Lineup guesses?

IAHawkGrad2000

Freshman
Jan 12, 2014
22
77
13
Love seeing our shortest guy is 6'3" and a bunch in the 6'7"-6'9" range, should be good defensively assuming their feet are quick enough to switch/stay in front... lots of options but curious who the starting 5 and end of game lineups will be.
 
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2D

All-American
Oct 8, 2013
3,425
7,124
113
Combs
Sage
Koch
Manyawu
McKeever

6th man will likely be Howard because of all of the off season buzz, with Jirak and Coleman behind him. Really interested in what Ben does with the Thompson, Harris, and Coon trio. All guys with major upsides.
 

2432Hawk

Heisman
Jun 22, 2002
6,489
12,147
113
To me it really comes down to matchups on who we'll see on the floor.

In the scrimmage with Texas Tech and the upcoming one with Saint Louis we're struggling with guard heavy teams as we are more forward/big heavy at the moment. If we can get better defending quickness with our size we may stay with a bigger line-up but my feeling is we may have to play smaller.

Right now, I'd go:

McKeever
Koch
Sage
Howard
Combs

off the bench

Manyawu
Jirak
Thompson/Coon
Harris
Coleman

But as we get to BigTen play and teams with more traditional C/PF parings, then we may see the bigger lineup.

McKeever
Manyawu
Koch
Sage
Combs

off the bench

Jirak
Thompson
Harris/Coon
Howard
Coleman
 

Hawksfor3

All-American
Dec 5, 2016
8,600
9,712
113
To me it really comes down to matchups on who we'll see on the floor.

In the scrimmage with Texas Tech and the upcoming one with Saint Louis we're struggling with guard heavy teams as we are more forward/big heavy at the moment. If we can get better defending quickness with our size we may stay with a bigger line-up but my feeling is we may have to play smaller.

Right now, I'd go:

McKeever
Koch
Sage
Howard
Combs

off the bench

Manyawu
Jirak
Thompson/Coon
Harris
Coleman

But as we get to BigTen play and teams with more traditional C/PF parings, then we may see the bigger lineup.

McKeever
Manyawu
Koch
Sage
Combs

off the bench

Jirak
Thompson
Harris/Coon
Howard
Coleman
I agree with the second lineup.
 

Bro D

All-American
Nov 17, 2003
1,729
6,556
113
I think Combs, Sage, Coop, Cam and McKeever is going to be the starting lineup but man I hope Thompson turns into a stud. If he does.... a lineup with him, Coop and Sage would be extremely tough to guard.

This team is going to be very good
 
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Palmerhawk

All-Conference
Jul 3, 2025
2,309
4,619
113
Howard is one of the keys to a good season
Last year he flashed at times but his 3 pt shooting and foul trouble limited him.
This team is thin in backcourt.
We need Howard,kael combs,tyreke coleman and sage/ coon to be solid on defense and shoot the ball.
The cliche still is true...guards rule the college game
 

CyberJJJ

Redshirt
Jan 18, 2002
16
12
3
To me it really comes down to matchups on who we'll see on the floor.

In the scrimmage with Texas Tech and the upcoming one with Saint Louis we're struggling with guard heavy teams as we are more forward/big heavy at the moment. If we can get better defending quickness with our size we may stay with a bigger line-up but my feeling is we may have to play smaller.
I think you just summed up the issue that will determine how far this team can go.
 

Max Rebo

All-Conference
Dec 31, 2022
839
2,292
93
Things we know about McCollum’s lineup choices, based on last year:
  • He prioritizes defense
  • He favors guys who know his system and he trusts
  • He’s not afraid to keep hyped transfers on the bench
Based on this, I predict this lineup, at least early in the season:

Combs
Howard
Sage
Koch
Manyawu
 
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