Bill Armstrong continued the success that Will Wade started and looks to keep McNeese basketball in control of the Southland.
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: McNeese Basketball.
The Cowboys continued their reign even after they had only minimal returners this past season and continued to dominate the Southland Conference and nearly pulled an upset over Vanderbilt in the Round of 64 of the NCAA Tournament.
This year, the Cowboys only return two players. One is Larry Johnson, who was the leading scorer on the team and the Southland Conference Freshman of the Year, averaging 17 points per game. The other returner is Carl Cherenfant, who was a role player and will now be a senior looking for a bigger role. As the Cowboys did under Wade and now continue to do under Coach Armstrong, they are recruiting well in the portal, taking a lot of guys from the Power Five who have something to prove after not performing at the high major level.
Then, there are guys from the Power Five like Corey Chest who had some big games rebounding the ball, but have not had success scoring; it will take a step down in competition and will look to be that force down low and lob threat.
Head coach: Bill Armstrong (2nd season at McNeese State, 3rd season overall)
2025-26 record: 28-6 (19-3)
2026 postseason finish: Lost to Vanderbilt, 78-68, in first round of NCAA Tournament
Notable departures:
- Tyshawn Archie (14.3 PPG, 1.9 RPG, 2.9 APG)
- Javohn Garcia (11.9 PPG, 3.1 RPG, 1.6 APG)
- Garwey Dual (8.4 PPG, 2.9 RPG, 4.4 APG)
- DJ Richards Jr. (8.3 PPG, 2.1 RPG, 0.7 APG)
Notable non-conference games:
- vs. UAB (Nov. 2)
Projected Rotation
PG: Larry Johnson (6-4, 200, So.)
2025-26 stats: 17.4 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 1.4 APG, 1.2 SPG, 49.2 FG%, 23.8 3P%, 77.7 FT%
SG: Elijah “Choppa” Moore (6-4, 180, So.)
1 GP in 2025-26 (Utah), but was a top 60 recruit in 2024 (Syracuse)
SF: Jaylon Dean-Vines (6-4, 182, So.)
2025-26 stats: 10 GP as a freshman at Vanderbilt. Was a three-star recruit on 247Sports for the class of 2025.
PF: Corey Chest (6-8, 220, Jr.)
2025-26 stats: 2.6 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 0.6 APG, 59.4 FG%, 48.1 FT% (Ole Miss)
C: Alier Maluk (6-11, 220, Jr.)
2025-26 stats: 1.6 PPG, 1.7 RPG, 0.3 APG, 36.4 FG%, 56.3 FT% (Florida State)
6: Carl Cherenfant (6-5, 195, Sr.)
2025-26 stats: 4.1 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 0.9 APG, 47.5 FG%, 21.4 3P%, 73.5 FT%
7: Dellquan Warren (6-2, 185, Jr.)
2025-26 stats: 1.2 PPG, 0.4 RPG, 0.9 APG, 37.5 FG% (Mississippi State)
8: Christian Nitu (6-11, 220, So.)
Didn’t play at Washington last year
2024-25 stats: 1.9 PPG, 1.3 RPG, 0.2 APG (Florida State)
9: MJ Madison (6-9, 215, Fr.)
247Sports Composite No. 247 ranked recruit
10: JJ Rembert (5-10, 155, Rs.-Fr.)
Redshirted and transferred from Cincinnati
11: Akim Mazou (6-10, 190, Rs.- Fr.)
Redshirted a season ago
12: Tyrease Hunter (6-2, 170, Fr.)
247Sports Composite unranked recruit
McNeese State Basketball team MVP: Larry Johnson
It is not too often that a mid-major team’s leading scorer returns, and Armstrong and company got rewarded with Larry Johnson returning. Johnson led the team in scoring with 17 a game and won the Freshman of the Year in the conference. This upcoming year should be the favorite to win the Player of the Year within the conference.
Johnson’s usage rate will only continue to skyrocket with a lot of unknown commodities on the roster heading into the year. When the team is on a scoring drought and will need a bucket, they’ve got the guy on the team to put the team on its back and lead it to another conference championship and hopefully another automatic bid into March Madness.
McNeese State Basketball make-or-break player: Corey Chest
Corey Chest’s 2025-26 season did not go to plan after portaling to Ole Miss from LSU after the 2024-2025 season. With the team not performing well, Chest’s season was also not consistent, with inconsistent minutes throughout the season.
For the Cowboys to be a threat, it will need to help out its guards with consistent play on the block, whether that be blocking shots, rebounding, or getting paint looks for easy layups and dunks.
While at LSU during the 2024-2025 season Chest had multiple big games with four double-doubles including a 12 and 18 game against Alabama.
Stat to know: Turnover rate
McNeese basketball’s ball pressure, with its chaos-defending on the ball pressure and relentless full-court press, was first in the NCAA in defensive turnover rate, forcing 16.8 turnovers per game. It’s a big reason why the Cowboys are always a dangerous team and are usually a popular pick to upset a team come March.
If a team is going to try and dethrone McNeese State from its crown as kings of the Southland, the opponent will have to play clean basketball, which many teams did not have success doing during the 2025-2026 season.
McNeese State Basketball 2026-27 projections
Projected conference finish: 1st in the Southland
Projected postseason ceiling: Round of 64 exit/NIT appearance