EMORY, Va. - Emory & Henry College Head Men's Basketball Coach David Willson is leading the Wasps in his third season at the helm. E&H has finished eleventh and twelfth the past two seasons, but were picked to finish ninth in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference this year. The Wasps are currently 2-2 on the season with ODAC play beginning this Saturday. E&H will travel to Virginia Beach to take on the No. 2 Virginia Wesleyan College Marlins.
The Wasps return eleven players from last year's squad, including all five starters. Junior guard Myles Turner received All-ODAC Third-Team honors averaging 16.7 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 3.6 assists last season. Currently, Turner is putting up 11.0 points and 4.5 rebounds a game. Junior Ryan Gravley is leading the team in scoring at a 18.0 clip, which is also second in the league. Gravley has improved his scoring each season and he looks to continue that trend this year. John Shelor is picking up where he left off last season. The sharp-shooting sophomore is averaging 12.0 points per game, hitting 52.2% of his three pointers.
Brandon Self is sitting third on the team with 9.0 points and is second on the team in rebounds with 7.0. Senior Kevin Anzenberger is getting many of his points from the free throw line, shooting 83.3% on the year. Sophomore Chase Branscomb has averaged twelve minutes a game so far and is carving out his niche for the Wasps.
Coach Willson had a focus of recruiting more size to the Wasps this season. He accomplished that goal by bringing in three student-athletes over 6-6. Alic Wynn is a 6-6 freshman Asheville, North Carolina and has started three of the team's four games so far averaging 7.8 points and 9.0 rebounds early in the season. Aaron Ferguson is a 6-8 big man from Princeton, West Virginia who is averaging 4.5 points a game. Andrew Davis is a 6-7 post player, who will add size and depth to the E&H roster. Clif Conley is a freshman guard who is averaging 3.0 points in 20.5 minutes per game.
In the early stages of the season, the Wasps are averaging 76 points and 36.5 rebounds per game, both of which surpass last season's marks. The Old Dominion Athletic Conference is a strong conference for men's basketball with two of its teams making the NCAA Division III Final Four last season. Coach Willson and his experienced team will look to make strides in a conference that is used to playing a high level of basketball.
The Wasps' first home ODAC matchup is on Tuesday, January 5 against Lynchburg College at 7:00 p.m.
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-photo courtesy of Caleb Johnston, E&H'15