As tempting as it is to complicate the game, there's really two major ways for a basketball team to improve, whether it's game to game, month to month, or year to year.

One is to make more shots. The other is to get more stops.

Morgan State coach Kevin Broadus thinks the Bears will do both this winter.

"We have some big wings that are skilled that are coming," says Broadus, who enters his seventh season at Morgan State. "Hopefully they can pick up the system. Another thing we changed is we tried to get better shooters. We have not particularly shot the ball well over the last few years. I think we have better shooters and better defenders."

Outside shooting could very well be a bellwether for the Bears. They averaged just 4.6 made three-pointers per game last season, ahead of only three Division I teams.

According to KenPom.com, Morgan State led the country in the share of its points that came on two-pointers in games against Division I opponents, at 62.5 percent.

It was a team built to do damage in the paint and from the mid-range, and only one player (leading scorer Kameron Hobbs) even attempted 60 threes on the season. But the top five scorers from that group have departed, leaving Broadus with an entirely new canvas to work with.

After a 14-18 season that included the Bears' third consecutive 7-7 finish in Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) play, Broadus believes there's enough in place to take a jump toward the top of the league.

THE BACKCOURT

To this point in his career, senior Rob Lawson (7.4 ppg) has enjoyed the luxury of leaning on older players in the backcourt as he's developed in the Bears' system.

Now, he's Morgan State's only starter from last season still in the fold, and Broadus clearly needs him to be a dynamic figure after the departures of Hobbs, Wynston Tabbs, and Will Thomas.

"He's right where he should be," Broadus says. "Fourth year, going into his senior year as a point guard. I think he has to take it upon himself to be better on defense. He knows the system, he knows where he's supposed to be, what he's supposed to do, and where the other guys are supposed to be. He knows that. Now he has to defend better.

The rest of the backcourt is filled with newcomers, though with varying degrees of experience. From the Division I ranks, Morgan State added Alfred Worrell Jr. from Southern Mississippi, where he averaged 6.5 points last season. The Washington, D.C., native is a big, fast guard, a change of pace for a program that's featured plenty of smaller perimeter options in recent seasons.

A pair of former Division II players should make an impact as graduate students. Walter Peggs Jr. averaged 26.0 points and shot 42.1 percent from three at Spring Hill College, and Broadus raves about his "old-style game" and how well it translates to the Bears' system.

Elijah Davis averaged 10.0 points and 5.0 assists last year at Bowie State, but he does have some Division I experience from stints at Mississippi Valley State and Incarnate Word. A high-IQ point guard, Davis should have the ball in his hands plenty.

Morgan State will also try to develop two freshman guards: David Bumpass from D.C. and Breon Barnett from the Atlanta area.

THE FRONTCOURT

This could be a breakout season for junior Trent Edwards (3.8 ppg, 2.3 rpg), who logged more minutes last season than any of the Bears' holdovers in the post.

"He was in the gym every day this summer," Broadus says. "He stayed. He never went home. He put the time and the work in. It's carrying over. He's really, really doing a lot."

Marland Harris (4.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg) was limited to 14 games last season because of a shoulder injury, and his athleticism gives him a chance to be a major part of the frontcourt rotation.

Broadus is hopeful sophomore Matar Wade (1.5 ppg, 1.8 rpg) can take a jump in his second season. He's most likely to have an impact on the defensive end, but if his game can mature a bit, he would be a valuable two-way asset.

Morgan State is plenty familiar with 7-footer Dallas James, a graduate student who played at South Carolina State before transferring to Indiana. James, the son of 11-year NBA veteran Jerome James, redshirted last season with the Hoosiers, and the combination of his size and basketball IQ should change the complexion of the Bears' defense.

Broadus is optimistic three juniors who are moving up from lower levels can make an immediate difference. The 6-6 Christian Meeks (16.1 ppg, 8.3 rpg at Waubonsee CC in Illinois) is the classic intangibles guy who does a lot of things well and projects to be one of the Bears' top rebounders.

Manok Lual averaged 5.8 points in five games at Division II Frostburg State before getting injured last season, but his style of play reminds Broadus of Troy Baxter Jr., a first team all-MEAC pick in 2020-21.

Also in the mix is Eugene Alvin (8.9 ppg at Florida Southwestern College), who shot 41.7 percent from three at the junior college level last season.

A wild card this season is Christian Oliver, who missed last season with a health issue but averaged 5.5 points and 3.5 rebounds while starting 10 games for the Bears in 2023-24.

THE SCHEDULE

Morgan State opens the season Nov. 3 at Georgetown, a school Broadus served as an assistant coach in two separate stints. It will be the Bears' first game against the Hoyas since Dec. 10, 2001. Other high-major opponents include DePaul (Dec. 9) and California (Dec. 19), the latter part of a three-game West Coast swing just before Christmas.

The home opener is Nov. 6 against Central Pennsylvania College, one of seven nonconference games to be played at Hill Field House. Longwood, which advanced to the NCAA tournament by winning the Big South's automatic berth last season, pays a visit on Dec. 6.

Morgan State opens MEAC play at Maryland-Eastern Shore on Jan. 3, with its first league home game Jan. 10 against South Carolina State. The Bears close the regular season with a four-game homestand capped by a visit from Coppin State on March 5.

Broadus hopes this team can grow steadily throughout that slate and ultimately peak in time for the March 11-14 MEAC tournament in Norfolk, Va.

"It's a slow process, but guys are buying in now and working hard, and that's a plus," Broadus says. "You don't always get that. Guys think they're better than what they are, and don't want to work hard and want to save it. These guys have been dialed in and focused and they've been focused on themselves and each other, and it's been really good so far."


FOLLOW MORGAN STATE ATHLETICS IN CYBERSPACE 
There are many ways to keep up with MSU athletics online and on the go:
• Visit www.morganstatebears.com, the official website of Bears athletics, for news, schedules, stats, bios, and more. 
• Follow us on social media:
 Facebook: /MorganStateBears
 Twitter: @MorganStBears
 Instagram: /MorganStateBears

ABOUT MORGAN
Morgan State University, founded in 1867, is a Carnegie-classified high research (R2) institution offering nearly 140 academic programs leading to degrees from the baccalaureate to the doctorate. As Maryland's Preeminent Public Urban Research University, and the only university to have its entire campus designated as a National Treasure by the National Trust for Historic Preservation, Morgan serves a multiethnic and multiracial student body and seeks to ensure that the doors of higher education are opened as wide as possible to as many as possible. For more information about Morgan State University, visit www.morgan.edu.