HIS GAME IS LOUD

When Charleston Southern head coach Saah Nimley looked to the transfer portal for offense, he was drawn to a 6-foot-5 JUCO at Gulf State College. Brycen Blaine, who spent parts of two seasons at James Madison before transferring, was a good shooter who put up solid numbers. Not eye-popping numbers. 

But Nimley loved his mindset and approach. And that he plays with edge. 

“I think his personality stood out the most during recruiting,” said the Nimely now in his second full season as head coach. “He's very type A personality. Outspoken. Loud. Willing to ruffle feathers. Willing to be coached hard. Just the type of dude he is really drew me to him and thought he'd be a great fit with the type of coach I am.”

Blaine has certainly fit in very nicely. On opening night, he was 6-of-12 from beyond the arc on his way to a career-best 22 points against Virginia Tech. Seven days later he raised the bar with a 42-point performance at The Citadel. And he has continued to ruffle feathers, averaging 20.1 points, 7.8 rebounds and 3.8 assist per game. 

The Richmond, Virginia native, can really shoot it from deep, but he is a strong and physical player who can score at all three levels. He does a great job of making all the proper reads in Nimley’s offense, but when things break down -- he's good enough to go make a play on his own.

“Brycen's game is elite for our system,” said Nimley. “His ability to move without the ball and make shots makes him extremely hard to keep up with in our system especially with the pace we play at. He's done a great job making plays for himself and others in these early games.”

His game is loud, and Charleston Southern (7-5) is making noise. The Buccaneers have their best record before Christmas since the 2011-12 season, which is why Brycen Blaine is a deserving candidate for the 2026 Riley Wallace Award, presented annually to the most impactful transfer in division I college basketball. 

WAITED HIS TURN

It wasn’t that long ago when young players arrived on campus, competed in practice, got stronger in the weight room, and waited behind upper classmen before getting their opportunity to play. Of course, the transfer portal has changed all that, but there are still a few young men who have taken that path to stardom.

Darin Smith, Jr., (pictured above) spent the past two seasons developing his game at Central Connecticut State. After redshirting his first season, Smith earned Northeast Conference All-Rookie Team honors, averaging 6.8 and 18.0 minutes on a team that won 25 games. Good minutes and good numbers on one of the best teams in program history. In fact, the 45 wins over the past two seasons are the most in a 2-year span in school history.

As a young player, there is no substitute for being a part of a winning culture. Last year’s 25-win team featured four 4-year seniors including Riley Wallace Award finalist Devin Haid, and Lou Henson All-American Jordan Jones. 

Head coach Patrick Sellers is one of best young coaches in the game, but all good coaches love to have those veteran leaders to set the tone and lead by example. Smith has grown and matured with the help of some great mentors. He learned to approach the game in the correct way. 

There was little doubt that he could score. He showed flashes last season, scoring double figures eight times. This season, his role changed. Now he was the go-to-guy, and it didn’t take long for him to deliver. On Nov. 11 at Boston College, Smith made the game-winning layup, with 3.2 seconds to play, to give the Blue Devils a 60-59 upset win. Two weeks later he dropped a career-high 38 on Sacred Heart just before Thanksgiving. 

He's a natural scorer. He can shoot if from deep, he can beat you off the bounce and he can post up. The 6-foot-7 sophomore is averaging 20 points, 5.2 rebounds, and is shooting 50% from the field. 

Working hard and waiting for your opportunity is still in vogue.

DIFFERENCE MAKER

Tyler Lundblade is the number one option for Casey Alexander’s Belmont Bruins (11-1), which are currently ranked No. 5 in the Mid-Major Top 25®. The 6-foot-5 senior, who began his career at TCU, has scored in double figures in all 12 games this season and is averaging just over 16 points per contest. 

Much like his arrival his two years ago, there wasn’t a lot of hype surrounding the announcement in April that Nic McClain was transferring to Belmont. Nor was there an overabundance of suitors for McClain who started 21 games last season for Eastern Washington and averaged 10.6 points and 3.8 assists per game. Washington State, coached by David Riley who had recruited him to EWU, was one of a handful of schools that expressed interest in the Florida native.

The 6-foot-3 senior has been ideal fit for the Bruins. He’s a talented, unselfish guard. He likes to drive and create, but he can shoot it. McClain doesn’t take a lot of shots in the very efficient Belmont offense, but he also rarely takes a bad shot. He’s shooting over 50% from the field.

Belmont is 5th in the nation in effective field goal percentage at .609% and McClain’s steady presence is a big part of that. He currently ranks top 20 in the country in assists with 6.3 per contest. He’s also an excellent rebounder (4.5 per), coming with just one rebound of a triple-double on Nov. 30 at Charleston with 12 points, 11 assists and 9 boards.

Belmont fans know the McClain name well. Older brother Kevin helped the Bruins to the NCAA Tournament back in 2019, scoring 27 points in the Ohio Valley Conference tournament championship game. In the First Four against Temple, big brother dropped 29 on Temple, as the Bruins advanced with an 81-70 victory over the Owls. That was the last time Belmont went to the Dance, something the younger McClain and his teammates will look to change.  

Nic McClain has been a difference maker.