Wednesday, November 5
Location: Qubein Center
Occasion: Homecoming / Alumni Weekend
Series & Setting
Averett makes the trip to High Point for a Division III versus Division I matchup in what amounts to a brutal scheduling spot for the Cougars.
They open their season the night before against St. Mary’s College of Maryland, then travel to the Qubein Center on short rest. It is also the second consecutive year Averett will participate in High Point’s Homecoming weekend. The Panthers won last season’s matchup 85–57, but the Cougars competed, defended, and earned respect despite the final margin.
High Point will enter as an overwhelming favorite. The Panthers are one of the country’s premier mid-major programs and are coming off a dominant performance against a talented, well-coached Furman team.
Still, nothing should be viewed as automatic.
Lower-division programs are capable of making Division I opponents uncomfortable. Earlier this week, Queens struggled with Averett’s ODAC rival Lynchburg, while preseason darling Boise State suffered a loss to Division II Hawai‘i Pacific, otherwise known as “the other HPU.”
There is also a human element to consider.
High Point enters the game after making an early national splash, earning praise from Jeff Goodman, and generating premature talk of an undefeated run. The game also falls during Homecoming and Alumni Weekend, bringing additional attention and celebration to campus.
For eight Averett players from North Carolina, this will feel like a homecoming of their own. That group includes High Point native Isaiah Ramazani and Greensboro product Jackson Sellars. They will arrive with something to prove.
The potential trap is obvious: hype, attention, and a weekend filled with distractions. Every player in Averett’s locker room understands the situation, and many of them will take the matchup personally.
Nothing should be written in permanent marker before the ball is tipped.
Overview
Averett enters the season projected to finish ninth in the ODAC, one of the most competitive conferences in Division III basketball.
The Cougars are also ranked 366th by D3 Datacast, an NPI-style rating system used to evaluate Division III programs.
This is a roster undergoing significant change. Transfers, freshmen, and returning players are still learning one another while attempting to establish clear roles and a consistent identity.
Head coach David Doino, the winningest coach in program history, has described this as a learn-as-you-go team built around several foundational principles:
- Complete defensive buy-in
- Mental toughness
- Selflessness and role clarity
- Never allowing offensive struggles to dictate defensive effort
Averett possesses length across the perimeter but very little traditional interior size. The tallest player on the roster is 6’6″ freshman Carter Cornett.
The Cougars must also replace two of their most productive players from last season. All-ODAC guard Jamison Graves transferred to Salisbury, while 1,000-point scorer Jason Sellars II completed his Averett career.
Team Identity: Defiance, Discipline & Defensive Tenacity
Defiance
Averett wants to compete through toughness, physicality, and a willingness to make games uncomfortable.
The Cougars are unlikely to match High Point’s talent possession for possession, so their path is to disrupt rhythm, extend possessions, and force the Panthers into a more physical game than they would prefer.
Discipline
Doino demands the same mentality on every possession: sprint back, contest shots, rebound collectively, and repeat the process.
That discipline becomes especially important for a team without overwhelming size or a proven offensive star.
Defensive Tenacity
Expect Averett to switch, scrap, and gang rebound in an effort to compensate for its lack of interior size.
The Cougars are built around rangy perimeter players rather than traditional post bodies, meaning all five defenders must contribute on the glass.
Offensively, Doino uses structured sets that flow into read-based drives and kick-out opportunities. The goal is to create a domino effect by forcing one rotation and attacking the next opening.
The biggest question is whether a reliable primary scorer can emerge within that framework.
Key Players
- Isaiah Ramazani (So., G/W — High Point, NC) — A long, active defender and high-motor wing who should play with additional energy in his hometown.
- Jackson Sellars (So., G — Greensboro, NC) — The younger brother of last season’s 1,000-point scorer Jason Sellars II. A confident creator who will have extra motivation returning to the Triad.
- Carter Cornett (Fr., F, 6’6″, 215 lbs) — The tallest player on Averett’s roster. He competes hard and brings physicality, but he will be significantly undersized against High Point’s frontcourt.
The remainder of the roster features several rangy guards and wings. This is a team constructed to defend, switch, and compete rather than overpower opponents inside.
By the Numbers
| Category | 2024–25 Result |
|---|---|
| Points Per Game | 65.8 |
| Field Goal Percentage | 42.5% |
| Three-Point Percentage | Approximately 32% |
| Rebounds Per Game | 31.3 |
Those are grind-it-out numbers.
If this becomes a half-court possession game filled with stoppages, physical defense, and contested shots, Averett can remain competitive for stretches.
If High Point turns it into a track meet, the Cougars will struggle to keep pace.
Coaching Breakdown: David Doino
David Doino is the winningest head coach in Averett men’s basketball history and has built the program around defense, accountability, and culture.
His teams play with intensity and are expected to maintain their defensive standards regardless of how the offense is performing.
Doino also places a strong emphasis on mental toughness, selflessness, and clearly defined roles. He has made a concerted effort to reconnect former players with the program, strengthening Averett’s alumni network and broader team culture.
From a tactical standpoint, Doino is willing to adjust his rotations based on the opponent. He has used full five-player substitutions in the past and could rely heavily on guard-heavy units against High Point.
Five-guard lineups are uncommon even at the Division I level, but they could offer Averett a way to increase pressure, switch more actions, and force the Panthers to adjust.
Doino’s preseason message has remained consistent: this is a young team with roles still taking shape, an offense searching for dependable production, and a defense that must establish the program’s identity.
Matchup Outlook vs. High Point
For Averett, this is a difficult matchup at nearly every level of the floor.
Point-of-Attack Defense
The first question is whether any Averett defender can consistently stay in front of Rob Martin or Conrad Martinez.
Both guards can change pace, turn the corner, and force help defenders into difficult decisions. If Averett cannot contain the initial drive, High Point should generate a steady supply of layups, free throws, and open perimeter shots.
Size on the Wings
Averett possesses solid length by ODAC standards, but that is very different from dealing with the size and athleticism of players such as Cam Fletcher, Terry Anderson, and Scotty Washington.
In last season’s meeting, Kimani Hamilton scored 25 points. High Point’s forwards should once again have opportunities to attack mismatches, crash the glass, and finish over smaller defenders.
Interior Matchup
Owen Aquino, Youssouf Singare, and Caden Miller give High Point a level of size and rim pressure that Averett simply cannot replicate.
With no Cougar taller than 6’6″, Averett will likely need to front the post, send aggressive double teams, and rebound with all five players.
Fatigue vs. Bench Firepower
Averett will be playing on consecutive nights and traveling between games. That means tired legs, limited recovery time, and a difficult assignment against one of the deeper rosters on High Point’s schedule.
Last season, Braden Hausen scored 18 points in just 23 minutes against the Cougars. His shooting and movement make him a strong candidate for another productive night if Averett begins losing discipline through fatigue.
If the Panthers run the floor, dominate the glass, and consistently hunt mismatches, separation should come quickly.
Keys for High Point
- Dominate from the opening tip. Use superior size, athleticism, and depth to establish control immediately.
- Maintain defensive intensity. There can be no slippage after the Furman performance.
- Turn turnovers into tempo. Averett is far less comfortable when forced into an open-floor game.
- Get the entire roster involved. Spread the minutes, develop depth, and prioritize health.
- Avoid the mental letdown. Ignore the noise surrounding Homecoming weekend and handle the assignment professionally.
Toothsayer’s Take
Averett will compete, defend, and take pride in being overlooked. That should be especially true for the eight North Carolina natives returning to play in front of family and friends.
But effort alone cannot close the gap in size, depth, athleticism, and overall skill, particularly on the second night of a back-to-back.
High Point does not need anything extraordinary. The Panthers simply need to approach the game professionally, deny Averett any early belief, and use the full roster before turning their attention toward Jacksonville.
Averett may make the opening minutes physical and uncomfortable, but High Point’s pressure, transition offense, and frontcourt size should eventually overwhelm the Cougars.
The Panthers pull away early, extend the margin throughout the second half, and give the Homecoming crowd plenty to celebrate.
Prediction
High Point 103, Averett 57