That's a tough assessment man. He was 1st team All A10 and won several games single handily for this team.
Honestly, based on what I noticed, this Coaching staff has its work cut finding attracting any skilled experienced d1 players who can compete at the A10 level because Mason's money issues.
Sport31 is the poster child for our delusional fan base. He not only underestimates the value Riley brought to our team but foolishly thinks his replacement is on our current roster. The idea in this NIL environment that any 5-star big man who can play both ends of the court is ever walking through our door is beyond naive. Tony hit the mid-major lottery getting Riley for one year.
I'm never going to defend Allenspach's defensive liabilities or effort, but what isn't disputable is that he was the most gifted offensive big man we have had in over a dozen years who wasn't named Haynes or Odurro. Opposing teams game-planned on how to contain him, because his unique ability to score at will in the post and knock down threes is very rare — "Top 10 player in the league" rare!
I'm a proud member of the Emmanuel Kanga Fan Club, but it's unfair to ask that kid to fill Riley's shoes on offense. His current shooting range is three feet from the basket, and many of his rebounds are from his own misses. His defensive activity and board-crashing are elite, but he will foul out by halftime if he doesn't learn to play more in control.
I'm beyond stoked that Kanga is staying at least another year, because he is going to be a very good player for us. But our best hope for getting back to the NCAAT is Tony finding another big with Riley's offensive game who can play a little defense.