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A-SUN MEDIA DAY PRESEASON COACHES POLL:
- Eastern Kentucky
- FGCU
- Stetson
- Kennesaw State
- Lipscomb
- Bellarmine
- North Alabama
- Austin Peay
- Jacksonville
- Queens
- North Florida
- Central Arkansas
A-SUN MEDIA DAY PRESEASON MEDIA POLL:
- Eastern Kentucky
- Kennesaw State
- Lipscomb
- FGCU
- Bellarmine
- Stetson
- North Alabama
- North Florida
- Queens
- Jacksonville
- Austin Peay
- Central Arkansas
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL A-SUN
-Devontae Blanton – Eastern Kentucky
-Terrell Burden – Kennesaw State
-Jacob Ognacevic – Lipscomb
-DeMarcus Sharp – Austin Peay
-Garrett Tipton – Bellarmine
-Camren Hunter – Central Arkansas
-Isaiah Cozart – Eastern Kentucky
-Isaiah Thompson – FGCU
-Jacari Lane – North Alabama
-AJ McKee – Queens
-Jalen Blackmon – Stetson
COMMENTS FROM DAVID:
I need to begin by saying there were some huge discrepancies amongst the voters in both the coaches and media polls. In both cases, the team that ultimately ended up 11th in the poll also received first place votes. So I guess that means this league is wide open!
-The consensus favorite to win the league is Eastern Kentucky, and that is my pick as well. The Colonels have four starters back from a team that won 20 games and advanced to the finals of the CBI last year. AW Hamilton enters his fifth year as head coach and this looks like it could be his breakout year. “Tae Tae” Blanton is one of the best players in the conference and he has a really strong supporting cast. They like to play up-tempo, are really athletic, are able to score, and are a ton of fun to watch.
-Kennesaw State had an absolutely incredible year last year. For a program with almost no basketball history or culture they were packing their arena in the latter part of the season, finished in a tie for first place, won the A-Sun Tourney, and then had Xavier on the ropes in the Round of 64 before losing in the final minute of play. Antoine Pettway takes over as head coach after Amir Abdur-Rahim left to take the job at South Florida, and while the did lose a substantial amount of talent, Terrell Burden/Demond Robinson are two double-digit scorers who stuck around. The team does appear to lack depth and that could be an issue. I do not expect them to win 26 games again this season, but I also do not expect them to return to the bottom of the standings either. The culture and expectations have changed in Kennesaw.
-FGCU had a rather unspectacular season last year so it is a little surprising to see them so high up in the preseason media polls. They were just 16-15 overall and were absolutely atrocious in the second half of conference play, although to be fair injuries played a big role in that. They do have a really good coach in Pat Chambers (at least I believe him to be good), and I do think this program will be back at the top of the league some day…but I do not see it happening this year. Three starters are back including Isaiah Thompson, who is one of the better players in the conference, so if they can stay healthy they should be noticeably better this season.
-I really like this Lipscomb team. They were a modest 11-7 in league play a year ago, but (for the most part) they were really strong in the second half of conference play and with four starters back I think they can make quite a bit of noise and even challenge Eastern Kentucky for 1st place. Depth will be an issue. They retained their key starters but lost several guys who contributed off the bench. Despite that, I think they have enough depth that guys can come off the bench and give them quality minutes.
-If you follow our Under the Radar podcasts you know that we often feel that Stetson is on the verge of a breakthrough season. It has not happened yet but we continue to think it will, and once again I am saying that I think this will be a good year for the Hatters. They were just 17-14 a season ago, but were a very respectable 12-6 in conference play and were looking pretty good down the stretch. They return three starters including Jalen Blackmon, who is one of the better players and shooters in the conference. Stephan Swenson is another guy that can put it in the basket. I like this team this year!
-Bellarmine is entering their final season as a transitional program and is positioned to make some noise in the league. They were rather unspectacular as a whole last year but were looking better toward the end of the year, and with four starters back that improvement should continue. This team loves to move the ball and is a lot of fun to watch. They will be a solid A-Sun program once they complete the transition, and I think will be able to compete with the top of the league.
-North Alabama is now full blown D1! As a whole, they were not that good last year, but they finished the regular season by winning six of their last eight, and with four starters back (and seven of their top eight rotation guys back) they can hopefully take some of that momentum into this season. I do not think North Alabama will contend for the top of the league, but I do kind of like them as a dark horse and think they will exceed expectations this year.
-The days of North Florida being a frontrunner in this conference now seem like it was a very long time ago. Coach Matt Driscoll has had some great seasons but the last three have ranged from mediocre down to terrible. Just one starter returns from last year’s team and they are having to rebuild with guys who do not appear to have a lot of experience.
-Austin Peay was the last place team a year ago and they are starting completely over with a revamped roster. Corey Gipson takes over as head coach after the program battled some off-court issues last year, and he does bring with him two standout players from Northwestern State (DeMarcus Sharp/Ja’Monta Black) so we could see some improvement from the Govs this year.
-The Dolphins of Jacksonville are another team that has to rebuild after a rough season last year. They have just one starter back and it is likely that they will be closer to the bottom than they are to the top.
-As a first-year transitional program Queens had an exceptionally good year last year going 15-15 overall against D1 competition. The second/third years of transitioning are usually the toughest so we could see a decline this year. Once they finish the transition I think they will be regular contenders in this conference…but they may be in for an uphill climb for the next two years.
-Central Arkansas is the consensus last place team. They won just 9 total games last year and were especially bad in the last few weeks of the season, but three starters are back including Camren Hunter, who is one of the better players in the conference. The problem is his supporting cast is somewhat lacking. We may see some improvement given their experience but it is still going to be a long year.