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MEDIA DAY PRESEASON POLL:
- Delaware
- Northeastern
- Drexel
- James Madison
- Hofstra
- Elon
- Charleston
- Towson
- UNC Wilmington
- William & Mary
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL CONFERENCE 1ST TEAM:
-James Butler – Drexel
-Hunter McIntosh – Elon
-Dylan Painter – Delaware
-Jalen Ray – Hofstra
-Camren Wynter – Drexel
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL CONFERENCE SECOND TEAM:
-Ryan Allen – Delaware
-Connor Kochera – William & Mary
-Vado Morse – James Madison
-Jahmyl Telfort – Northeastern
-Shaquille Walters – Northeastern
COMMENTS FROM DAVID:
-Delaware has all five starters back, and I guess the preseason voters really value experience. The Blue Hens weren’t bad by any means last year, and like everyone else had to deal with the constant stoppages, which certainly made things harder, but they were a modest 5-4 in conference play. Still, they are experienced, and that could carry them far this year. They backcourt is really strong and they have pretty good pieces all the way around.
-I really like this Northeastern team and with four starters back I think they can finish at the top of the standings this year. They did lose their point guard, but everything else is back. They are experienced, athletic, and have guys that can score. It should be a fun team to watch. It usually is.
-Drexel has a star in Camren Wynter and a pretty good supporting cast around him. The Dragons finished below .500 in the league last year, but they were playing better in the latter part of the season and I think they can carry that momentum and those expectations into this year.
-I’m a little surprised that James Madison is only picked to finish 4th. I know they lost their best player to the NBA in Matt Lewis but their other four starters are back. I wouldn’t go so far to say that I expect JMU to run away from the conference, but I have to at least think they’ll be in the mix this year.
-Hofstra has a star in Jalen Ray, who averaged over 19ppg last year. Two other starters are also back, and there is definitely reason for the Pride to be optimistic heading in to this season.
-Elon has three starters back and should be somewhat improved from last year. They finished just 8th a season ago, but have been making improvements in recent years and could take another step forward this year.
-Charleston has a great program overall, but they have hit a bit of a rough spot recently. Pat Kelsey takes over as head coach. He did a fantastic job at Winthrop and will likely do a fantastic job in Charleston as well, but it may take a little bit of time. They won just nine games a year ago and have only one starter back, so they are in a bit of a reset mode.
-Pat Skerry has done a tremendous job at Towson. They were one of the worst programs in all of D1 when he took over and he has made substantial improvements. Unfortunately, last year was a substantial setback. They won just four games last season, and while they should be better this season they will likely struggle to finish in the top half of the standings.
-UNC Wilmington has four starters back and that experience should help them, but they were close to the bottom of the league a year ago and it wouldn’t shock me to see them end up there again.
-William & Mary also has four starters back but is also potentially in for a long and rough year.