Slippery Rock University men's basketball is back — literally and figuratively.

The Rock, fresh off a 21-8 season under new coach Kevin Reynolds, makes its 2009-10 regular season debut at home this weekend against Ohio University Eastern.

Now in his second season, Reynolds has replaced stellar transfers Denell Stephens and Kyle Camper, now graduated, with four transfers from Division I schools.

Stephens was the PSAC West Player of the Year and Camper led all of NCAA Division II in assists last year.

SRU averaged 83 points per game, scored more than 100 points six times, reached the PSAC semifinals and narrowly missed out on an NCAA Tournament berth.

Yet, in terms of attendance, this team never really caught on.

Maybe it sneaked up on everybody, including its own fan base.

Whether or not Reynolds really has returned The Rock to the elite level in the conference remains to be seen. This year's team has no freshmen, and when you go the transfer route, the need is there to produce a winner every year.

Just ask California (Pa.) and Indiana (Pa.) in football. Win and it's all good. Lose and it's a disaster.

Reynolds was an assistant coach in Division I for 10 years. He's developed contacts all over the country and apparently knows how to use them.

Among the newcomers on his roster this year are Andre Tarver, Cecil Brown, Jabril Bailey and Stevy Worah. They came from Iona, Morehead State, Campbell and North Carolina Central, respectively.

Expect this team to be every bit as flamboyant as last year's unit, running the floor and using athletic moves around the basket and 3-point shooting to make up for a lack of size.

SRU basketball should be fun to watch.

Now Reynolds wants more people on hand to watch.

Next weekend, SRU is holding Myron Brown Appreciation Night in conjunction with its 3 p.m. Nov. 21 game against Bloomsburg.

Brown, The Rock's all-time leading scorer and lone alumnus to play in the NBA, will be honored, along with his teammates and coaches. SRU was 78-39 during Brown's four years here.

Reynolds would welcome a similar four-year run.

SRU packed 4,000-plus fans into Morrow Field House during Brown's career there. That team got up and down the floor in much the same way the current team does.

For SRU basketball to be totally back, two things still need to happen.

Quality freshmen need to be brought into the program to ensure continuity and on-court success on a consistent basis over the long haul. Reynolds can find transfers, but can he recruit?

And for Rock hoops to be back, the fans need to come back.

Every time a player wearing the Green and White slams home a dunk or nails a trey, the sound in Morrow Field House should be deafening.

The Myron Brown era is legendary at that school. The crowds helped make it that way.

Nearly 20 years later, the chance is there to do it again.

John Enrietto is sports editor of the Butler Eagle.