2018–19 Evansville Purple Aces men's basketball team

The 2018–19 Evansville Purple Aces men's basketball team represented the University of Evansville during the 2018–19 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Purple Aces, led by first-year head coach Walter McCarty, played their home games at the Ford Center as members of the Missouri Valley Conference. They finished the season 11–21 overall, 5–13 in MVC play, and finishing in last place. As the No. 10 seed in the MVC Tournament, they lost to Illinois State in the first round.

2018–19 Evansville Purple Aces men's basketball
ConferenceMissouri Valley Conference
2018–19 record11–21 (5–13 MVC)
Head coach
Assistant coaches
Home arenaFord Center
2018–19 Missouri Valley Conference men's basketball standings
Conf  Overall
TeamW L PCT  W L PCT
Loyola–Chicago126 .667  2014  .588
Drake126 .667  2410  .706
Southern Illinois108 .556  1715  .531
Missouri State108 .556  1616  .500
Bradley99 .500  2015  .571
Northern Iowa99 .500  1618  .471
Illinois State99 .500  1716  .515
Indiana State711 .389  1516  .484
Valparaiso711 .389  1518  .455
Evansville513 .278  1121  .344
2019 MVC Tournament winner

Previous season

The Purple Aces finished the 2017–18 season 17–15, 7–11 in MVC play to finish in a three-way tie for seventh place. As the No. 8 seed in the MVC Tournament, they lost to Northern Iowa in the first round.

On March 13, 2018, Evansville fired head coach Marty Simmons.[1] He finished at Evansville with an 11-year record of 184–175. On March 22, the school hired Boston Celtics assistant coach, former Kentucky player, and Evansville native Walter McCarty as head coach.[2]

Offseason

Departures

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownReason for departure
Ryan Taylor0G6'6"195RS JuniorGary, INGraduate transferred to Northwestern
Solomon Hainna5G6'6"195RS SeniorInglewood, CAGraduated
Dru Smith12G6'3"190SophomoreEvansville, INTransferred to Missouri
Dalen Traore15C6'9"230SeniorIvory CoastGraduated
Duane Gibson25G6'3"195RS SeniorCleveland, OHGraduated
Blake Simmons50G/F6'5"210RS SeniorNewburgh, INGraduated

Incoming transfers

NameNumberPos.HeightWeightYearHometownNotes
Artur Labinowicz2G6'4"190JuniorCharlotte, NCTransferred from Coastal Carolina. Under NCAA transfer rules, Labinowicz will have to sit out for the 2018–19 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.
Devan Straub4G6'2"190RS SophomoreEvansville, INTransferred from Indiana Kokomo. Will be eligible to play. Will join the team as a walk-on.
Shea Feehan21G6'0"155RS SeniorPeoria, ILTransferred from Eureka College. Will be eligible to play immediately since Feehan graduated from Eureka.
Sam Cunliffe24G6'6"200JuniorSeattle, WATransferred from Kansas. Under NCAA transfer rules, Cunliffe will have to sit out for the 2018–19 season. Will have two years of remaining eligibility.

2018 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes
Name Hometown High school / college Height Weight Commit date
Deandre Williams
#42 SF
Houston, TX Klein Forest High School 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 195 lb (88 kg) Apr 14, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports:    ESPN grade: 76
Will Becker
#57 PF
Aurora, CO Smokey Hill High School 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 190 lb (86 kg) May 17, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 65
Shamar Givance
PG
Toronto, ON First Love Christian Academy 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) N/A May 1, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Jawaun Newton
SG
El Paso, TX Burges High School 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 180 lb (82 kg) May 8, 2018 
Recruiting star ratings: Scout: N/A   Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Overall recruiting rankings:
  • Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight.
  • In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale.

Sources:

  • "2018 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

    2019 recruiting class

    Roster

    2018–19 Evansville Purple Aces men's basketball team
    PlayersCoaches
    Pos.#NameHeightWeightYearPrevious schoolHometown
    G 1 Marty Hill 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)180 lb (82 kg) SrChamplin Park
    Northeast CC
    Brooklyn Park, MN
    G 2 Artur Labinowicz  6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)190 lb (86 kg) JrCombine Academy
    Coastal Carolina
    Charlotte, NC
    G 3 Jawaun Newton 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)170 lb (77 kg) FrBurges El Paso, TX
    G 4 Devan Straub (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)190 lb (86 kg) RS SoMater Dei
    IU Kokomo
    Evansville, IN
    G 5 Shamar Givance 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)155 lb (70 kg) FrFirst Love Christian Toronto, ON
    F 10 Evan Kuhlman 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)220 lb (100 kg) SoLakota East Liberty Township, OH
    F 11 Will Becker 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)200 lb (91 kg) FrSmoky Hill Aurora, CO
    G 12 Jared Chestnut (W) 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)180 lb (82 kg) SrHarrison Evansville, IN
    F 13 DeAndre Williams 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)190 lb (86 kg) FrKlein Forest Houston, TX
    F 14 Dainius Chatkevicius 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)240 lb (109 kg) RS SrWest Oaks Academy
    Vincennes
    Klaipėda, Lithuania
    G 21 Shea Feehan 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)155 lb (70 kg) RS SrNotre Dame
    Eureka
    Peoria, IL
    G 24 Sam Cunliffe  6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)200 lb (91 kg) JrRainier Beach
    Kansas
    Seattle, WA
    G 30 Noah Frederking 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)210 lb (95 kg) SoOkawville Okawville, IL
    G 33 K. J. Riley 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)180 lb (82 kg) JrStandard of Excellence
    Howard College
    Bronx, NY
    F 35 John Hall 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)215 lb (98 kg) RS SoStandard of Excellence Philadelphia, PA
    Head coach
    Assistant coach(es)

    Legend
    • (C) Team captain
    • (S) Suspended
    • (I) Ineligible
    • (W) Walk-on

    Roster

    Schedule and results

    Date
    time, TV
    Rank# Opponent# Result Record Site (attendance)
    city, state
    Exhibition
    Nov 3, 2018*
    2:00 pm
    New Mexico Highlands W 83–61 
    Ford Center (4,460)
    Evansville, IN
    Non-conference regular season
    Nov 8, 2018*
    8:00 pm, BTN Plus
    at Illinois
    Maui on the Mainland
    L 60–99  0–1
    State Farm Center (11,755)
    Champaign, IL
    Nov 10, 2018*
    4:00 pm, FSN
    at Xavier
    Maui on the Mainland
    L 85–91  0–2
    Cintas Center (10,533)
    Cincinnati, OH
    Nov 15, 2018*
    6:00 pm, ESPN+
    Kentucky Wesleyan
    Maui on the Mainland
    W 92–72  1–2
    Ford Center (4,497)
    Evansville, IN
    Nov 18, 2018*
    12:00 pm, ESPN+
    Texas Southern
    Maui on the Mainland
    W 85–63  2–2
    Ford Center (4,578)
    Evansville, IN
    Nov 24, 2018*
    1:00 pm, ESPN3
    at Ball State L 72–82  2–3
    Worthen Arena (3,224)
    Muncie, IN
    Nov 28, 2018*
    6:00 pm, ESPN+
    Wyoming
    MW–MVC Challenge
    W 86–78  3–3
    Ford Center (4,709)
    Evansville, IN
    Dec 1, 2018*
    6:00 pm, ESPN3
    Albion W 65–49  4–3
    Ford Center (4,337)
    Evansville, IN
    Dec 4, 2018*
    7:00 pm
    at Arkansas State L 77–87  4–4
    First National Bank Arena (1,037)
    Jonesboro, AR
    Dec 9, 2018*
    2:00 pm, ESPN+
    Ball State W 89–77  5–4
    Ford Center (5,672)
    Evansville, IN
    Dec 15, 2018*
    1:00 pm, ESPN3
    Jacksonville State L 50–55  5–5
    Ford Center (4,814)
    Evansville, IN
    Dec 18, 2018*
    7:00 pm, ESPN+
    at Murray State L 64–66  5–6
    CFSB Center (4,099)
    Murray, KY
    Dec 22, 2018*
    4:00 pm, ESPN+
    Green Bay W 80–75  6–6
    Ford Center (5,011)
    Evansville, IN
    Dec 30, 2018*
    12:00 pm, ESPN3
    at Miami (OH) L 67–70  6–7
    Millett Hall (1,456)
    Oxford, OH
    Missouri Valley regular season
    Jan 2, 2019
    6:00 pm, ESPN+
    Drake W 82–77  7–7
    (1–0)
    Ford Center (5,503)
    Evansville, IN
    Jan 5, 2019
    3:00 pm, FSMW/NBCSCH
    at Illinois State L 46–58  7–8
    (1–1)
    Redbird Arena (5,643)
    Normal, IN
    Jan 8, 2019
    7:00 pm, CBSSN
    Loyola–Chicago W 67–48  8–8
    (2–1)
    Ford Center (5,049)
    Evansville, IN
    Jan 12, 2019
    1:00 pm, ESPN3
    Indiana State L 66–72  8–9
    (2–2)
    Ford Center (6,419)
    Evansville, IN
    Jan 16, 2019
    7:00 pm, ESPN+
    at Missouri State W 70–64  9–9
    (3–2)
    JQH Arena (4,923)
    Springfield, MO
    Jan 19, 2019
    1:00 pm, ESPN+
    Illinois State L 70–78  9–10
    (3–3)
    Ford Center (5,731)
    Evansville, IN
    Jan 23, 2019
    7:00 pm, ESPN+
    at Drake L 66–78  9–11
    (3–4)
    Knapp Center (2,709)
    Des Moines, IA
    Jan 26, 2019
    7:00 pm, ESPN+
    at Northern Iowa L 74–81  9–12
    (3–5)
    McLeod Center (3,677)
    Cedar Falls, IA
    Jan 30, 2019
    6:00 pm, ESPN+
    Bradley L 73–81  9–13
    (3–6)
    Ford Center (5,019)
    Evansville, IN
    Feb 2, 2019
    1:00 pm, FSMW/NBCSCH
    Valparaiso W 64–53  10–13
    (4–6)
    Ford Center (5,805)
    Evansville, IN
    Feb 6, 2019
    6:00 pm, ESPN+
    at Indiana State L 62–85  10–14
    (4–7)
    Hulman Center (3,469)
    Terre Haute, IN
    Feb 9, 2019
    7:00 pm, ESPN+
    at Southern Illinois L 73–78  10–15
    (4–8)
    SIU Arena (4,923)
    Carbondale, IL
    Feb 13, 2019
    6:00 pm, ESPN3
    Missouri State L 56–68  10–16
    (4–9)
    Ford Center (5,289)
    Evansville, IN
    Feb 17, 2019
    3:00 pm, ESPN3
    Northern Iowa L 58–73  10–17
    (4–10)
    Ford Center (6,148)
    Evansville, IN
    Feb 20, 2019
    6:00 pm, FSNW/NBCSCH
    at Loyola–Chicago L 58–70  10–18
    (4–11)
    Joseph J. Gentile Arena (3,204)
    Chicago, IL
    Feb 23, 2019
    7:00 pm, ESPN+
    at Bradley L 61–63  10–19
    (4–12)
    Carver Arena (6,571)
    Peoria, IL
    Feb 27, 2019
    1:00 pm, ESPN+
    Southern Illinois L 91–98  10–20
    (4–13)
    Ford Center (6,198)
    Evansville, IN
    Mar 2, 2019
    TBA, CBSSN/ESPN2
    at Valparaiso W 65–63  11–20
    (5–13)
    Athletics–Recreation Center (2,592)
    Valparaiso, IN
    Missouri Valley Tournament
    Mar 7, 2019
    (10) vs. (7) Illinois State
    First round
    L 60–65  11–21
    Enterprise Center (5,004)
    St. Louis, MO
    *Non-conference game. #Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses.
    All times are in Central Time.

    Source[3]

    References

    1. Goodman, Jeff; Borzello, Jeff (March 13, 2018). "Sources: Marty Simmons out after 11 seasons at Evansville". ESPN.com. Retrieved March 18, 2018.
    2. "Evansville hires Celtics' McCarty as coach". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2018-03-22.
    3. "University of Evansville - 2018–19 Men's Basketball Schedule". gopurpleaces.com.
    This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.