ACC TEAM PREVIEW #13 SOUTHERN METHODIST UNIVERSITY MUSTANGS

SMU is coming off a fairly successful first season as a member of the ACC. They finished with a 13-7 record in conference play last year, which was tied for fourth in the ACC. It was also the first season of the Andy Enfield era after he shockingly left the University of Southern California to take the SMU job after being at USC for 11 seasons.

Projected Lineup:

G Kevin 'Boopie' Miller

G B.J. Edwards

G Jaron Pierre Jr (Jacksonville State transfer)

F Jaden Toombs

C Samet Yigitoglu

SMU returns three key pieces from last year's squad, which nowadays is pretty good. Kevin Miller is back for his second season with SMU, which is huge. He should be one of the best guards in the conference next season. Miller led the Mustangs in scoring last season with 13.2 points per game; he also led the team in assists with 5.5 per contest. There will be another familiar face alongside him in the backcourt in B.J. Edwards. He had a breakout season in his junior year last season, averaging 9.9 points per game and earning All-ACC defensive team honors. SMU also gets a big piece of their frontcourt back next season with 7-foot-2 center Samet Yigitoglu. He started all 32 games he played in, and averaged 10.2 points along with 6.2 rebounds per game in his first season of college basketball after coming over from Turkey.

Andy Enfield was able to land three players out of the transfer portal this offseason. The most notable addition was Jaron Pierre Jr from Jacksonville State. Pierre will be huge for the Mustangs' offense next season, as he was easily one of the best scorers available in the portal. He averaged 21.6 points per game last year and was named the player of the year in Conference USA. SMU also landed Wichita State transfer Corey Washington and Michigan transfer Sam Walters through the portal, who should both also be key contributors next season. SMU has five freshman in their 2025 recruiting class, which ranks as the 15th best in the country by 247 Sports. They've got four four-stars and one three-star commit. Jaden Toombs is their best incoming recruit; he's the #30 overall recruit and the #4 center in the class.

I think this SMU has a chance to do something special in just their second year as a member off the conference. They just missed the tournament last season, but with the amount of talent they have coming back and the addition of Jaron Pierre Jr, this SMU team looks dangerous on paper going into next season.

Prediction: 4th in ACC