Cowboys experience changing of guard

Published 2:00 pm Friday, March 31, 2023

No question there is a changing of the guard in McNeese State’s basketball program.

Or maybe changing at the guard.

The Cowboys saw two more guards enter the NCAA transfer portal this week. On Wednesday it was freshman Donovan Oday and on Thursday Rashard Bolden made the move.

Bolden came to McNeese last season from Southern Mississippi with the hope of becoming the starting point guard the Cowboys desperately needed. However, the 6-foot sophomore never took the court.

A leg injury proved costly to the team as they never completely figured out the point guard position and fell to 11-23, the most losses in program history. Bolden had flashes of good moments in scrimmages that led to the promise of a successful season before the injury.

At Southern Miss Bolden played in 33 games and averaged 6.8 points a game as a freshman in 2021-22. He handed out 1.8 assists and 1.6 rebounds a game.

Meanwhile, Oday played in all 34 games this season, starting twice. He averaged 4.9 points a game and came on strong once forced to see more playing time as injuries limited McNeese to seven healthy players over the final stretch of the season.

The 6-3 Oday scored 25 points in three Southland Conference Tournament games, including a career-high 12 against Nicholls State.

The two latest to enter the portal made for five total since John Aiken was fired as head coach three weeks ago and replaced by Will Wade. Since then Wade has gotten four commitments from guards who are expected to sign on April 12, the first day of the national signing period.

Wade said he expects to get commitments from some post players in the near future.