With last season in the rearview mirror, the second year of the Charlie Henry era begins with a reloaded roster, a nucleus of returning talent, and a team looking to sustain the momentum it built in the second half of the schedule in 2023-24.

Wrapping up his first season as head coach of the Eagles, Henry is carrying some lessons learned into year two that he will instill in his roster.

"We started playing good basketball at some point last year, but we want to improve on that," he said. "We want to keep improving and play our best basketball at the end of the season. We've made defense and rebounding a major point of emphasis during the summer and fall. I always try to look at myself first and ask how we can play better basketball early in the season, and making that jump in defense and rebounding is on everyone's mind."

Operating with a full offseason and adding two new assistant coaches, Henry sees a lot of promise in the group he has built heading into the new season - one that will begin Monday night against Northern Illinois, the final home opener in Hanner Fieldhouse.

"I think we're going to have a group that plays hard, our competitiveness at our practices has been great," Henry said. "As you start to play other teams, guys will have to find their roles and have that same fight to play together and represent Georgia Southern well. I think we will have a competitive group and I expect us to make a big jump."

With a new season comes new players, and Henry and the staff were tactical in the portal - circling needs and adding five transfers to this year's team.

Tyson Brown (Rhode Island) - "We wanted to add a veteran in the front court, and Tyson gave us that. What I love about Tyson is that he knows who he is. He knows what he can do for this team, and he wants to do those things. He doesn't get outside himself very much. He wants to defend, wants to rebound the ball, wants to bring toughness, and I think those are all areas we were lacking a little bit last year."

Nakavieon White (National Park) - "Nakavieon is a versatile guy who has great size to him. We wanted to get bigger and more athletic. He's a guy that's a great passer at about six-seven, he gives us a player that we can move around the court and give us some versatility on offense. He's great at operating with his back to the basket off the block. He has the tools to be a great player."

Bradley Douglas (Little Rock) - "After our losses at the guard position, we wanted to add some veteran guards that can shoot, and Bradley can do that. He's a high-energy guy, he has brought a lot of life to practice and has had a great summer and fall for us. I am excited to see how he plays for us this season because he is such a great competitor."

Dontae Horne (Texas State) - "Dontae has good size at the guard spot and a knack to score the ball and make plays. Down the stretch for Texas State last year, he saved his best for last, where he had some good games in the last five or six games of the season, and is another great competitor."

Adante' Holiman (UTSA) - "Adante's a spark-plug for us because he can pressure the defense with his ability to make plays. He and Eren have had great battles in the summer and fall. He's a dribble, pass, shoot guy all the way. Some of the other guys would probably tell you he's the most skilled guy on our team."

Henry also added a trio of freshmen to this year's team, two from last November's signing period and one addition over the summer, three players he suspects to have an impact on this team going forward.

Micah Smith - "I've watched and known Micah for a long time, and he's someone we're excited about. His length, athleticism, and his activity level are great. He was sidelined a little bit during the summer as he was recovering from an injury he suffered during his high school season, and I think that slowed him down a bit, but he's showed everything he's capable of since he's come back. He's going to be a factor in our frontcourt rotation."

Braylhan Thomas - "He may be looking at a few older guys ahead of him, but he's a guy that's going to stay ready, and we're excited about him. He's going to step up when his number gets called. He's a hard worker, very mature for his age, and a great student of the game who does everything we ask. For Bray, it's about trusting in the process, staying the course and being ready when his number gets called because it usually gets called."

Langston Boyd - "LA is a high-level athlete that's getting himself up to speed at the collegiate level. A lot of times when guys transition to college, the things we're asking them to do, both offensively and defensively, they're new for a lot of guys, especially young players. He's been learning our system well. I think when things slow down for him, we will see that great athleticism we saw when we were recruiting him. He's a great on-ball defender."

Henry has a solid core of returning players to work around heading into this year. 2023-24 starters Eren Banks, Eugene Brown III and Avantae Parker are joined by year three for Nate Brafford and year two for Collin Kuhl - all of whom figure to positively impact the team.

"I am excited for these guys to get another year with us," Henry said. "They know how we do things, how we want to play, how we want to handle our business and know how I operate, so I think that helps get everybody acclimated."

The depth of the Eagles' roster is evident, something Henry noted the team did not have a season ago.

"Having depth like this can be a positive, and we certainly want to make it a strength of this team," he said. "Another part of that, however, is getting guys to buy into that. It may not be your night every night, but having positive energy and great effort stems from your attitude. We need guys to lock into the fact that when you're on the floor, you're playing your tail off, and when you're off the floor, you are being a great teammate; if we get those things, we have a chance to do something special this year."

In addition to the newcomers on the roster, Henry added two new assistant coaches to his staff, both with strong experience at different levels. 

Nori Johnson, former Charleston guard and head coach at Spartanburg Methodist, joins the Eagles after a year on the staff at USC Upstate, and Dion Bethea, longtime head coach of South Carolina high school power Gray Academy (former home of Parker and Thomas) will be manning the bench this season.

"[Nori and Dion] are both great guys, and that's who you want to surround your team with, guys who are great mentors and bring positive energy," Henry said. "Nori's got a bright future ahead of him in the coaching realm and Dion's been doing it at a high level for a long time. They compliment each other and the rest of our staff well and always bring that positive energy."

The Eagles will embark on a 12-game non-conference slate that will provide a good challenge heading into a gauntlet in Sun Belt play; matching up with three teams in the top 150 of the KenPom rankings in VCU (41), Louisiana Tech (107) and Drake (133), all on the road.

While it's not the big names the team faced last season like Michigan State and Tennessee, Henry built the schedule to allow for more home non-conference games in 2024-25 after playing just two early last season.

"We wanted to get more home games, and it's not always easy to do that, so you have to get creative," he said. "We're playing some quality opponents. With us closing down Hanner, we wanted more opportunities to play in front of our home fans, and these games allow us to do that. I'm excited about the schedule we put together."

The team will have a unique opportunity to close the basketball era of a historic arena it has called home for over 50 seasons and open a brand-new facility. The Eagles will spend the month of November - three more games - in Hanner Fieldhouse before starting a new era in the Jack & Ruth Ann Hill Convocation Center on Dec. 7.

"The Hill truly is a beautiful arena, and it's going to be a great new home for us," Henry said. "There is so much history in Hanner, and I love playing in that building in front of our fans, some of the best people I have been fortunate enough to meet. It's a special place, and I have several people telling me how much they will miss it. I have been excited about the new arena since I started here, and so are the guys."

The ascension of the Sun Belt as a league has taken shape over the past few seasons with several teams on an upward trajectory. As the season gets closer to conference play and the games mean much more, the Eagles have a chance to make some noise.

"There is so much parity in the Sun Belt, and we certainly know that," Henry said. "I think our side is wide open for us. Our guys take pride in Sun Belt play and will be tracking what the other Sun Belt teams are doing as soon as games start. I'm looking forward to starting conference play before Christmas this season."

Year two will officially begin Monday night in Hanner Fieldhouse, matching up with Northern Illinois for the first time since 1998.