SUMMIT LEAGUE MEDIA DAY PRESEASON POLL:
- Saint Thomas
- Omaha
- South Dakota State
- North Dakota State
- South Dakota
- Kansas City
- Denver
- North Dakota
- Oral Roberts
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-SUMMIT LEAGUE 1ST TEAM:
-Carter Bjerke – JR, F – Saint Thomas
-Isaac Bruns – JR, G – South Dakota
-Kalen Garry – JR, G – South Dakota State
-Nolan Minessale – SO, F – Saint Thomas
-Tony Osburn – SR, G – Omaha
-Jayson Petty – JR, G – Kansas City
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-SUMMIT LEAGUE 2ND TEAM:
-Noah Feddersen – JR, F – North Dakota State
-Ja’Sean Glover – SR, G – Omaha
-Carson Johnson – SO, G – Denver
-Eli King – SR, G – North Dakota
-Markhi Strickland – SR, G North Dakota State
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COMMENTS FROM DAVID:
-Due to the change in rules for transitioning up to D-1, Saint Thomas is now eligible for postseason play! As a transitional program they were incredibly successful and have managed 20+ wins the last two seasons despite being on probation. They are picked to finish first in the league this year, and while they are probably not my top choice, they are certainly in the discussion. Noah Minessale returns to the starting lineup, and Carter Bjerke also received preseason honors. They will need some other guys to step up if they want to finish atop the league, but they do have some very good pieces.
-Omaha was last year’s first-place team and went on to win the conference tournament and advance to the NCAA Tournament. Three key starers are back including Tony Osburn, who is one of the best guards in the league and a very solid outside shooter as well. I think Omaha can repeat and win it again this year.
-Bryan Petersen takes over head coaching duties at South Dakota State after being on the staff for the last six years. Last year the Jackrabbits seemed to be going strong down the stretch, but they ended the season by losing back-to-back games to Denver and North Dakota, who are two teams you would expect them to easily beat. Still, three key starters are back from a 20-win team including Joe Sayler and Kalen Garry, who make up a very solid backcourt, so the expectations are high despite some of the changes.
-North Dakota State, like a lot of teams, is going through a roster overhaul. Just one starter returns from last year’s team and while they have some impressive-looking transfers it is hard to say what kind of team they are going to have. Markhi Strickland was a solid player at Western Michigan a year ago, and earned preseason conference honors this year, so he is someone the Bison will be depending on.
-The Yotes of South Dakota finished in the middle of the league last year and are expected to do about the same this year. Isaac Bruns is one of the best guards in the conference and is someone they will be relying heavily on. Jordan Crawford, a transfer from Eastern Kentucky, looks to be another solid roster addition. If some of the other players can step up then they may exceed expectations this year.
-Kansas City struggled last year and are faced with having to rebuild this year. Marvin Menzies is the coach, and he has had success throughout his career, but has not broken through with the Roos yet. Jayson Petty is the lone returning starter and they are looking to surround him with some solid JUCO players in the hopes of getting the program jumpstarted.
-Denver is seemingly always closer to the bottom than they are the top, and this year the expectations are no different. Just one starter is back, and it looks like they have a roster that consists largely of lower division transfers, although Julius Rollins was a solid player for Western Illinois last year.
-North Dakota struggled last year and is in reset mode this year with just one starter back in Eli King. Other than him it does not look like they have much in the way of players who have produced in a big way at the D-1 level.
-It was not that long ago when Oral Roberts won 30 games and was one of the top Under the Radar programs in the country. Last year they won just 7, and this year the expectations are not much better. None of their starters have returned and first-year coach Kory Barnett really has his work cut out for him.
