With October nearing the end, November promises to bring cooler days, earlier sunsets, and Spire basketball. The University of Saint Mary Spire men's basketball is coming off a hugely successful 24-25 season, one that earned them the KCAC conference title, the programs first since 2013, and a trip to the 2025 Men's NAIA National Tournament, where their season ended in the first round with an overall record of 22-10 and a conference final of 16-6. The Spire men are at the helm of head coach Troy Brown in his 15th year, assisted by Jamison Carmichael in his 8th year and Demarius Houston in his 2nd year on staff.

While the Spires graduated a few key players in their offensive firepower forwards in Bryce Johnson, Tre Alexander, and Joey Schultz, the coaching staff landed pivital transfers in Joe Clark, Terrius Walker, and Javon Calmese who will fit seamlessly on both ends of the court. Defensively, USM is eager to show they are still among the toughest in the league. USM is excited to see their depth off the bench in the guard position with sharp shooters and returning top guards in junior Jordan Brown, junior Kaeden Bonner, and senior Damare Smith, and junior Cam Edwards who joined the Spires after Christmas last season. 

While new faces can bring early challenges to the flow and overall system of an already successful program, the Spires are quickly learning to trust each other and put it all together on the court. Coach Troy Brown expressed they will quickly learn a lot about themselves as a team as his squad is gearing up for a tough non-conference schedule where they will open up their season against the ones who ended it, Langston University.

Spire men will tip-off at 5:30 p.m. on Friday, October 31^st against the Lions on the road. Closely followed by their home opener on Tuesday, November 4^th at 7:30 p.m. against Midland University in the Ryan Sports Center. To hear coach Brown's full media day interview, watch now on Urban Edge Network!