What Impact Can Two Former Conference Freshmen of the Year make on Wake's Roster?
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The Deacs' new-look roster should be fun to watch as basketball season is now less than a month away. Two transfers, Cooper Schwieger and Sebastian Akins, have both won the Freshmen of the Year award for their prior conferences. This should bring a lot of optimism to Wake fans as two standouts at the mid-major level will get a chance to continue their growth on a bigger stage for the Deacs. Let's take a deeper dive into both Schwieger and Akins to learn more about what Wake fans can expect this season.
Cooper Schwieger
Schwieger joins the Deacs from Valparaiso, where he spent two seasons. He was a freshman standout and won the 2023-24 Missouri Valley Conference Freshman of the Year award. Cooper also built off this momentum to finish with an even stronger sophomore season. Coach Forbes has already had some high praise for Schwieger, comparing him to NBA player Jake LaRavia who Forbes coached at Wake.
Last season, Schwieger averaged 15.8 points and 7.8 rebounds for the Beacons, which was an improvement from the 13.2 points and 5.4 rebounds per game his freshman year. These stats were good enough to land Schwieger on the All-Missouri Valley Second Team. Schwieger is far from just an offensive big. He averaged two blocks per game last season, showcasing his elite ability to defend the rim. This should help the Deacs fill a large hole in the middle of their defense left by the loss of Efton Reid.
Looking at the individual games, Schwieger cracked double-digits in almost every game he played in last season. He had eight games where he scored over 20 points, including a monster 33-point and 18-rebound game against UIC. He also scored 16 points and grabbed 8 rebounds in a game against Ohio State on the road. There is no doubt he was the star of the Beacon's team last season, and hopefully Schwieger can bring some of this stat-stuffing to Winston-Salem.
Sebastian Akins
Akins, like Schwieger, had an impressive freshman season. In one season with Denver, he took home Summit League Freshman of the Year. During this stellar freshman year, he averaged 12.7 points per game. Like Schwieger, he also made contributions on the defensive end, averaging almost a steal a game.
Looking at the individual games, Akins had multiple games scoring in double figures, including scoring 15 points against Stanford. This shows he is capable of scoring even against high-level competition. He had multiple games with two or more steals, including a four-steal performance against North Dakota. The competition increase will definitely be something Akins needs to get comfortable with, but he showed some massive potential in his freshman year and looks like he could be positioned to be the point guard of the future for Steve Forbes' team.
Projected Starting Lineup
PG Nate Calmese
SG Mekhi Mason
SF Juke Harris
PF Tre'Von Spillers
C Cooper Schwieger
Bench: Omaha Biliew, Myles Colvin, Marcus Marion, Sebastian Akins, Isaac Carr
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Justin is a student at Wake Forest University. He is from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and aspiring finance major interested everything sports. In his freshman year, Justin completed an internship with the Wake Forest Ticketing Department where he gained some valuable insight into the sales and operations aspects of collegiate athletics. Before working with Wake Forest On SI, Justin was a contributing writer for Wake Forest’s student publication The Old Gold and Black. Currently, Justin serves as a student manager on the Wake Forest Men’s Tennis team. In his free time Justin enjoys spending time with his family and friends on the golf course and traveling.