2024–25 Liberty Flames basketball team

2024–25 Liberty Flames basketball
2024–25 Liberty Flames basketball
Paradise Jam champions
Conference	Conference USA
Record	9–1 (0–0 C-USA)
Head coach	Ritchie McKay (10th, 12th overall season);
Associate head coach	Derek Johnston
Assistant coach	Joe Pierre III
Home arena	Liberty Arena
	Seasons ← 2023–24 2025–26 →

The 2024–25 Liberty Flames basketball team represents Liberty University in the 2024–25 NCAA Division I men's basketball season. The Flames are led by Ritchie McKay in the tenth season of his current stint as head coach (12th overall). They play their home games at Liberty Arena in Lynchburg, Virginia as second-year members of Conference USA.

2024–25 Conference USA men's basketball standings
v t e	Conf				Overall
Team	W		L	PCT	W		L	PCT
Liberty	0	–	0	–	9	–	1	.900
Louisiana Tech	0	–	0	–	8	–	2	.800
UTEP	0	–	0	–	6	–	2	.750
Kennesaw State	0	–	0	–	7	–	3	.700
Middle Tennessee	0	–	0	–	7	–	3	.700
Western Kentucky	0	–	0	–	6	–	3	.667
Jacksonville State	0	–	0	–	5	–	4	.556
Sam Houston	0	–	0	–	5	–	5	.500
New Mexico State	0	–	0	–	4	–	5	.444
FIU	0	–	0	–	3	–	6	.333

† 2025 CUSA tournament winner As of December 10, 2024

Previous season

The Flames finished the 2023–24 season 18–14, 7–9 in C-USA play to finish a four-way tie for fourth place. As an No. 4 seed in the C-USA tournament they lost in the quarterfinals to UTEP.

Offseason

Departures

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Reason for departure
Brody Peebles	1	G	6'2"	170	Junior	Hartselle, AL	Transferred to Belmont
Jaylen Davis	12	G	6'6"	180	Freshman	Richmond, KY	Transferred
Kyle Rode	22	F	6'7"	220	Senior	Lexington, KY	Graduated
Joseph Venzant	23	G	6'3"	200	Junior	Midland, TX	Transferred to Abilene Christian^[1]
Shiloh Robinson	33	F	6'7"	235	Senior	Kearney, NE	Graduated
Ben Southerland	34	F	6'7"	210	Freshman	Cincinnati, OH	Transferred to Wright State^[2]

Incoming transfers

Name	Number	Pos.	Height	Weight	Year	Hometown	Previous college
Taelon Peter	2	G	6'4"		Senior	Russellville, AR	Arkansas Tech
Isaiah Ihnen	7	F	6'10"	220	Junior	Böblingen, Germany	Minnesota^[3]
Owen Aquino	8	F	6'8"	200	Junior	Madrid, Spain	Eastern Florida State College
Josh Smith	12	F	6'9"	215	Senior	Monrovia, IN	Stetson^[3]
Jayvon Maughmer	32	F	6'6"	210	GS Senior	Chillicothe, OH	Cedarville

2024 recruiting class

College recruiting information
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Brett Decker PG	Elizabethtown, KY	Central Hardin High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	160 lb (73 kg)	Oct 23, 2022
Brett Decker PG	Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports:
Will Gibson PF	Louisville, KY	DeSales High School	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	N/A	Oct 23, 2022
Will Gibson PF	Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2024 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

2025 recruiting class

College recruiting information (2025)
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Zander Carter PG	Ashland, KY	Paul G. Blazer High School	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	N/A	Jun 19, 2023
Zander Carter PG	Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports:
Andrew Grimes PF	Clayton, NC	Clayton High School	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	N/A	Sep 4, 2023
Andrew Grimes PF	Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A
TJ Drain PF	Windermere, FL	Windermere High School	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	N/A	Aug 31, 2024
TJ Drain PF	Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports:
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2025 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

2026 recruiting class

College recruiting information (2026)
Name	Hometown	High school / college	Height	Weight	Commit date
Eli Herbert PG	Grain Valley, MO	Grain Valley High School	6 ft 1 in (1.85 m)	150 lb (68 kg)	Sep 4, 2024
Eli Herbert PG	Star ratings: Rivals: N/A 247Sports: N/A
Overall recruiting rankings:
Note: In many cases, Scout, Rivals, 247Sports, and ESPN may conflict in their listings of height and weight. In these cases, the average was taken. ESPN grades are on a 100-point scale. Sources: "2025 Team Ranking". Rivals.com.

Roster

2024–25 Liberty Flames men's basketball team

Players

Coaches

Pos.	#	Name	Height	Weight	Year	Previous school	Hometown
G	0	Colin Porter	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	Jr	Paul G. Blazer HS	Ashland, Kentucky
G	2	Taelon Peter	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	Sr	Arkansas Tech	Russellville, Arkansas
G	3	Kaden Metheny	5 ft 10 in (1.78 m)	170 lb (77 kg)	RS Sr	Bowling Green	Morgantown, West Virginia
G	4	Brett Decker Jr.	6 ft 4 in (1.93 m)	190 lb (86 kg)	Fr	Central Hardin HS	Cecilia, Kentucky
F	5	Bryson Spell	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	230 lb (104 kg)	RS Jr	Cape Henry Collegiate School	Virginia Beach, Virginia
F	7	Isaiah Ihnen	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	RS Jr	Minnesota	Böblingen, Germany
F	8	Owen Aquino	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	230 lb (104 kg)	Jr	Eastern Florida State College	Madrid, Spain
G	10	JC Shirer Jr. (W)	6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)	195 lb (88 kg)	RS So	Grace Preparatory Academy	Arlington, Texas
F	11	Zander Yates	6 ft 8 in (2.03 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	RS Jr	Creighton	Germantown, Tennessee
F	12	Josh Smith	6 ft 9 in (2.06 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Sr	Stetson	Monrovia, Indiana
F	15	Will Gibson	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	225 lb (102 kg)	Fr	DeSales HS	Louisville, Kentucky
G	21	Gabriel McKay (W)	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)	180 lb (82 kg)	GS	Trevecca Nazarene	Lynchburg, Virginia
G	24	Curtis Blair III	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	210 lb (95 kg)	RS Fr	The Steward School	Richmond, Virginia
F	25	Zach Cleveland	6 ft 7 in (2.01 m)	220 lb (100 kg)	Jr	Normal Community HS	Bloomington, Illinois
F	32	Jayvon Maughmer	6 ft 6 in (1.98 m)	205 lb (93 kg)	GS	Cedarville	Chillicothe, Ohio
F	45	Kai Yu	7 ft 0 in (2.13 m)	235 lb (107 kg)	RS Fr	Link Year Prep	Zhuhai, China

Head coach

Ritchie McKay (Seattle Pacific)

Assistant coach(es)

Derek Johnston (Alabama–Huntsville)
Joe Pierre III (Oklahoma State)

Legend

(C) Team captain
(S) Suspended
(I) Ineligible
(W) Walk-on

Injured
Current redshirt

Roster

Schedule and results

Date time, TV	Opponent^#	Result	Record	High points	High rebounds	High assists	Site (attendance) city, state
Non-conference regular season
November 4, 2024* 5:00 p.m., Gray TV	vs. Valparaiso Total Athlete Tip-Off	W 83–63	1–0	16 – Tied	11 – Aquino	8 – Cleveland	Wooden Family Fieldhouse (1,200) Xenia, OH
November 9, 2024* 8:00 p.m., ESPN+	at Seattle C-USA/WAC Alliance	W 66–64	2–0	15 – Metheny	9 – Aquino	5 – Porter	Redhawk Center (999) Seattle, WA
November 12, 2024* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+	Carolina	W 81–45	3–0	18 – Decker Jr.	6 – Tied	6 – Porter	Liberty Arena (3,546) Lynchburg, VA
November 16, 2024* 6:00 p.m., FloSports	vs. Florida Atlantic Field of 68 Tip-Off	L 74–77 ^OT	3–1	19 – Metheny	8 – Tied	7 – Cleveland	TD Arena (331) Charleston, SC
November 17, 2024* 4:00 p.m., FloSports	at Charleston Field of 68 Tip-Off	W 68–47	4–1	20 – Cleveland	9 – Maughmer	5 – Tied	TD Arena (4,858) Charleston, SC
November 22, 2024* 5:30 p.m., ESPN+	vs. Louisiana Paradise Jam Quarterfinals	W 89–69	5–1	20 – Metheny	7 – Cleveland	8 – Cleveland	Sports and Fitness Center Saint Thomas, USVI
November 24, 2024* 8:00 p.m., ESPN+	vs. Kansas State Paradise Jam Semifinals	W 67–65	6–1	17 – Porter	9 – Cleveland	8 – Cleveland	Sports and Fitness Center Saint Thomas, USVI
November 25, 2024* 8:00 pm, ESPN+	vs. McNeese Paradise Jam Championship	W 62–58	7–1	16 – Porter	6 – Tied	5 – Porter	Sports and Fitness Center (1,986) Saint Thomas, USVI
November 29, 2024* 4:00 p.m., ESPN+	Central Penn	W 93–36	8–1	25 – Ihnen	8 – Ihnen	5 – McKay	Liberty Arena (2,713) Lynchburg, VA
December 7, 2024* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+	Mississippi Valley State	W 89–52	9–1	22 – Metheny	8 – Aquino	4 – Aquino	Liberty Arena (3,169) Lynchburg, VA
December 14, 2024* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+	North Carolina A&T						Liberty Arena Lynchburg, VA
December 17, 2024* 7:00 p.m., ESPN+	St. Andrews						Liberty Arena Lynchburg, VA
December 21, 2024* 2:00 p.m., ESPN+	UT Arlington C-USA/WAC Alliance						Liberty Arena Lynchburg, VA
Conference USA regular season
January 2, 2025 7:00 p.m., CBSSN	Western Kentucky						Liberty Arena Lynchburg, VA
January 4, 2025 6:00 p.m., CBSSN	Middle Tennessee						Liberty Arena Lynchburg, VA
January 9, 2025 9:00 p.m., CBSSN	at Sam Houston						Bernard Johnson Coliseum Huntsville, TX
January 11, 2025 8:00 p.m., ESPNU	at Louisiana Tech						Thomas Assembly Center Ruston, LA
January 16, 2025 9:00 p.m., CBSSN	UTEP						Liberty Arena Lynchburg, VA
January 18, 2025 7:00 p.m., CBSSN	New Mexico State						Liberty Arena Lynchburg, VA
January 25, 2025 6:00 p.m., ESPN+	at FIU						Ocean Bank Convocation Center Miami, FL
January 30, 2025 8:00 p.m., CBSSN	at Kennesaw State						Convocation Center Kennesaw, GA
February 1, 2025 5:00 p.m., ESPN+	at Jacksonville State						Pete Mathews Coliseum Jacksonville, AL
February 6, 2025 8:00 p.m., CBSSN	Louisiana Tech						Liberty Arena Lynchburg, VA
February 8, 2025 4:00 p.m., ESPNU	Sam Houston						Liberty Arena Lynchburg, VA
February 13, 2025 9:00 p.m., ESPN+	at New Mexico State						Pan American Center Las Cruces, NM
February 15, 2025 9:00 p.m., ESPN+	at UTEP						Don Haskins Center El Paso, TX
February 22, 2025 2:00 p.m., ESPN+	FIU						Liberty Arena Lynchburg, VA
February 27, 2025 7:00 p.m., ESPN+	Jacksonville State						Liberty Arena Lynchburg, VA
March 1, 2025 1:00 p.m., CBSSN	Kennesaw State						Liberty Arena Lynchburg, VA
March 6, 2025 7:30 p.m., CBSSN	at Middle Tennessee						Murphy Center Murfreesboro, TN
March 8, 2025 3:00 p.m., ESPN+	at Western Kentucky						E. A. Diddle Arena Bowling Green, KY
Conference USA Tournament
March 11–15, 2025 TBA	vs.						Von Braun Center Huntsville, AL
*Non-conference game. ^#Rankings from AP Poll. (#) Tournament seedings in parentheses. All times are in Eastern.

Sources^[4]

References

^ LeRoy, Oscar (April 24, 2024). "Report: Former MCS star Venzant heading to play at ACU". Midland Reporter-Telegram. Retrieved October 23, 2024.
^ Jablonski, David (May 23, 2024). "Wright State lands transfer from Liberty". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved October 23, 2024. (subscription required)
^ ^a ^b Gordon, Bryson (April 18, 2024). "Region Roundup: Flames add a pair of forwards in transfer portal, and more". The News & Advance. Retrieved October 23, 2024. (subscription required)
^ "Schedule". Liberty Flames. Retrieved October 23, 2024.

[1] LeRoy, Oscar (April 24, 2024). "Report: Former MCS star Venzant heading to play at ACU". Midland Reporter-Telegram. Retrieved October 23, 2024.

[2] Jablonski, David (May 23, 2024). "Wright State lands transfer from Liberty". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved October 23, 2024. (subscription required)

[transfer-3] Gordon, Bryson (April 18, 2024). "Region Roundup: Flames add a pair of forwards in transfer portal, and more". The News & Advance. Retrieved October 23, 2024. (subscription required)

[4] "Schedule". Liberty Flames. Retrieved October 23, 2024.

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