AUGUSTA, Ga. – The Augusta Jaguars Men's Basketball team has been selected as the preseason favorite to claim the PBC men's basketball championship in a poll of the league's head coaches. Junior Tyshaun Crawford was also named a PBC Preseason All-Conference Selection
The Jaguars received six of a possible 11 first-place votes for 116 total points. UNC Pembroke was second with 102 points and two first-place votes while Lander was third and USC Aiken fourth. Columbus State came in fifth with Georgia College in sixth, Flagler seventh and North Georgia eighth. Young Harris, Georgia Southwestern, Francis Marion and Clayton State rounded out the voting.
"Preseason polls are a part of every season," said Head Coach Dip Metress. "We look forward to playing this year. Our focus is on what is now and not what is next."
Augusta is coming off a 21-8 record in the 2019-20 season and were second in the conference standings with a 16-4 mark. The Jaguars had earned their third NCAA Tournament bid in the last four years prior to the tournament cancellation. This season's team looks to build on that success with the return of three seniors and five juniors. Among the returners is second-team All-Conference junior Tyshaun Crawford, who was third in the PBC in rebounding and led the conference in field goal percentage. Junior Miguel Arnold was third in the PBC in made three-pointers last year while junior Tyree Myers was sixth in assists.
Junior Tyshaun Crawford was named one of the five preseason All-Conference Selections.
Tyshawn Crawford • Augusta University
- A 7-1 junior center from Griffin, Ga.
- Named second-team All-Conference last season
- Led the Peach Belt and was ranked third in NCAA Division II in field goal percentage (.687)
- Also led the PBC in blocks and was third in rebounding
- Scored 20 or more points four times with a season-high 28 on 12-for-12 shooting against Young Harris and had 15 games of double-digit rebounds
The 2020-21 season will undergo some revisions as COVID pandemic has effected the projected post season. Only the top 4 teams will advance to tournament play.
The preseason coaches poll is below with first-place votes in parentheses. Coaches were not permitted to rank their own teams.
|
Rank |
Team |
Points |
|
1. |
Augusta (6) |
116 |
|
2. |
UNC Pembroke (2) |
102 |
|
3. |
Lander (3) |
92 |
|
4. |
USC Aiken |
81 |
|
5. |
Columbus State |
79 |
|
6. |
Georgia College (1) |
74 |
|
7. |
Flagler |
63 |
|
8. |
North Georgia |
57 |
|
9. |
Young Harris |
42 |
|
10. |
Georgia Southwestern |
31 |
|
11. |
Francis Marion |
29 |
|
12. |
Clayton State |
26 |
2020-21 Peach Belt Men's Basketball
Preseason All-Conference Team
Deon Berrien, Lander
Tyshawn Crawford, Augusta
Tyrell Kirk, UNC Pembroke
Anthony Moore, Columbus State
Jordan Thomas, Georgia College
The Jaguars will return to action this Saturday at home against Emmnuel at 3:00pm. As a reminder, no spectators are permitted. Live video and stats will be available at Augustajags.com.
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