NORFOLK, VA (WTKR)- Basketball season is just around the corner and Old Dominion continues its preparations for the upcoming campaign.
Wednesday saw us tip off season three of the Old Dominion Full Court Press, our weekly program dedicated to Monarch men's basketball. ODU is coming off a season of improvement in 2022-2023, one that saw the silver and blue finish 19-12, 11-7 in the Sun Belt, and earn the number six seed in the conference tournament.
This season sees the return of Chaunce Jenkins, Imo Essien, Dericko Williams, Bryce Baker, Jason Wade and Cooper Jones.
Jeff Jones also pulled in a handful of transfers, such as RJ Blakney (Dayton), Tyrone Williams (Oregon), Devin Ceaser (Buffalo), Leeroy Odiahi (Indian Hills Community College) and Sam Hood (Brunswick Community College).
Add freshmen Vasean and Yamari Allette, Dani Pounds and Jaylen Jenkins, and the Monarchs have a roster that includes a good amount of talent.
Jones and his staff have spent the summer working on chemistry and consistency. The head coach said that time the Monarchs might have spent on individual instruction in the past was more team-oriented this time around.
As for the senior guard Wade, he was an ODU redemption story a year ago, returning after missing two seasons due to injury. Now he's back after fine-tuning his body, losing weight and working on his game.
We're also kicking off our 94 foot conversations with the newcomer Ceaser.
The Old Dominion Full Court Press airs every Wednesday during News 3 at 11:00 through the end of college basketball season. Click on the above video to view this week's episode.
