Ritchie McKay returns his starting backcourt, as Liberty basketball hopes that can be enough to guide the Flames to a ninth 20-win season in 10 years.
The tradition continues! It’s another year of our countdown of the top 100 preseason teams in college basketball until the start of the season. Each day, we will reveal the next team until we reach the team slotted at number one. Up next: Liberty basketball.
Ritchie McKay has turned Liberty basketball into not just a consistent mid-major, but a powerhouse at that level. The Flames have only failed to win 20 games in a season once in the last nine tries, and went 30-4 in 2019-20. Last year, they had another historic season, finishing 28-7 and losing to Oregon in the big dance.
And once again, the Flames look primed to be at the top of their conference.
The team returns a backcourt of Colin Porter and Kaden Metheny that combined to average roughly 22 points, 6 assists, and 5 rebounds per game last season. They will likely be called upon again to pace this team offensively and knock down threes. Both did so at a high level last season.
Zach Cleveland might be the most important player – a do-it-all type of guy who can score, rebound, and playmake. He also averaged a block per game last year, which, at 6-foot-7, is fairly impressive.
And Brett Decker Jr. comes with a lot of promise after putting up over four points per contest as a freshman. I project him to start, which all depends on if McKay plans to go big or small. Either way, expect his minutes to rise and be the future of this Liberty basketball program.
After those four, it will be up to which big men and freshmen step up. Josh Smith and Isaiah Ihnen are both talented when on the court, but both are also coming off season-ending knee injuries. Health is a concern there because McKay would have to go deep into his bench to figure out a replacement. Zander Yates would be next up, but as a redshirt senior, we kind of already know what he is.
That’s your seven-man rotation, which means McKay will have to find a freshman or two to help out, especially if injuries become a problem again. Still, the top seven are talented enough to lead Liberty back to March Madness.
Head coach: Ritchie McKay (13th season at Liberty, 22nd season overall)
2024-25 record: 28-7 (13-5)
2025 postseason finish: Lost to Oregon (81-52) in first round of NCAA Tournament
Notable departures:
- Taelon Peter (13.7 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 1.0 APG, 57.8 FG%, 45.3 3P%)
- Jayvon Maughmer (8.7 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 1.5 APG)
- Owen Aquino (8.6 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 2.1 APG, 1.1 BPG, 58.3 FG%)
Notable non-conference games:
- vs. Vermont (Nov. 24) – ESPN Events Invitational
- vs. URI OR Towson (Nov. 25) – ESPN Events Invitational
- TBD (Nov. 26) – ESPN Events Invitational
Projected Rotation
PG: Colin Poter (5-10, 170, Sr.)
2024-25 stats: 9.1 PPG, 4.3 APG, 2.2 RPG, 1.5 SPG, 42.9 3P%
SG: Kaden Metheny (5-11, 170, Gr.-Sr.)
2024-25 stats: 13.3 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 2.0 APG, 38.3 3P%
SF: Brett Decker Jr. (6-3, 190, So.)
2024-25 stats: 4.3 PPG, 0.6 RPG, 0.4 APG, 44.2 3P%, 6.8 MPG
PF: Zach Cleveland (6-7, 220, Sr.)
2024-25 stats: 11.0 PPG, 6.3 RPG, 5.1 APG, 1.0 BPG
C: Josh Smith (6-9, 225, Rs.-Sr.)
2024-25 stats: 8.4 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 0.8 APG, 55.7 FG%, 14 GP (Stetson, Season-ending knee injury)
6: Isaiah Ihnen (6-9, 220, Rs.-Jr.)
2024-25 stats: 10.4 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 0.5 APG, 55.7 FG%, 38.9 3P%, 11 GP (Season-ending knee injury)
7: Zander Yates (6-8, 225, Rs.-Sr.)
2024-25 stats: 3.3 PPG, 1.2 RPG, 0.3 APG, 39.2 3P%, 8.2 MPG
Liberty Basketball team MVP: Zach Cleveland
I could go with either backcourt player here, but I’m choosing Cleveland because of his ability to do multiple things on the floor. And with a team that has players with deep injury histories in the frontcourt, Cleveland’s ability to stay healthy and chip in on the glass may be his most crucial factor this year.
Plus, his ability to run point guard also brings a whole new dynamic to the floor. The Flames don’t need to rely on their backcourt – even though Porter and Metheny are more than capable of running the offense. If Cleveland pulls down a board, you should almost expect him to push the ball down the floor and handle it himself.
Don’t just look at Cleveland as a guy who has the tools to help in different areas. He’s an actual game-changer, someone who can force teams to defend Liberty differently than everyone else.
Liberty Basketball make-or-break player: Brett Decker Jr.
I want to be fair to both Ihnen and Smith, because knee injuries are unfortunate and not something you can really avoid if you’re susceptible to them. Of course, if both can stay healthy throughout the season, that’s a big get, but I instead want to highlight Decker Jr.
Decker saw the floor last year as a freshman, and while his six minutes per game won’t jump off the floor, he averaged 4.3 points in those minutes. How? He shot the three-ball at 44.2%. We all know the Flames love to flamethrow, but to do that as a freshman without seeing the floor enough to even get your legs all the way under you is extremely impressive.
This season, I’m expecting Decker to see somewhere between 12 and 20 minutes and to be a bigger factor offensively. And lets not forget that Decker can handle the ball, drive to the basket, and has high-flying abilities. He’s far from a sit in the corner and wait for the ball type of player. We could really see him emerge as on of Liberty’s top players this season.
Key analytic: Fouls committed per game
You may have expected me to highlight Liberty being the 15th best three-point shooting team last season, or even ranking 41st in fewest turnovers. I could have looked at where they need to improve, which is rebounding the basketball.
But nope, Liberty basketball only fouled 13.4 times per game last season, 7th in the country. And to me, that’s an interesting stat to look at.
Of course, it lies in the hands of the refs’ discretion, but you have to think consistently not getting called for fouls is frustrating for opponents. Teams make it a point in the year 2025 to get to the free-throw line, and if they can’t do that, it really changes the game a lot of times. It’s a weird part of the game that the Flames can’t always control, but it’s sort of like a mind-game they can play with their opponents that you can’t take for granted.
Liberty Basketball 2025-26 projections
Projected conference finish: 1st in C-USA
Projected postseason ceiling: NCAA Tournament First Round Exit