CLEVELAND, Miss. – The Delta State University Men's Basketball program opens their 2026-27 season on the road tomorrow night against the Bulldogs from Truman State University.
 
The game will tip off at 7:00 p.m. (CT) in Pershing Arena on the campus of Truman State University.
 
The Voice of the Statesmen Michael Gross will have the call on the Statesmen Sports Radio Network on Majic 107.5 FM WMJW.
 
Scouting The Statesmen

• The Statesmen return a mix of experience and newcomers to the 2026-27 roster and were picked 7^th in the Gulf South Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll. Last Season the Statesmen made their third-straight conference tournament appearance finishing the season with an 11-17 overall record and were 8-14 in conference play.
• The Statesmen return three starters from last season's team and senior trio of Kolby Horace, Sam Whitmer and Bryce Clayton. Horace's season was cut short due to injury but averaged 11.7 points per game with a 26-point performance in the season opening win against LeMoyne-Owen. Clayton had a breakout season last year. The Naples, Fla. Native averaged 11.9 points per game and shot 39% from beyond the arch. Whitmer brings experience starting in 24 games last season. The Cincinnati native collected 3.8 rebounds per game and 6.6 points per game.
• Freshman forward Grant Guess, and junior forward Ahmed Ibrahim were the two Statesmen that were named to the Newcomers to Watch list.
• Guess committed to Delta State late in 2025 during his senior season at Archbishop Alter in Dayton, Ohio where he averaged 11.1 points per game in his senior season. Guess earned Division IV/V All-State honorably mention and started for Team Ohio in the Ohio-Kentucky All-Star Game in April 2026. 
• Ibrahim joins the Statesmen roster after playing his sophomore season on the junior college level at Coahoma Community College. As a sophomore, the New York native led the Tigers in rebounding, averaging 7.6 rebounds per game and scoring 10 points per game. In high school, Ibrahim helped lead Eagle Academy II to a New York City league Championship under coach Kevin Hamilton in 2024.

Scouting the Bulldogs

• The Truman State University men's basketball team will feature a new-look roster during the 2026-27 season as the Bulldogs combine four returning players with 11 newcomers. Truman finished 12-16 overall and 9-11 in Great Lakes Valley Conference play last season. The Bulldogs averaged 77.0 points per game, shot 46.2 percent from the field and earned conference victories over Drury, Illinois Springfield, Lewis, Quincy, Southwest Baptist, Missouri S&T, Missouri-St. Louis and Maryville.
• Junior center Quientan McCafferty leads Truman's four returning players after appearing in 24 games with 11 starts last season. The 6-foot-10 center averaged 6.4 points and 4.4 rebounds in 12.5 minutes per game while shooting 53.0 percent from the field. McCafferty finished second on the team with 19 blocked shots and made 13 of his 35 three-point attempts.
• Junior guard Roy Henderson III joins the Bulldogs after earning First Team All-NJCAA Region 2 honors at Eastern Oklahoma State College. Henderson started all 31 games last season and averaged 18.0 points and 4.1 assists. He made 90 three-pointers at a 35.9 percent rate and gives Truman an experienced scorer and distributor.