Jaguars earn No. 23 rank on preseason regional coaches poll
KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The Augusta University men's basketball squad is ranked 23rd in the 2015-16 National Association of Basketball Coaches(NABC) NCAA Division II men's basketball pre-season coaches poll.
The Jaguars join UNC Pembroke (13th) and Montevallo (20th) to represent the Peach Belt Conference in the NABC top 25. Augustana sits atop the preseason poll after posting a 31-3 school record last season. Tarleton State is second, West Liberty third, Bellarmine fourth, and Lincoln Memorial round out the top five.
"We lose the all-time leader in assists in school history and the 15th and 16th all-time leading scorers in the 49-year history of the program. Didn't see this one coming," Head Coach Dip Metress said.
The next two spots went to national quarterfinalist Mount Olive and finalist Indiana (Pa.). Minnesota State-Moorhead checked in at No. 9. Colorado School of Mines rounded out the top 10.
A total of 65 schools received at least one vote in the pre-season poll.
The Jaguars went 23-7 overall last season and reached their 11th NCAA tournament appearance all-time at the 2015 NCAA Division II Men's Basketball Southeast Regional against No. 6 Mount Olive.
This year's schedule features four games against teams ranked on the preseason-regional list, including a showdown with Mount Olive on Nov. 29 in Christenberry Fieldhouse. The Jags play at Montevallo Dec. 19, host UNC Pembroke Jan. 2 and travel to the UNCP Braves on Jan. 27.
Augusta earned a No. 17 ranking on the Division II Bulletin Preseason Top-25 list that was released on Friday, Oct. 2. The men's and women's basketball teams host Jaguar Madness, a pep-rally for the men's and women's basketball programs, this Thursday, Oct, 29 at 7:00 p.m. inside Christenberry Fieldhouse.
The Augusta University men's and women's basketball teams will see their first on-court action of the 2015-16 season on Sunday, Nov. 1 with an exhibition doubleheader with the All-Army teams inside Christenberry Fieldhouse. The women play against the All-Army women's team at 2:00 p.m. and the men follow at 4:00 p.m.
NABC/Division II Rankings |
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Record |
Points |
Last |
1. |
Augustana, S.D. (9) |
31-3 |
387 |
2 |
2. |
Tarleton State, Texas (2) |
31-4 |
374 |
7 |
3. |
West Liberty, W.Va. (2) |
28-4 |
369 |
5 |
4. |
Bellarmine, Ky. (1) |
31-4 |
357 |
3 |
5. |
Lincoln Memorial, Tenn. |
30-3 |
300 |
6 |
6. |
Mount Olive, N.C. |
31-4 |
266 |
9 |
7. |
Indiana, Pa. (1) |
31-7 |
244 |
25 |
8. |
Indianapolis, Ind. |
25-6 |
240 |
15 |
9. |
Minnesota State-Moorhead |
35-4 |
227 |
4 |
10. |
Colorado School of Mines |
23-5 |
215 |
13 |
11. |
California Baptist |
26-7 |
189 |
21 |
12. |
Alabama-Huntsville |
23-9 |
185 |
NR |
13. |
UNC Pembroke |
26-6 |
152 |
17 |
14. |
Northwest Missouri State |
25-7 |
141 |
NR |
15. |
Western Washington |
20-11 |
131 |
NR |
16. |
Drury, Mo. |
21-9 |
126 |
NR |
17. |
Chico State, Calif. |
22-8 |
121 |
NR |
18. |
Metropolitan State, Colo. |
26-6 |
119 |
11 |
19. |
Southern Connecticut State |
24-8 |
116 |
NR |
20. |
Montevallo, Ala. |
26-9 |
99 |
23 |
21. |
Western Oregon |
23-7 |
88 |
NR |
22. |
Midwestern State, Texas |
22-9 |
80 |
NR |
23. |
Augusta, Ga. |
23-7 |
73 |
NR |
24. |
Barry, Fla. |
25-6 |
64 |
12 |
25. |
Philadelphia, Pa. |
24-8 |
63 |
NR |
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Others receiving votes: Missouri Southern 57, Delta State (Miss.) 39, Florida Southern 36, Bowie State (Md.) 33, Fairmont State (W.Va.) 25, Alderson-Broaddus (W.Va.) 24, Bridgeport (Conn.) 23, St. Cloud State (Minn.) 18, Seattle Pacific (Wash.) 18, BYU-Hawaii 17, Lake Superior State (Mich.) 15, Lynn (Fla.) 13, Minnesota State 13, Cal Poly Pomona 11, Carson-Newman (Tenn.) 11, Angelo State (Texas) 10, Mercyhurst (Pa.) 10, Arkansas-Fort Smith 9, Cal State-San Bernardino 9, Bentley (Mass.) 8, Ferris State (Mich.) 8, Dixie State (Utah) 6, Nebraska-Kearney 6, Kentucky Wesleyan 5, Harding (Ark.) 4, King (Tenn.) 4, Michigan Tech 4, Stonehill (Mass.) 4, Texas A&M-Commerce 4, Benedict (S.C.) 3, East Central (Okla.) 3, Gannon (Pa.) 3, Paine (Ga.) 3, Concordia-St. Paul (Minn.) 2, Queens (N.C.) 2, Southern New Hampshire 2, Arkansas Tech 1, Central Missouri 1, Ouachita Baptist (Ark.) 1, West Texas A&M 1. Records are final from the 2014-15 season. Last ranking was from the final poll of last season. |
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