W&M News and Notes
- Wednesday's match-up with Randolph College is the Tribe's second against a non-Division I opponent this season and marks the 15th year in the last 16 that the Tribe has faced a non-Division I opponent. Over that stretch, W&M has won those games by an average margin of 40.6 points. The Tribe has scored at a 93.9 points per game clip in those contests, including 100.2 points since 2014-15.
- Junior
Noah Collier tallied his third double-double of the season with 14 points and a career-high 14 rebounds at UMBC on Sunday. He also tallied double-doubles at American (13 points, 11 rebounds) and NC State (12 points, 11 rebounds). His three double-doubles rank third in the CAA and 54th nationally. He is averaging 9.1 points and a team-high 8.2 rebounds per game. Collier ranks fourth in the CAA and 82nd nationally in rebounding.
- Graduate student guard
Anders Nelson has been on a tear offensively of late, averaging 15.3 points per game over the last four contests, hitting 11-of-21 from 3 (52.4%). He leads the Tribe in scoring at 10.8 points per game and boasts a pair of 20-point road games at Virginia Tech (25) and at Old Dominion (21).
- In its win over Richmond, the Tribe closed strong with big plays down the stretch. W&M trailed, 55-49, with 4:22 left, but outscored the Spiders, 9-2, the rest of the way in picking up the win on
Ben Wight's tip-in with 28.3 seconds left. Wight (4) and Collier (5) scored the Tribe's final nine points. Graduate student
Chris Mullins came up with a big defensive stop in the final seconds, forcing 6-7 wing Tyler Burton into a fade-away baseline jumper.
- In its last three wins, the Tribe has turned in strong defensive performances. W&M held Richmond (58) and Radford (51) to fewer than 60 points and held a top-50 scoring offense in Army to just 67 points. In its four wins this season, the Tribe is limited opponents to 53.8 points per game and a shooting % of 36.8% from the field and 27.1% from 3. W&M ranks sixth in the CAA in scoring defense (69.7).
- In short order, sophomore
Gabe Dorsey has established himself as one of the top shooters in the country. He ranks 42nd nationally in 3-point % (44.3) and 46th in 3's per game (2.9). He connected a career-high five in the win over Richmond. Dorsey scored a career-high 16 at American and had 14 at Virginia Tech.
- Rebounding, especially on the offensive end, has been a focus for the Tribe. W&M has outrebounded its opponents in five games this season. Overall, the Tribe ranks fourth in the CAA in rebounding margin (+1.8) and fifth in offensive rebounding. The Tribe's 11.4 offensive rebounds per game are its most since 2006 (12.1).
- Junior
Ben Wight, who was named preseason All-CAA, has been a force for the Tribe this season. He enjoyed a career night at Pitt, scoring a career-best 24 points and pulling down 11 rebounds for his fifth career double-double and his third 20-point, 10-rebound double-double. He also tipped in the game-winner against Richmond with just 28.3 seconds remaining.
- W&M leads the CAA and ranks 48th nationally in 3-point % (37.8). The Tribe is averaging 7.3 triples made per game. The Tribe's numbers this season are a substantial improvement from the last two seasons, when W&M shot just 30.1% from distance and made 6.4 per game.
- Nelson, who moved into the starting lineup at the point guard position in the win over Army, has been a catalyst for the Tribe offense. He leads the CAA in assists per game (5.3) and ranks second in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.6). He ranks 36th nationally in assists and 53rd in A/T ratio. He ranks seventh in the country in assist rate (40.6), according to KenPom.com. Assist rate divides the number of assists by the field goals made by the player's teammates while he is on the court.
- The Tribe is averaging just 11.9 turnovers per game in 2022-23, which is a significant improvement from a season ago. W&M averaged 16.2 turnovers per game in 2021-22, the sixth-worst mark in the country. The Tribe ranks 83rd nationally in fewest turnovers per game.
- While the Tribe was picked eighth in the preseason CAA poll, national basketball analyst Jeff Goodman of Stadium and the Field of 68 noted W&M as the CAA's sleeper team according to a poll of the CAA coaches. The Tribe had an influx of 10 new players for 2022-23 in the form of five transfers and five freshmen.
- Four former Tribe standouts are in the NBA as either a player or a coach. 2020 graduate Nathan Knight, who was the National Mid-Major Player of the Year in 2020, signed a two-year deal with the Minnesota Timberwolves in the offseason. He spent last season with the Timberwolves after playing his rookie season with the Atlanta Hawks. Jim Moran '01 is in his second season as an assistant coach with the Detroit Pistons, while Sean Sheldon '16 joined the Utah Jazz as an assistant coach this offseason. Daniel Dixon '17 is an assistant coach with the Oklahoma City Blue, the NBA G-League program of the Oklahoma City Thunder. Another nine former Tribe players are currently playing professionally in Europe.
