2025-26 Austin College Men's Basketball Season Preview

SHERMAN, Texas - The Austin College men's basketball team heads into the 2025-26 campaign with a strong combination of returning production and talented newcomers, with head coach Rodney Wecker's squad coming off of a year in which they finished 9-16 overall and 4-12 in Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference play a season ago.

The 'Roos will need to replace 1,000-point scorer and sharpshooter Jackson Rennie, but two of the team's three top scorers from a year ago return, as do its top four rebounders. Leading the way will be junior guard Jamien June, who finished last season second behind Rennie in scoring with 14.5 points-per-game while also finishing the season tied for the team lead with 3.2 assists-per-game, and he also grabbed 3.9 rebounds-per-game while shooting 46.5% from the field, 40.8% from long range, and 77.7% from the free throw line.

Helping June fill some of the scoring void will be senior wing Kidus Getenet, last season's third top scorer in the program with 14.0 points-per-game. Getenet also finished second on the team with 5.3 rebounds-per-game and hit 44.6% from the field and 38% from beyond the arc, while also knocking down 79.2% of his free throw attempts last year. He and June will be joined on the perimeter by Aiden Schnurr, who chipped in 5.0 points and 36% shooting from deep in his first season with the 'Roos last year, and Wecker will be turning to a pair of returning post players to hold down the fort in the paint.

Ethan Pearce and Jordan Hudgins both enter their senior season as long-time contributors, with the 6-foot-6 Hudgins often operating as a point forward for the 'Roos and heading into his fourth year in Sherman with career averages of 5.2 points, 5.0 rebounds, and 2.4 assists-per-game, while the 6-foot-7 Pearce brings length, athleticism, and shotblocking, finishing among the SCAC leaders last season with an average of 1.5 blocks and 1.2 steals-per-game. Pearce averaged career-bests last season with 8.2 points and 6.0 rebounds-per-game, the top mark on the glass on the team last year. 

Among the other returning players with a chance to make an impact this year are forwards Gabe Markhart, Jacob Jackson, Tyler Cross, and Fred Nnyina, as well as guard Wesley Westbrooks, while Wecker will also be turning to several new faces, both as first-year collegiate players and transfers, to contribute early during their Austin College careers.

Peyton Gonzales, a 6-foot-4 transfer guard, looks poised to make an impact right away, as does first-year guard Tasshir Pina-Warren. Ryan Clemons is another transfer guard with the opportunity to bolster the perimeter, and Tye Williams and Austin Haley are two more first-year guards entering the mix to get on the court immediately. Wecker could also turn to first-year post player Ryan Dupre to shore up the interior, as the 6-foot-7 forward from Georgetown adds needed size to the roster.

Austin College opens up the season on November 7 on the road, with the 'Roos heading to Arkansas to take on Lyon College at 5:00 p.m.