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Last year, North Texas had a guard. This year, North Texas has guards. And, being that it’s North Texas, they guard. 

Coming off of two years of tremendous success in a row, the Mean Green lost quite a lot this offseason. They lost their coach, their prime-time scorer, and top big man, to three different contending schools. Such is life, when trying to succeed consistently at the non-major level. Fortunately for North Texas, both the pieces and the blueprint for continued success remain in Denton, despite the big-name losses. 

New head coach Ross Hodge, formerly a successful junior college boss and for years an assistant under now-Texas Tech leader Grant McCasland, has brought in a bunch of talented players to fill out a much-depleted roster. As important as the coach who stayed or any of the newcomers, though, are Aaron Scott and Rubin Jones: two holdovers who know how to win. 

Scott is the Mean Green’s top scorer and best interior threat on offense. The rangy forward is in his third year with UNT, and has worn a few hats already. From intriguing and productive freshman reserve to playing a valuable, versatile role last year as he started all 38 games for the NIT Champions, Scott has shown clear progression, and now he’s truly stepping into the spotlight. With outstanding efficiency as a scorer, Scott has shown the athleticism and crafty approach to grow into a truly dangerous offensive player. He’s a career 75.7% shooter around the rim, and Scott is even more dangerous from mid-range, his preferred location. Per Bart Torvik, Scott is at a terrific 48.1% mark from the in-between spots, and has raised his career rate from the land of trey to 38.7% to start the new year. Patient and assertive around the paint, Scott is strong when isolating a favorable matchup or finishing a good look at the rim. And as much as anybody on the team, Scott knows for to make the momentum-changing plays which get the Super Pit rocking. 

What’s best about Scott is that he plays a complete game, with highly-efficient scoring as just one main feature. As befits the reputation UNT has established in recent years, Scott plays tight, physical defense on a range of opposing forwards. Though he checks in at just 200 pounds himself, Scott rebounds very productively among the heavyweights. The former C-USA All-Freshman pick was active enough to rank ninth in the league in offensive boards last year. He’s a very good and abrasive defender who posted 38 steals and 30 blocks last year and has continued with the same disruptive production this season. Though he’s still young, Scott plays a mature fame with very few holes, and Hodge will continue to lean on his reliable veteran to lead the way. 

Scott’s returning co-star is another familiar face who has polished up his game from a year ago. Rubin Jones has also done a little bit of everything that could be asked of a young player, and now, the senior guard is showing more skills than ever before. Though he started every game of UNT’s Conference USA title-winning season two years back, Jones came off the bench as the 6th man for last season’s group. In each of his seasons, Jones has proven to be a stalwart defender, savvy scorer, and clever distributor. This summer, Hodges decided to explore the full potential which Jones offers as a good decision-maker and shot creator. So far, the results have been impressive. 

As the Mean Green’s primary ballhandler, Jones has been clever and productive. He’s posted 24 assists against 11 turnovers through five games, calmly reading defenses off of screening action and getting good looks for himself and his buddies. Though he’s a career 35.3% shooter from downtown, Jones has often been streaky. With the ball in his hands and the opportunity to pick his spots, Jones has shown a good sense for making the right play and is getting his new teammates involved smoothly. At 6’5″ with experience and smarts, Jones is also a problem for opponents defensively. He can take on tough assignments and has proven a sticky matchup for other team’s primary scorers. For years, Jones has sparked offense for North Texas with his defensive playmaking. Now that Jones is creating like never before at both ends, Hodge has found stars to lead this team both inside and out. 

Last season, North Texas was most noteworthy because of former JuCo scoring star Tylor Perry. This year, the Mean Green are chuffed to have a new import flashing his skills in sophomore Jason Edwards. A junior college All-American last season, Edwards averaged almost 22 points and shot 41% from deep. Now, Edwards is playing an intriguingly similarly role to that which Perry occupied as the team’s high-scoring 6th man two years ago. Edwards is both a deep threat – he sank 96 triples last year at the lower level – and is proving adept at earning trips to the charity stripe. Free points are like cool water in the desert to grind-it-out North Texas, and if Edwards can play a lively scoring option for this slower-paced unit, Hodges will truly appreciate it. He’s scored 19 or more points in three of his first five Division I games, and UNT will keep getting the ball into Edwards’ hands. 

CJ Noland and John Buggs III offer contrasting skills and body types to the North Texas backcourt, and each veteran will be counted on key minutes. Noland, a Texas native from Waxahachie, is a big, strong, powerfully-built wing trapped in a 6’3″ frame. After having played a reserve role for Oklahoma the last two seasons after entering college as a 4-star prospect, Noland is looking to break out back home. When he’s at his best, Noland’s clean handle and explosiveness headed towards the rim make him a load to keep out of the paint. As with Edwards, Noland’s ability to get to the charity stripe can be a real advantage. Buggs is a sharpshooter who posted career-best numbers last year at UT-San Antonio, and has been brought in to balance the floor for the Mean Green. Last season, Buggs knocked down 80 shots from the land of trey, and did so at a 39.6% rate. Those marks were good enough to rank fourth and second, respectively, in Conference-USA, and Buggs will be looking to keep it up for a UNT side which lost 112 made triples when Perry took his talents to Kansas State. 

The paint for this North Texas group is more about substance than style, but there are a couple of proven players who are ready to help out in the middle. Moulaye Sissoko, a former Dayton transfer, has been a backup throughout most of his career. Last season, though, he started after Abou Ousmane was hurt during the NIT, and Sissoko showed that he can produce in the middle. His 12-point, 15-rebound performance helped UNT to beat Oklahoma State in Stillwater, and Sissoko has earned the starting role at the pivot this year. He’s limited offensively, but Sissoko hits the boards like he means it and provides both solid screens and a reliable defensive presence inside. A good chunk of the minutes inside are also going to Robert Allen, who’s been a highly productive rebounder already. Allen spent his first two seasons playing a big role at Samford, averaging 12 points and 7.6 boards. After transferring to Ole Miss, he played more of a support role, and Allen is clearly looking to truly show all he’s got during this, his final year of eligibility. Though he’s the Mean Green’s most accomplished post scorer, Allen will also knock down a jumper, and can even step out to the three point line. With more of a classic defensive big in Sissoko to pair with Allen’s energy and offensive upside, UNT likes its 1-2 punch inside. 

North Texas played at a slow, make-’em-earn-it pace under McCasland, and that hasn’t seismically changed. Nor has UNT’s commitment to defending with great consistency and intensity. Against Rick Pitino’s embarrassment of talent, North Texas held St. John’s to 34.0% shooting, and UNT is allowing the 29th-fewest field goals to their opponents of any team in the country so far. Though they’ve lost a pair of close games, the Mean Green’s tenacity on the glass is keeping them in all contests. Buoyed by Edwards cashing in 23 of his 24 attempts, they’ve also been hitting their freebies at a tremendous rate – 82.2%, eighth in the country. While the team is still awaiting a waiver update on TCU transfer Rondel Walker, Matthew Stone has continued to make a larger contribution for the second straight year. A bigger guard who can hit from downtown, Stone joins Noland in providing some versatility to UNT’s backcourt-focused lineups. Hodge has kept his rotations fairly tight so far, and the veteran coach has benefited from being able to lean upon his experienced players’ approach to things. 

Clearly, things have changed in Denton. Just as clearly, some of the best lessons learned and contributing talents from the previous two highly successful campaigns are still around to lead UNT onward. Scott and Jones are a strong pair of much-improved leaders, and along with Hodges, are the primary architects of the Mean Green’s current culture. They know how to do the little things, force opponents to play their style of game – and win. 

“Through the ups and downs over the last week this team has stuck together and it showed today with one of the most complete defensive games we’ve had,” Hodge said on Sunday after the Mean Green stifled Towson by a 65-39 margin. It’s the type of performance that North Texas has come to be known for. This is a tough and tough-minded group, and the existing foundation has been built up with legitimate talents. Now in the American Athletic Conference, UNT has even more contenders in their path to a league title than in years past. They remain as tough an out as ever, though, and their opponents old and new will find that it’s still no fun when the Mean Green come to town.