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MAC MEDIA DAY PRESEASON COACHES’ POLL:
- Akron
- Kent State
- Ohio U
- Toledo
- Northern Illinois
- Bowling Green (tied 6th)
- Miami OH (tied 6th)
- Ball State
- Buffalo
- Western Michigan
- Eastern Michigan
- Central Michigan
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-MAC 1ST TEAM:
-Ali Ali – SR, G – Akron
-Enrique Freeman – SR, F – Akron
-Chris Payton – SR, F – Kent State
-Jaylin Hunter – SR, G – Ohio U
-Dante Maddox Jr. – JR, G – Toledo
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-MAC 2ND TEAM:
-Tyson Acuff – JR, G – Eastern Michigan
-Jalen Sullinger – JR, G – Kent State
-Anderson Mirambeaux – SR, C – Miami OH
-David Coit – JR, G – Northern Illinois
-AJ Brown – SO, G – Ohio U
COMMENTS FROM DAVID GRIGGS:
-Akron won 22 games a year ago and was really strong down the stretch in conference play. With Enrique Freeman returning along with two other starters, the Zips are the consensus favorite to win the league this year. John Groce has done an outstanding job as head coach and he has a deep/talented team this year that may be good enough to not just make noise in the MAC but to make some noise on the national stage.
-Kent State had a fantastic year last year with 28 total wins, a 2nd place finish in the MAC, and a MAC Tournament championship. They did lose three of their top players so it is going to be very hard to equal that success again this year, but they still appear to have a talented roster and should easily finish in the top half of the standings.
-Ohio U is a team that I am really big on. They were just 10-8 in the MAC last year, but they were really strong down the stretch and they also have three starters returning including Jaylin Hunter at point guard. I do not think they are quite as deep/talented as the Zips but they should have a really good team this year.
-Toledo was last year’s first-place team but missed the NCAA Tournament after they fell to Kent State in the championship game. Like Kent State, they are tasked with rebuilding their roster after an outstanding season. Dante Maddox Jr./Tyler Cochran are two players who appear capable of playing more minutes and stepping into bigger roles this year so Toledo may not be quite as good as they were a year ago, but they are still a team to contend with in this league.
-I keep waiting for Northern Illinois to take a big step forward as a program, but every time it seems like they may be in a position to do it the step they take forward is not as big as you hoped or thought it would be. Three starters are back from a team that was 9-9 in MAC play a year ago and it looks like like they have an exceptionally good backcourt, particularly with Keshawn Williams. They are not quite as strong in the frontcourt but they still look like they (again) might be able to make some noise in this league.
-Miami OH had a really unsuccessful year in Travis Steele’s first year as head coach and finished 8th in the standings. Four starters are back and the Red Hawks were looking better at the end of the season, so perhaps the signs are there that they can make some significant improvements this year.
-Buffalo just has not been able to sustain the success they experienced with Nate Oats as head coach. George Halcovage takes over this year and has a lot of work ahead of him. Just one starter is back so they will need some of the new guys to step up if they are going to be competitive.
-Bowling Green has had three frustrating seasons right in a row and the indicators seem to be that things will not change this year. They only won 11 total games last year and have just one starter back. They have hit the portal as well as the JUCOs to try and build up their roster…but I still think it is going to be a struggle.
-Ball State had a 20-win season last year for the first time in a long time. The bad news is that almost none of their key players are back and the Cardinals are going into a reset mode. They have a lot of new young players and it may take them a while to start to gel.
It will not be easy for any of the Michigan Directional Schools…
-Western Michigan has had three straight seasons where they failed to win ten games and it does not look like the frustrations are going to come to an end this year for the Broncos. They have just two starters back from a team that finished outside the top-300 in most of the metrics.
-Eastern Michigan was 5-13 in the league a year ago and with their top player gone it looks like they will struggle even more this year.
-Central Michigan was one of the worst offensive teams in the nation last year and while they have gone into the portal to try and rebuild the roster, it is still looking like it is going to be a long and frustrating year.