2020–21 Rhode Island Rams men's basketball team

The 2020–21 Rhode Island Rams basketball team represented the University of Rhode Island during the 2020–21 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Rams, led by third-year head coach David Cox, played their home games at the Ryan Center in Kingston, Rhode Island as members of the Atlantic 10 Conference. They finished the season 10-15, 7-10 in A-10 play to finish in 10th place. They lost in the second round of the A-10 tournament to Dayton.

2020–21 Rhode Island Rams men's basketball
Hall of Fame Tip Off champions
Conference	Atlantic 10 Conference
Record	10–15 (7–10 A-10)
Head coach	David Cox (3rd season)
Assistant coaches	T. J. Buchanan Austin Carroll Kevin Sutton
Home arena	Ryan Center
Seasons ← 2019–20 2021–22 →

2020–21 Atlantic 10 men's basketball standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team	W		L		PCT			W		L		PCT
St. Bonaventure†	11	–	4		.733			16	–	5		.762
VCU	10	–	4		.714			19	–	7		.731
Davidson	7	–	4		.636			13	–	9		.591
Saint Louis	6	–	4		.600			14	–	7		.667
UMass	6	–	4		.600			8	–	7		.533
George Mason	8	–	6		.571			13	–	9		.591
Dayton	9	–	7		.563			14	–	10		.583
Richmond	6	–	5		.545			14	–	9		.609
Duquesne	7	–	7		.500			9	–	9		.500
Rhode Island	7	–	10		.412			10	–	15		.400
George Washington	3	–	5		.375			5	–	12		.294
La Salle	6	–	11		.353			9	–	16		.360
Saint Joseph's	3	–	9		.250			5	–	15		.250
Fordham	2	–	11		.154			2	–	12		.143
† 2021 A10 Tournament winner

Previous season

Main article: 2019–20 Rhode Island Rams men's basketball team

The Rams finished the 2019–20 season 21–9, 13–5 in A-10 play to finish in third place. They were to play the winner of Duquesne and Fordham in the quarterfinals of the 2020 Atlantic 10 men's basketball tournament, but the tournament was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic prior to Rhode Island playing a game. The remainder of the season was cancelled due to the pandemic.

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Notes
Tyrese Martin	4	G	6'6"	205	Sophomore	Allentown, Pennsylvania	Transferred to UConn^[1]
Cyril Langevine	10	F	6'8"	230	Senior	East Orange, New Jersey	Graduated^[2]
Jeff Dowtin	11	F	6'3"	185	Senior	Washington, D.C.	Graduated^[3]
Eric Dadika	13	G	6'0"	175	Senior	Milltown, New Jersey	Graduated^[4]
Jordan Green	20	G	5'9"	160	Senior	Bronx, New York	Graduated^[4]
Jacob Toppin	21	F	6'8"	190	Freshman	Brooklyn, New York	Transferred to Kentucky
Elijah Wood	33	G	6'5"	190	Freshman	Milltown, New Jersey	Decommitted, transferred to Nebraska^[5]

Incoming transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous School
Allen Bertrand	4	G	6'5"	200	Junior	Philadelphia, Pennsylvania	Transferred from Towson
Malik Martin	12	G	6'6"	210	Junior	Staten Island, New York	Transferred from Charlotte
Umberto Brusadin	14	G	6'0"	180	Graduate	Latina, Italy	Transferred from Caldwell, walk on
Jalen Carey	15	G	6'3"	186	RS-Sophomore	Harlem, New York	Transferred from Syracuse
Makhi Mitchell	21	C	6'9"	230	Sophomore	Washington, D.C.	Transferred from Maryland
Makhel Mitchell	22	C	6'10"	245	Sophomore	Washington, D.C.	Transferred from Maryland

2020 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Ishmael Leggett SG	Washington, DC	St. John's College High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	165 lb (75 kg)	Sep 19, 2019
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals: N/A   247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: NR
Tres Berry PG	Cleveland, TN	Scotland Campus	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	189 lb (86 kg)	Apr 10, 2020
	Recruiting star ratings: Scout:    Rivals:    247Sports: N/A    ESPN grade: 64
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: "2020 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

2021 recruiting class

US college sports recruiting information for high school athletes

Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Abdou Samb PF	Upper Marlboro, MD	Frederick Douglass (MD)	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Sep 10, 2020
	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: "2021 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Roster

2020–21 Rhode Island Rams men's basketball team
Players	Coaches
Pos. # Name Height Weight Year Previous school Hometown F 0 Jermaine Harris 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) 230 lb (104 kg) Jr Rock Creek Christian Upper Marlboro, MD G 1 Fatts Russell 5 ft 10 in (1.78 m) 165 lb (75 kg) Sr Imhotep Institute Philadelphia, PA G 2 Jeremy Sheppard 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) 165 lb (75 kg) RS Sr John Marshall Williston State College Richmond, VA G 4 Allen Betrand 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 205 lb (93 kg) Jr Massanutten Military Academy Towson Philadelphia, PA F 5 Antwan Walker 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 230 lb (104 kg) RS Jr Massanutten Military Academy Georgetown Washington, DC G 10 Ishmael Leggett 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 180 lb (82 kg) Fr St. John's College Washington, DC G 12 Malik Martin 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) 210 lb (95 kg) Jr Curtis Charlotte Staten Island, NY G 13 Tres Berry 6 ft 4 in (1.93 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Scotland Cleveland, TN G 14 Umberto Brusadin (W) 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 180 lb (82 kg) GS Oak Hill Academy (NJ) Caldwell Latina, Italy G 15 Jalen Carey 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) 186 lb (84 kg) RS So Immaculate Conception (NJ) Syracuse Harlem, NY C 21 Makhi Mitchell 6 ft 9 in (2.06 m) 230 lb (104 kg) RS So Woodrow Wilson (DC) Maryland Washington, DC C 22 Makhel Mitchell 6 ft 10 in (2.08 m) 245 lb (111 kg) RS So Woodrow Wilson (DC) Maryland Washington, DC F 23 D.J. Johnson 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 185 lb (84 kg) RS Jr Brooklyn Prep Williston State Brooklyn, NY F 24 Ileri Ayo-Faleye 6 ft 7 in (2.01 m) 185 lb (84 kg) Fr Cedar Crest Lebanon, PA G 31 Brandon Borde 6 ft 2 in (1.88 m) 190 lb (86 kg) Fr Foxborough Foxborough, MA	Head coach David Cox (William & Mary) Assistant coach(es) T. J. Buchanan (Rhode Island) Austin Carroll (American) Kevin Sutton (James Madison) Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible (W) Walk-on   Injured   Current redshirt Roster

Depth chart

Pos.	Starting 5	Bench 1	Bench 2
C	Makhel Mitchell	Makhi Mitchell	Ileri Ayo-Faleye
PF	Malik Martin	Jermaine Harris	Tres Berry
SF	Antwan Walker	D.J. Johnson	Umberto Brusadin
SG	Fatts Russell	Ishmael Leggett	Brandon Borde
PG	Jeremy Sheppard	Allen Betrand	Jalen Carey

Schedule

Date time, TV	Rank^#	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 25, 2020* 7:00 p.m., ESPN		vs. No. 18 Arizona State 2K Empire Classic semifinals	L 88–94 ^OT	0–1	19 – Sheppard	8 – Walker	6 – Russell	Mohegan Sun Arena (0) Uncasville, CT
November 26, 2020* 7:00 p.m., ESPN		vs. Boston College 2K Empire Classic third place game	L 64–69	0–2	23 – Russell	6 – Walker	3 – Russell	Mohegan Sun Arena (0) Uncasville, CT
November 28, 2020* 5:30 p.m., ESPN3		vs. South Florida Hall of Fame Tip Off semifinals	W 84–68	1–2	16 – Collins	7 – Durr	4 – Collins	Mohegan Sun Arena (0) Uncasville, CT
November 29, 2020* 5:30 p.m., ESPNU		vs. San Francisco Hall of Fame Tip Off final	W 84–71	2–2	21 – Russell	10 – Walker	4 – Russell	Mohegan Sun Arena (0) Uncasville, CT
December 2, 2020* 7:00 p.m., CBSSN		Seton Hall	W 76–63	3–2	17 – Russell	11 – Mitchell	2 – Russell	Ryan Center (0) Kingston, RI
December 9, 2020* 4:30 p.m., BTN		at No. 13 Wisconsin	L 62–73	3–3	13 – Sheppard	10 – Walker	1 – Tied (4)	Kohl Center (0) Madison, WI
December 13, 2020* 12:00 p.m., CBSSN		at Western Kentucky	L 65–68	3–4	16 – Johnson	6 – Walker	4 – Russell	Diddle Arena (1,070) Bowling Green, KY
Atlantic 10 regular season
December 18, 2020 TBA, ESPN		Davidson	L 57–68	3–5 (0–1)	20 – Martin	10 – Walker	6 – Russell	Ryan Center (0) Kingston, RI
December 30, 2020 TBA, ESPN+		St. Bonaventure	W 63–57	4–5 (1–1)	17 – Sheppard	10 – Tied (2)	5 – Russell	Ryan Center (0) Kingston, RI
January 3, 2021 4:30 p.m., NBCSN		Saint Joseph's	W 85–77 ^OT	5–5 (2–1)	20 – Russell	8 – Tied (2)	8 – Russell	Ryan Center (0) Kingston, RI
January 6, 2021 6:00 p.m., CBSSN		at Richmond	L 73–80	5–6 (2–2)	18 – Russell	8 – Walker	4 – Russell	Robins Center (0) Richmond, VA
January 9, 2021 2:00 p.m., CBSSN		at VCU	W 83–68	6–6 (3–2)	23 – Russell	9 – Russell	5 – Clark	Siegel Center (250) Richmond, VA
January 13, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		at UMass	L 78–80 ^OT	6–7 (3–3)	23 – Mitchell	7 – Russell	7 – Sheppard	Mullins Center (0) Amherst, MA
January 16, 2021 5:00 p.m., NBCSN		George Mason	W 80–60	7–7 (4–3)	18 – Russell	10 – Mitchell	4 – Russell	Ryan Center (0) Kingston, RI
January 20, 2021 6:00 p.m., NBCSN		at Duquesne	L 69–71	7–8 (4–4)	16 – Mitchell	11 – Mitchell	6 – Russell	Kerr Fitness Center (0) McCandless, PA
January 24, 2021 2:30 p.m., ESPN+		Fordham	W 52–42	8–8 (5–4)	16 – Sheppard	9 – Sheppard	2 – Sheppard	Ryan Center (0) Kingston, RI
January 27, 2021 5:00 p.m., ESPN+		at La Salle	W 73–60	9–8 (6–4)	25 – Sheppard	5 – Sheppard	6 – Russell	Tom Gola Arena (0) Philadelphia, PA
January 30, 2021 4:00 p.m., CBSSN		at Dayton	L 56–67	9–9 (6–5)	16 – Sheppard	6 – Sheppard	2 – Sheppard	UD Arena (0) Dayton, OH
February 3, 2021 7:00 p.m., ESPN+		VCU	L 62–63	9–10 (6–6)	17 – Leggett	7 – Mitchell	6 – Sheppard	Ryan Center (0) Kingston, RI
February 6, 2021 8:00 p.m., ESPN2		UMass	L 63–75	9–11 (6–7)	26 – Walker	14 – Walker	6 – Sheppard	Ryan Center (0) Kingston, RI
February 10, 2021 9:00 p.m., CBSSN		at Saint Louis	L 60–67	9–12 (6–8)	16 – Sheppard	8 – Mitchell	3 – Sheppard	Chaifetz Arena  St. Louis, MO
February 16, 2021 7:00 p.m., CBSSN		Dayton	W 91–89 ^2OT	10–12 (7–8)	20 – Russell	12 – Mitchell	7 – Russell	Ryan Center (0) Kingston, RI
February 21, 2021 11:30 a.m., NBCSN		at George Washington	L 70–78	10–13 (7–9)	16 – Leggett	9 – Russell	10 – Russell	Charles E. Smith Center  Washington, D.C.
February 27, 2021 7:00 pm, ESPN+		at Duquesne	L 75–86	10–14 (7–10)	27 – Russell	6 – Martin	5 – Russell	UPMC Cooper Fieldhouse  Pittsburgh, PA
A-10 tournament
March 4, 2021 3:30 pm, NBCSN	(10)	vs. (7) Dayton Second round	L 72–84	10–15	17 – Martin	9 – Russell	8 – Russell	Siegel Center (250) Richmond, VA
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern Time.

References

1. "Tyrese Martin Joins Men's Basketball Program". UConnHuskies.com. University of Connecticut Athletics. April 16, 2020. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
2. Kourakis, Yianni (July 16, 2020). "URI graduate Cyril Langevine waiting for what's next". WPRI. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
3. Koch, Bill (March 3, 2020). "At URI, Jeff Dowtin helped build 'something special'". Providence Journal. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
4. Koch, Bill (March 4, 2020). "Rams Journal: Langevine among 4 seniors honored Wednesday". Providence Journal. Retrieved December 9, 2020.
5. "Huskers Add Elijah Wood to Basketball Roster". huskers.com. University of Nebraska Lincoln Athletics. June 24, 2020. Retrieved December 9, 2020.

External links

• Rhode Island Men's Basketball