthusiasm to the program.

“It’s the best league in America,” Tang said. “The predictor of future success is past success. … We have great history and arguably the best fan base in the country. I mean, they are so passionate about K-State and K-State athletics and K-State basketball. It’s just a blast to be around.”

Tang will need more than enthusiasm, however, as he molds a team with 11 new faces into a cohesive unit with the assistance of an entirely new staff. Figuring out roles for everyone will be key.

One of two returning players, point guard Markquis Nowell, should run the show. One of the newcomers, Keyontae Johnson, likely will be another focus of the offense. Johnson was the 2020-21 preseason SEC Player of the Year at Florida before health issues took him off the court for nearly two years.

The Wildcats were picked to finish last in the Big 12 this season, something that provides motivation.

“It’s a motivating factor for all of us just knowing how we’ve all been doubted all our lives,” Johnson said. “Just seeing (the poll) motivates us to practice even harder knowing that teams expect us to be the bottom of the conference.”

Head coach Matt Figger, who was on Frank Martin’s staff at Kansas State from 2007-12, returns for his second season at Texas-Rio Grande Valley.

“(We are) miles ahead (of last season),” Figger responded when asked on the WAC Hoops Digest podcast about where his team stands. “I really like the group of guys we’ve got. Now, where does that put us? I won’t know until we play a game.”

The team finished 8-23 last season, including 3-15 in the WAC.

The Vaqueros return Justin Johnson, who averaged 17.7 points and 6.7 rebounds per game last season, but he’s the only significant contributor who is back.

–Field Level Media

After a disappointing season last year, Oklahoma State coach Mike Boynton is eager to turn the page.

The Cowboys do that Monday when they open the season against UT Arlington in Stillwater, Okla.

“I don’t want to keep dwelling on last year,” Boynton said.

Oklahoma State began last season with plenty of hope but stumbled to a 15-15 finish after the NCAA implemented a one-year postseason ban.

“I think the truth of the matter is, last year’s team, it was going to be hard to fight without having true team goals to be able to accomplish,” Boynton said. “There were certainly some more personal agendas that reared throughout the course of last year.”

Much of Oklahoma State’s hopes for this season rely on the returning trio of Avery Anderson III, Moussa Cisse and Bryce Thompson.

Thompson might have the biggest upside after averaging 10.6 points per game in his first season since transferring from Kansas.

The Cowboys lost several transfers and added two with immediate eligibility.

High Point transfer John-Michael Wright figures to be Oklahoma State’s starting point guard after averaging 18.4 points, 4.4 rebounds and 3.4 assists last season.

The Cowboys and Mavericks have plenty of recent history.

This is the third consecutive season the teams will have played in the season opener, with Oklahoma State winning each of the last two seasons — including an 88-45 victory at home to open last season.

The Cowboys lead the all-time series 12-1, winning seven consecutive games. Last year’s 43-point victory was the largest in the series.

Only four players who played in last year’s game return for the Mavericks, though, as Greg Young’s team features an influx of new faces.

The Mavericks are coming off an 11-18 season in Young’s first season.

UTA added a handful of junior college transfers in the offseason, a focus for Young, who was a longtime junior college coach.

A potential leader of the group is Marion Humphrey, a 6-foot-3 guard who averaged 8.5 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.8 assists at Salt Lake Community College last season.

“Just an elite athlete — fast, physical, can guard you, can finish,” Young told WAC hoops digest on Humphrey.

–Field Level Media

Ole Miss will unveil a squad that looks vastly different from last season when it opens against visiting Alcorn State on Monday in Oxford, Miss.

The Rebels had eight players transfer or graduate since going 13-19 overall and 4-14 in Southeastern Conference play, including leading scorer Jarkel Joiner (13.2 points per game) to NC State.

Mississippi, however, returns its backcourt of Daeshun Ruffin (12.6 ppg, 3.4 apg) and Matthew Murrell (12.1 ppg. 3.0 rpg).

“We feel really good,” Ole Miss coach Kermit Davis said. “I think Matt Murrell is one of the very best guards in college basketball.”

The Rebels will be counting on improved play from forward Jaemyn Brakefield (7.7 ppg, 4.2 rpg) and guard Tye Fagan (7.1 ppg, 3.0 rpg), while two four-star recruits — forward Malique Ewin and guard Amaree Abram — should bolster the team’s depth.

Ole Miss signed four veteran frontcourt players from the transfer portal to improve its inside presence to replace Nysier Brooks (team-high 7.3 rpg).

Josh Mballa, who averaged 13.0 points and 8.6 rebounds per game for Buffalo last season, leads the group, which includes Theo Akwuba (Louisiana), Jayveous McKinnis (Jackson State) and Myles Burns (Loyola-New Orleans).

“I like our team,” said Davis, who is entering his fifth season with the Rebels. “It’s the best depth we’ve had since I’ve been at Ole Miss.”

Alcorn State came within a win of making the NCAA Tournament last season when it fell to Texas Southern in the SWAC tournament title game and finished 17-17 after a first-round loss in the NIT.

The Braves are led by forward Keondre Montgomery (9.8 ppg, 3.0 rpg) and guards Dominic Brewton (9.3 ppg, 5.4 rpg) and Oddyst Walker (7.3 ppg, 2.8 rpg).

“We understand what’s at stake,” Alcorn State coach Landon Bussie said. “The biggest thing for us is maintaining consistency so we have a chance to have a successful season.”

–Field Level Media

Last year, Delaware State opened with a game against overmatched Cairn, a Division III school from Pennsylvania.

Monday brings a significantly tougher opener for the Hornets as they travel to Blacksburg, Va., to take on Virginia Tech, the defending Atlantic Coast Conference tournament champion.

What’s the best advice for the Hornets of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference, who lost their final 24 games last year?

Guard the perimeter.

Virginia Tech returns its three most accurate shooters from last year’s team that ranked No. 3 in Division I with a 3-point success rate of 39.2 percent. The marksmen are Darius Maddox (50.6 percent), Sean Pedulla (44.7 percent) and Hunter Cattoor (41.7 percent).

The trio combined for 157 3-pointers last year and that number should grow as Maddox and Pedulla figure to play larger roles this year.

Also back is stat-sheet stuffer Justyn Mutts, who averaged 10.1 points per game while leading Tech in rebounds (265), assists (123), steals (43) and blocks (34).

“I’m as excited about this team’s potential and prospects as I’ve ever been,” said fourth-year coach Mike Young. “You always hope there are other talented players coming through the ranks and I think that’s where we are with this team.”

Adding length are 6-9 transfers Grant Basile, who averaged 18.4 points and 8.5 rebounds at Wright State, and Mylyjael Poteat, who contributed 7.7 points and 4.2 rebounds at Rice. John Camden, a 6-8 wing, was highly touted before his injury-marred freshman year at Memphis.

Freshman Rodney Rice, a product of national power DeMatha, could start immediately in the backcourt.

After the departure of the top three scorers from last year, Delaware State coach Stan Waterman will count on 6-11 transfers Brandon Stone (Robert Morris) and Raymond Somerville (Cal State Bakersfield).

Also bringing size to the backcourt are 6-6 Jevin Muniz and 6-5 Aaron Lemon-Warren, both incoming freshmen.

“We’ve got some new guys mixing in with older guys who have transferred in, so there’s a nice blend to go with the returning guys and will hopefully provide a nice nucleus for us,” Waterman said.

–Field Level Media

Georgia’s football program holds the spotlight with Saturday’s showdown against Tennessee in a matchup of unbeaten teams.

The expectations are considerably lower for Bulldogs basketball, coming off a disastrous six-win season, as the Mike White era gets underway Monday night against Western Carolina in Athens, Ga.

Georgia went 47-75 in four seasons under coach Tom Crean, finishing no higher than 10th in the SEC. Crean was fired March 10 and three days later, White was hired after going 142-88 in seven seasons at Florida, where he won at least 20 games four times.

This season, Georgia is picked 13th in the SEC preseason poll but the good news is the return of leading scorer Kario Oquendo, a second-team preseason All-SEC pick.

Last year, Oquendo averaged 15.2 points and 4.3 rebounds. He also reached double figures 23 times and finished with at least 20 points 10 times while also shooting 45.3 percent.

“He wants to help Georgia get going,” White said of Oquendo at last month’s media day. “He wants to win, and he wants to make us a competitive program.”

White also added Oklahoma State transfer Matthew-Alexander Moncrieffe, hoping he can help them ascend along with Justin Hill, who averaged 14.2 points to help Longwood reach the NCAA Tournament last season.

The Bulldogs also added Terry Roberts, who averaged 14.5 points for Bradley last season, but he is taking some personal time away and will not play Monday.

Western Carolina was picked to finish eighth in the 10-team Southern Conference preseason poll after going 11-21 in coach Justin Gray’s first season. The Catamounts averaged 70.7 points but allowed a league-worst 77.3 points.

Their top returnees are Vonterius Woolbright (9.7 ppg) and Tyler Harris (7.2 ppg, 4.1 rpg) and the Catamounts added 12 newcomers, including Iowa State transfer Tre Jackson.

“The right kind of kid will be attracted to what we want to do and that was huge for our staff, and I think we’ve been able to do that,” Gray said. “So I’m super-excited to see how all that comes together.”

Georgia leads the all-time series 8-0 and outlasted the Catamounts for an 85-79 victory on Dec. 20, 2021.

–Field Level Media

The second year of the Shaka Smart era at Marquette begins much like the first — with the Golden Eagles picked to finish ninth in the Big East.

Marquette looks to once again exceed expectations, beginning with Monday night’s season opener against visiting Radford in Milwaukee.

“We’ve got a really connected group right now, but we haven’t played any games yet,” Smart said at the team’s media day. “We haven’t been tested or challenged yet by outside competition, other than closed scrimmages.”

Marquette tied for fifth last season in the Big East, finishing 19-13 overall and earning an NCAA bid.

The Golden Eagles will have to replace forward Justin Lewis, who led with 16.8 points and 7.9 rebounds per game, and guard Darryl Morsell, second in scoring at 13.4.

Key returnees include sophomore guard Kam Jones (7.4 ppg), junior guard Tyler Kolek, (6.7 ppg) and 6-8 junior forward Olivier-Maxence Prosper (6.6 ppg, 3.3 rpg).

Graduate transfer Zach Wrightsil, a 6-7 forward, was the NAIA Player of the Year after averaging 18.7 points and 8.8 rebounds at Loyola (New Orleans) last season.

Darris Nichols enters his second season as coach at Radford, picked sixth in the Big South preseason poll.

Radford went 11-18 last season, including 7-9 in the Big South, but has been bolstered by the addition of seven transfers.

The Highlanders return leading scorer Josiah Jeffers, a 6-1 senior guard who averaged 10.0 points per game, and leading rebounder Shaquan Jules, who averaged 4.6 boards.

Transfers include guard DaQuan Smith, who averaged 3.5 points in 33 games at Murray State. Graduate transfer guard Onyebuchi Ezeakudo averaged 18.7 minutes per game last season at Pitt; and junior guard Bryan Antoine, a former five-star recruit and McDonald’s All-American, appeared in 20 games last season for Villanova after missing all of November and parts of December due to a knee injury.

“We tried to get guys from winning programs, that come from maybe a higher level,” Nichols told the Roanoke Times. “Come over here and you can have a bigger role possibly.”

Freshman Ibu Yamazaki, a 6-7 forward, averaged 14.6 points and four rebounds for Japan’s U19 team at the 2021 FIBA World Cup.

Radford rolled past Mary Baldwin 114-54 in an exhibition game Tuesday, shooting 66.7 percent with a commanding 42-19 rebound advantage.

–Field Level Media

Colorado’s Tad Boyle is on the verge of becoming the winningest coach in program history, and he will do it with a young squad looking to make waves in the Pac-12 and reach the NCAA Tournament.

Boyle is entering his 13th season on the Buffaloes’ bench and has amassed a 254-155 career record and five NCAA Tournament appearances. He needs eight wins to pass Sox Walseth atop the Colorado chart for coaching victories, and he goes for his first when the Buffs host UC Riverside on Monday night in Boulder.

Boyle’s roster is flush with inexperienced players but he is optimistic about the season.

“I love where our program is right now,” Boyle said recently. “We’ve had great continuity in our coaching staff. We’ve had great continuity with our players.”

Colorado has two returning starters in juniors Tristan da Silva and Nique Clifford, while KJ Simpson will build on a solid freshman season. Julian Hammond III will be counted on to provide more production in his sophomore year and big men Luke O’Brien and Lawson Lovering hope to make bigger leaps this year.

Lovering is a 7-footer whose freshman season was shortened by injury. He averaged just 1.9 rebounds last year but showed he can do more by grabbing five boards in 20 minutes in an exhibition win against Nebraska on Sunday.

The Highlanders, picked to finish fifth in the preseason Big West coaches poll, are facing a Pac-12 opponent for the second straight year — and hope for the same results. UC Riverside beat Arizona State 66-65 on the road when J.P. Moorman II made a 70-foot heave at the buzzer.

Moorman has moved on but the Highlanders have a senior guard in Zyon Pullin, who was named to the preseason All-Big West team. They also have Flynn Cameron, who scored 21 points in a 94-79 exhibition win against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Oct. 28.

Cameron is one of five players head coach Mike Magpayo has recruited from New Zealand and Australia.

“He is an outstanding recruiter, leader, and developer of student-athletes and coaches, and he does things the right way,” UC Riverside athletic director Wes Mallette said of Magpayo.

–Field Level Media

Florida will usher in the Todd Golden era when it hosts Stony Brook on Monday night in Gainesville, Fla.

Golden was hired from San Francisco as the Gators’ new coach in March to replace Mike White, who left the school for Southeastern Conference rival Georgia. White posted a 142-88 record and led the Gators to four NCAA Tournament trips in seven seasons.

The 37-year-old Golden intends to bring a fresh, analytics approach to the Gators, which he used to lead last season’s San Francisco club to its first NCAA Tournament appearance since 1998. He inherited three returning starters from last year’s Florida team, which went 20-14 and reached the second round of the NIT.

One of those starters, preseason All-SEC center Colin Castleton, appears poised for another big season and is back to full health after undergoing successful shoulder surgery. Castleton, a Michigan transfer, has averaged 14.4 points, 7.8 rebounds and 2.2 blocks for the Gators over his last two seasons.

“We’re just super careful in bringing him back, but he’s been healthy,” Golden said. “It’s a long year and I want him to be ready not only on Nov. 7, but through January, March, into the SEC tournament. I think his body is in the best place it’s been.”

Golden said Castleton and Kyle Lofton, a transfer point guard from St. Bonaventure, are the only two players set in the starting five. He intends to play a deep rotation early that includes returning starters Kowacie Reeves and Myreon Jones at the wing spots.

“It’s a challenge for me and the staff to really drill down an eight-man rotation at this point,” Golden said. “To be honest, we can’t. We wouldn’t try. We have a number of guys we feel good about.”

Stony Brook, under fourth-year coach Geno Ford, returns two starters from a team that finished 18-13 last season.

One of those returning starters, guard Tyler Stephenson-Moore, is a strong perimeter defender and will look to build off last season, when he averaged 7.4 points while shooting 44.8 percent from 3-point range.

Forward Frankie Policelli (7.7 ppg, 36.1 percent on 3-pointers) is another returning starter and perimeter scoring threat.

Stony Brook is entering its first season in the Colonial Athletic Conference after 20 years in the America East Conference.

“The CAA can compete against any league you put it up against,” Ford said. “There’s good coaches, good players, great venues, great campuses. … We’re looking forward to some fresh challenges.”

–Field Level Media