The 2021 season ended on a strange note. When Collin Gillespie went down and we stumbled into the NCAA tournament as a 5 seed, there was plenty to be concerned about. But the team rallied through the first weekend to a Sweet 16 berth, and fell to eventual champion Baylor in a hard-fought game.
A week after the Bears cut down the nets, Gillespie and Jermaine Samuels announced they would be returning for a fifth year — which changed everything about the expectations of this year’s group. A team thought to be young and inexperienced became a bonafide national title contender overnight.