SLIPPERY ROCK — Patience, then progress.

That mantra has served the Slippery Rock University men’s basketball program well in recent seasons and seventh-year coach Kevin Reynolds hopes it does so again.

SRU opens the 2014-15 season Friday with an exhibition game at Towson State. The first PSASC game is Nov. 19 at Gannon, the first home game Nov. 22 against Pitt-Johnstown.

“We don’t see a lot of our players until they arrive on campus,” Reynolds said. “It takes a while for us to sort out what we have, to structure a lineup and rotation that plays to our strengths.”

Reynolds needs 18 wins to move into second place on The Rock basketball all-time victory list. SRU was 20-11 last year, its fourth 20-win season under his guidance.

Only Reynolds does things a bit differently.

“The dynamics of our financial situation here, we can’t go out, make recruiting visits, scout and sign incoming freshmen,” the coach said. “To remain competitive and get better, we can’t do it that way.”

The 2014-15 roster features no freshmen and only two sophomores. The Rock’s lone returning starters are 6-foot-4 senior guard Antonio Butler and 6-9 junior center Cornelius Brown. The latter started the final five games of the season, averaging only 2.1 points and 2.4 rebounds per contest.

Butler averaged 7.5 points and handed out 50 assists, “but was our second leading scorer coming down the stretch last season,” Reynolds said.

SRU’s top two players from a year ago, Tabari Perry and Maurice Lewis-Briggs, finished their collegiate eligibility and signed professional contracts overseas.

“We’re counting on Antonio for much more production this year and he’s prepared himself for it,” Reynolds said. ‘His conditioning increased, he’s dropped some weight and he’s in the best shape of his life.

“With his size, he’s a match-up problem at this level. He could play four positions, but we’ll leave him at guard.”

The Rock also returns forwards Erik Raleigh and Jordan Grady, guards Chris Hays and Abdul King. Raleigh had the most productivity out of that quartet, averaging 4.4 points and 3.5 rebounds per game.

Sophomore forward Chaquille Pratt has returned to the program after averaging 5.8 points and 4.0 rebounds as a freshman in 2011-12. He was out of school the past two years due to family issues. Sophomore point guard T.J. Jones was on the Rock roster last season, but did not play.

Seven newcomers dot the roster, a few of which will make an immediate impact on the team.

Junior guard Kelvin Goodwin averaged 10.6 points while playing only 16.3 minutes per game for regional champion West Liberty last year. Junior guard Malcolm Richardson played for PSAC champion East Stroudsburg a year ago.

Guards Allen Jiles and Desma Nicholson are Division I transfers from Idaho and Coppin State, respectively. Senior 6-6 forward Frank Holloway averaged 23.1 points and 8.5 rebounds per game for Garrett College last season.

Guard Jamal Gatali averaged 10.3 points and six rebounds for Marshalltown.

“We’ve got good athleticism on this team and we should score a lot more,” Reynolds said. “Whether we can be as physical and intimidating as the last couple of years remains to be seen.

“Towson is a 25-win program from last year. We’ll have a pretty good idea of where we’re at and what we have once we play that game.”

Reynolds pointed out that SRU is ninth out of the nine teams in the PSAC West in recruiting budget.

“That just means we have to outwork the other teams on the floor, in the weight room, on the track and in the film room,” he said.

“How we come together as a team, what kind of chemistry we develop, will go a long way in determining our success.”