For 8 long months, the shining hardwood of Helferich Hall has anxiously awaited the dribble of an orange ball. That wait will end on Friday, as the men’s basketball team begins their season at home for the “Bear Bash-In Tournament.” With a strong returning cast, and a large group of youth surrounding them, the Bears will look to continue to build on their strong showing of a season ago.
Ursinus finished 17-10 last season, their best record since the 2017-2018 season. Their success was in large part due to their offense, leading the Centennial Conference in scoring throughout the regular season. Ursinus thrived by dominating opponents in transition, with their plethora of scoring talent often taking advantage of backpedaling defenders. They’ll look to continue this trend in 2025, with a new cast of characters.
The largest obstacle for the Bears will be the losses they encountered this offseason. Centennial Conference leading scorer Trevor Wall graduated, leaving a massive hole in the Bears’ dominant offense. Wall was an elite shooter, but also a much-improved playmaker a season ago. The team operated with the ball in his hands more than ever before, especially in the half-court late in games. The Bears will need to find a way to make their offense flow without their star.
A large chunk of that role will likely fall now on Nick Nocito ‘26, operating more as a traditional point guard than the 6′ 3 Wall. Nocito was the Centennial Conference Rookie of the Year as a freshman, averaging 8 PPG and showcasing a steadfast effort on both ends of the floor. He recovered strong from an ACL injury his sophomore year, getting to the line at a career-high rate last season with a newfound explosiveness. His aggressiveness, both as a distributor and a creator of offense, will be desperately needed.
The continued development of Mo Toure ‘26 will also be an intriguing storyline for the Bears in 2025. Toure improved dramatically in 2024-25, expanding from a 3 and D wing to a key component of the Bears’ transition offense at the rim. It’ll be exciting to see if he can take another step forward this season on offense, in order to fill the hole Wall has left.
While Ursinus’s offense was stellar a year ago, defense was eventually their undoing. The Bears struggled especially on the perimeter, allowing the second-highest 3 point percentage in the conference. It especially killed them in the second round of the Centennial Conference Tournament, as Franklin and Marshall shot 58% from 3 to eliminate the team.
For improvement on this end of the floor, the Bears will look to their young rotation of guards. The team hopes that Jamie Murphy ‘28 and Porter Kelly ‘28 can improve upon their predecessors, taking on the stout guard play of the Centennial Conference with fast, aggressive closeouts.
The Men’s Basketball Bears will surely look different than they did a year ago. It’s likely that the loss of Wall, along with leading rebounder Cole Grubbs and sparkplug Marlin Wise, will make this a bit of a transition year. With a program as established as Ursinus’s it’s never fair to count the Bears out though, as Coach Kevin Small has not experienced a losing season in 10 years. Expect Ursinus to make some noise in the conference, even if it’s more muted than a year ago.