BOONEVILLE, Miss. - Two opposites can be true at the same time when referencing Northeast Mississippi Community College's men's basketball roster this season.
The first fact is that the Tigers have five sophomores back from their 2024-25 version that went 27-5 overall and advanced to the region tournament semifinals. It is the most returners for Northeast in four years.
On the flip side, the Tigers welcomed eight true freshmen to campus this semester. That is the largest batch of newcomers that Northeast has brought in since the coronavirus shortened spring campaign in 2021.
These trends do not necessarily guarantee success or failure. However, the Tigers have won championships under head coach Cord Wright with teams of a similar build and intend to do so once again.
"They're a good group. They've been really exciting to be around from the summer to now," said Wright. "I'm trying to get them to be a little tougher when they step inside the lines, but they handle their business where they're supposed to. They're accountable and they do their job."
Javion Stephen (Olive Branch) is the lone sophomore to start in more than 10 games one year ago. He was Northeast's second leading scorer behind only National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) All-American Tyler Byrd with 9.9 points.
Stephen also topped the Tigers with 2.2 made three-pointers per game and an 82.5 free throw percentage. He tied a season-high of 23 points twice, including in a home victory over rival Itawamba Community College.
Tayler Berryhill (Cleveland Central), Michael Johnson (Cincinnati, Ohio) and Zane Tipler (Pontotoc) all appeared in the first-five at times as freshmen. Berryhill, specifically, started the final nine contests last year for the Tigers.
Berryhill and Tipler can run the point, but both can shoot the lights out from beyond the arc. Berryhill broke the program record for most threes in a regular season game with 10 during Northeast's win against Mississippi Delta Community College.
Johnson is the Tigers' top returning rebounder at a clip of 3.2 per outing. He and Marreon Smith (Columbus) are expected to take on much bigger roles in the post during the upcoming season.
Buddy Spearman (Coffeeville) headlines the group of fresh faces for Northeast. He was the winner of the last two Class 1A Mr. Basketball awards presented by the Mississippi Association of Coaches (MAC) and the Mississippi High School Activities Association (MHSAA).
Spearman scored a game-high 37 points to secure most valuable player (MVP) honors in the 2025 MHSAA Class 1A championship contest. He entered the postseason during his senior campaign with averages of 30.5 points and five assists.
Jalen Chandler (Florence, Ala.) was selected to the Alabama Sports Writers Association (ASWA) Class 7A all-state team after reaching the state title matchup. He dropped a career-best 41 points in the semifinal round.
Chandler was also the MVP of the Alabama High School Athletic Association (AHSAA) Class 1A state tournament in 2023 while at Covenant Christian (Ala.) School. He captured a state title and was a two-time runner-up throughout his prep journey.
Zach Portwood earned a spot on the Mid-South Association of Independent Schools (MAIS) Class 5A All-State lineup. He registered 16 points, five rebounds and three assists per contest last winter for Rossville Christian (Tenn.) Academy.
Jordan Ben (Neshoba Central) and Caleb Howard (Grenada) are transfer additions for the Tigers. Howard was named to The Clarion-Ledger's large schools all-state team following his final prep campaign.
Yoshi Nimmo and Ezekiel Udozorh join the Tigers from the Sunshine State of Florida. Rounding out Northeast's options are a pair of promising forwards in Issac Gilbert (New Albany) and Jeremiah Russell (Olive Branch).
"I think our team chemistry, our connectivity on-and-off the floor is going to be a strength," Wright said. "They can be coached and I think once we settle into our roles this team has a high ceiling."
Wright's new-look coaching staff includes former Louisiana State University (LSU) four-year letterman Andre Stringer plus his dad, Denny Wright, and Northeast alumnus Cole McGrath.
Northeast has 16 total home games this year. The Mississippi Association of Community Colleges Conference (MACCC) portion of the schedule begins on Monday, January 12 inside legendary Bonner Arnold Coliseum versus Holmes Community College.