2025–26 South Alabama Jaguars men's basketball team

2025–26 South Alabama Jaguars men's basketball
2025–26 South Alabama Jaguars men's basketball
Conference	Sun Belt Conference
Record	8–3 (0–0 Sun Belt)
Head coach	Richie Riley (8th season);
Associate head coach	Rodney Crawford
Assistant coaches	Orin Bailey, Jr.; Riley Conroy; Ogi Vasiljevic;
Home arena	Mitchell Center

2025–26 Sun Belt Conference men's basketball standings
	Conf.				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Arkansas State	2	–	0	1.000	9	–	4	.692
Georgia Southern	2	–	0	1.000	10	–	5	.667
Troy	1	–	0	1.000	8	–	5	.615
South Alabama	1	–	1	.500	9	–	4	.692
Appalachian State	1	–	1	.500	8	–	6	.571
Coastal Carolina	1	–	1	.500	8	–	6	.571
Texas State	1	–	1	.500	8	–	6	.571
Southern Miss	1	–	1	.500	7	–	6	.538
Old Dominion	1	–	1	.500	4	–	9	.308
Georgia State	1	–	1	.500	3	–	10	.231
Louisiana	1	–	1	.500	2	–	11	.154
Marshall	0	–	1	.000	8	–	5	.615
James Madison	0	–	2	.000	7	–	6	.538
Louisiana–Monroe	0	–	2	.000	3	–	10	.231

† 2026 Sun Belt tournament winner As of December 23, 2025

The 2025–26 South Alabama Jaguars men's basketball team represents the University of South Alabama in the 2025–26 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Jaguars, led by eighth-year head coach Richie Riley, play their home games at the Mitchell Center in Mobile, Alabama as members in the Sun Belt Conference.

Previous season

The Jaguars finished the 2024–25 season 21–11, 13–5 in Sun Belt play to finish in a four-way tie for first place. In the Sun Belt tournament, they lost in the semifinals to Arkansas State.

The Jaguars were briefly offered a bid to the 2025 National Invitation Tournament, but the offer was revoked when UC Riverside withdrew from the College Basketball Invitational to accept an NIT bid.

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason for departure
Cantia Rahming	0	F	6'7"	205	GS Senior	Tampa, FL	Graduated; Signed to play with Medi Bayreuth
Dylan Fasoyiro	2	G	6'3"	195	GS Senior	Houston, TX	Graduated; Signed to play with BBC Coburg of ProB League
Elijah Ormiston	3	F	6'8"	220	Senior	Minneapolis, MN	Graduated; Signed to play with MBK Komárno
Julian Margrave	12	F	6'10"	210	Junior	Louisburg, KS	Transferred to Omaha
Myles Corey	20	G	6'0"	185	GS Senior	Ontario, CA	Transferred to Rhode Island
Ethan Kizer	21	F	6'5"	195	Sophomore	Metamora, IL	Transferred to South Dakota
Barry Dunning Jr.	22	G	6'6"	195	Junior	Mobile, AL	Transferred to Pittsburgh^[1]
Judah Brown	25	F	6'6"	225	GS Senior	Bermuda Dunes, CA	Graduated; Signed to play with SKN St. Pölten
Caleb Kizer	32	F	6'7"	230	Senior	Metamora, IL	Transferred to South Dakota

Incoming transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous School
Chaze Harris	2	G	6'6"	190	Senior	Cleveland, OH	Life
Hantz Louis-Jeune	4	G	6'5"	185	Graduate	Lake Worth, FL	Lenoir–Rhyne
Brian Hawthorne	7	G	6'2"	190	Junior	Shawnee, KS	Rockhurst
Peyton Law	9	F	6'7"	220	Senior	Calhoun, GA	Freed–Hardeman
Adam Olsen	12	F	6'8"	225	Junior	Surrey, BC	UBC

Recruiting classes

2025 recruiting class

College recruiting information
Name	Hometown	School	Height	Weight	Commit date
Samuel Shoptaw PG	Windermere, FL	Windermere Prep	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Aug 27, 2024
Samuel Shoptaw PG	Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Desmond Williams PG	Mobile, AL	Baker High School	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	160 lb (73 kg)	Jun 4, 2024
Desmond Williams PG	Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Stephen Williams PF	Monroeville, AL	Coastal Alabama - North	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Mar 19, 2025
Stephen Williams PF	Recruit ratings: No ratings found
Overall recruit ranking:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, On3, 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: "2025 Team Ranking". Rivals.

2026 recruiting class

Preseason

Preseason Sun Belt Conference poll

The Jaguars were picked to finish in third place in the conference's preseason poll.^[2] Redshirt sophomore guard John Broom was named to the conference preseason third team.^[2]

Predicted finish	Team (1st place Votes)
Coaches poll
1	James Madison - 175 (1)
2	Arkansas State - 154 (3)
3	South Alabama - 152 (4)
4	Troy - 148 (1)
5	Old Dominion - 145 (2)
6	Marshall - 128 (1)
7	App State - 123 (1)
8	Texas State - 106
9	Louisiana - 95 (1)
10	Georgia Southern - 66
11	Georgia State - 59
12	Southern Miss - 57
13	Coastal Carolina - 43
14	ULM - 19

Roster

2025–26 South Alabama Jaguars men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
G	0	Samuel Shoptaw	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	Fr	Windermere Prep	London, KY
G	1	Jayden Cooper	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Jr	Pike Road HS Faulkner	Pike Road, AL
G	2	Chaze Harris	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Sr	Bedford HS Life	Cleveland, OH
F	3	Stephen Williams	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	240 lb (109 kg)	So	Escambia County HS Coastal Alabama CC	Atmore, AL
G	4	Hantz Louis-Jeune	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	GS	Park Vista Community HS Lenoir–Rhyne	Lake Worth, FL
G	6	JJ Wheat	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	Sr	Clarksville HS Freed–Hardeman	Clarksville, TN
G	7	Brian Hawthorne	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Jr	St. James Academy Rockhurst	Shawnee, KS
G	8	Desmond Williams	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	Fr	Baker HS	Mobile, AL
F	9	Peyton Law	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Sr	Calhoun HS Freed–Hardeman	Calhoun, GA
G	10	Maxwell Land	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	200 lb (91 kg)	RS Sr	Archbishop Moeller HS Saint Francis (PA)	Cincinnati, OH
F	12	Adam Olsen	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Jr	Elgin Park Secondary UBC	Surrey, BC
G	14	John Broom	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	185 lb (84 kg)	RS So	Jacksonville HS	Jacksonville, AL
G/F	34	Randy Brady	6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)	215 lb (98 kg)	Sr	Hamilton Heights HS Chattanooga	Chattanooga, TN

Head coach

Richie Riley (Eastern Kentucky)

Assistant coach(es)

Rodney Crawford (Cincinnati)
Orin Bailey Jr. (Houston)
Riley Conroy (Tulane)
Ogi Vasiljevic (Ohio Valley)

Legend

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

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Exhibition
October 28, 2025* 7:00 p.m.	West Florida	W 88–76		25 – Harris	11 – Law	5 – Wheat	Mitchell Center Mobile, AL
Regular season
November 3, 2025* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+	at Toledo MAC-SBC Challenge	W 76–74	1–0	23 – Olsen	10 – Brady	7 – Harris	Savage Arena (3,626) Toledo, OH
November 6, 2025* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+	Alcorn State	W 76–70	2–0	29 – Law	9 – Law	7 – Harris	Mitchell Center (1,654) Mobile, AL
November 8, 2025* 3:00 p.m., ESPN+	Spring Hill	W 99–50	3–0	17 – Louis-Jeune	15 – S. Williams	3 – Tied	Mitchell Center (1,450) Mobile, AL
November 13, 2025* 10:00 a.m.	vs. Central Michigan Showdown in St. Pete	W 66–64	4–0	21 – Olsen	9 – Harris	2 – Harris	McArthur Center St. Petersburg, FL
November 15, 2025* 10:00 a.m.	vs. Coppin State Showdown in St. Pete	W 72–62	5–0	25 – Olsen	7 – Williams	6 – Harris	McArthur Center (243) St. Petersburg, FL
November 19, 2025* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+	at Jacksonville State	W 71–65	6–0	19 – Harris	8 – Brady	3 – Harris	Pete Mathews Coliseum (2,366) Jacksonville, AL
November 21, 2025* 6:30 p.m., ESPN+	at UAB	L 72–80	6–1	25 – Harris	8 – Brady	4 – Tied	Bartow Arena (3,531) Birmingham, AL
November 30, 2025* 1:00 p.m., ESPN+	at UTSA	W 82–58	7–1	20 – Olsen	8 – Tied	9 – Harris	Convocation Center (960) San Antonio, TX
December 2, 2025* 6:00 p.m.	vs. New Mexico State	W 77–75	8–1	12 – Olsen	7 – Brady	4 – Tied	Leonard E. Merrell Center (195) Katy, TX
December 5, 2025* 6:00 p.m., ESPN+	at East Tennessee State	L 65–91	8–2	19 – Cooper	6 – Brady	7 – Harris	Freedom Hall Civic Center (2,473) Johnson City, TN
December 14, 2025* 4:30 p.m., ESPN+	North Texas	L 57−58	8−3	20 – Harris	7 – Harris	3 – Tied	Mitchell Center (1,804) Mobile, AL
December 17, 2025 6:30 p.m., ESPN+	at Louisiana–Monroe						Fant–Ewing Coliseum Monroe, LA
December 20, 2025 2:30 p.m.	at Texas State						Strahan Arena San Marcos, TX
December 29, 2025* 7:00 p.m.	Mobile						Mitchell Center Mobile, AL
December 31, 2025 12:00 p.m., ESPN+	at Louisiana						Cajundome Lafayette, LA
January 3, 2026 3:30 p.m., ESPN+	at Troy						Trojan Arena Troy, AL
January 10, 2026 4:30 p.m., ESPN+	Georgia Southern						Mitchell Center Mobile, AL
January 15, 2026 7:00 p.m.	Arkansas State						Mitchell Center Mobile, AL
January 17, 2026 3:00 p.m., ESPN+	Louisiana						Mitchell Center Mobile, AL
January 22, 2026 7:00 p.m., ESPN+	at James Madison						Atlantic Union Bank Center Harrisonburg, VA
January 24, 2026 3:00 p.m., ESPN+	at Marshall						Cam Henderson Center Huntington, WV
January 29, 2026 7:00 p.m., ESPN+	Coastal Carolina						Mitchell Center Mobile, AL
January 31, 2026 3:00 p.m., ESPN+	Georgia State						Mitchell Center Mobile, AL
February 4, 2026 5:30 p.m., ESPN+	at Appalachian State						Holmes Convocation Center Boone, NC
February 7, 2026* 3:00 p.m., ESPN+	TBA MAC-SBC Challenge						Mitchell Center Mobile, AL
February 12, 2026 7:30 p.m., ESPN+	at Southern Miss						Reed Green Coliseum Hattiesburg, MS
February 14, 2026 2:00 p.m., ESPN+	at Arkansas State						First National Bank Arena Jonesboro, AR
February 19, 2026 7:00 p.m., ESPN+	Texas State						Mitchell Center Mobile, AL
February 21, 2026 3:00 p.m., ESPN+	Troy						Mitchell Center Mobile, AL
February 25, 2026 7:30 p.m., ESPN+	Louisiana–Monroe						Mitchell Center Mobile, AL
February 27, 2026 7:30 p.m., ESPN+	Southern Miss						Mitchell Center Mobile, AL
Sun Belt tournament
March 3–9, 2026	vs.						Pensacola Bay Center Pensacola, FL
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Central Time.

^[3]^[4]^[5]

References

^ Stephenson, Creg (April 12, 2025). "Former South Alabama basketball star transferring to ACC school". AL.com. Retrieved October 10, 2025.
^ ^a ^b "James Madison Tabbed 2025-26 Sun Belt Men's Basketball Favorite & ODU's Davis Named Preseason Player of the Year". sunbeltsports.org. October 20, 2025. Retrieved October 20, 2025.
^ "Riley Unveils 2025–26 Men's Basketball Schedule". usajaguars.com. October 15, 2025. Retrieved October 16, 2025.
^ "2025–26 South Alabama Jaguars Schedule". www.espn.com. Retrieved October 10, 2025.
^ "2025–26 Men's Basketball Schedule". usajaguars.com. Retrieved October 10, 2025.

[1] Stephenson, Creg (April 12, 2025). "Former South Alabama basketball star transferring to ACC school". AL.com. Retrieved October 10, 2025.

[:0-2] "James Madison Tabbed 2025-26 Sun Belt Men's Basketball Favorite & ODU's Davis Named Preseason Player of the Year". sunbeltsports.org. October 20, 2025. Retrieved October 20, 2025.

[3] "Riley Unveils 2025–26 Men's Basketball Schedule". usajaguars.com. October 15, 2025. Retrieved October 16, 2025.

[4] "2025–26 South Alabama Jaguars Schedule". www.espn.com. Retrieved October 10, 2025.

[5] "2025–26 Men's Basketball Schedule". usajaguars.com. Retrieved October 10, 2025.

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South Alabama Jaguars men's basketball
Venues	Jaguar Gymnasium (1968–1998) Mobile Civic Center (alternate, 1968–1998) Mitchell Center (1998–present)
People	Head coaches Statistical leaders
Seasons	List of seasons 1968–69 1969–70 1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 1973–74 1974–75 1975–76 1976–77 1977–78 1978–79 1979–80 1980–81 1981–82 1982–83 1983–84 1984–85 1985–86 1986–87 1987–88 1988–89 1989–90 1990–91 1991–92 1992–93 1993–94 1994–95 1995–96 1996–97 1997–98 1998–99 1999–2000 2000–01 2001–02 2002–03 2003–04 2004–05 2005–06 2006–07 2007–08 2008–09 2009–10 2010–11 2011–12 2012–13 2013–14 2014–15 2015–16 2016–17 2017–18 2018–19 2019–20 2020–21 2021–22 2022–23 2023–24 2024–25 2025–26