Top 25 talk

[irapthor]

If I had to submit a ballot for the D3hoops.com Preseason Top 25 poll at this early stage (Sept 29), it would look something like this...

(Top three returning scorers for each team noted.)

#1) Nebraska Wesleyan (30-3, 13-3 IIAC, IIAC Champ, NCAA National Championship)
* Cooper Cook, 6-5 Sr F; 16.8 ppg, 5.8 rpg
* Ryan Garver; 6-3 Sr G; 14.2 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 4.6 apg
* Jack Hiller; 6-6 Jr G; 13.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg

#2) Springfield (22-9, 12-2 NEWMAC, NEWMAC Champ; NCAA National Semifinal Game)
* Jake Ross, 6-4 Jr G; 24.8 ppg, 9.8 ppg, 4.3 rpg
* Heath Post, 6-6 Jr F; 12.6 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 2.1 apg
* Cam Earle, 6-5 Sr G; 9.4 ppg, 2.6 rpg 

#3) UW-Oshkosh (25-8, 9-5 WIAC, WIAC 3rd, NCAA National Runner Up)
* Ben Boots, 6-1 Sr G; 16.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 4.4 apg
* Jack Flynn, 6-8 Jr C; 12.8 ppg, 7.0 rpg
* Adam Fravert, 6-8 Jr F; 12.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 2.9 apg

#4) Augustana (25-6, 12-4 CCIW, CCIW Co-Champ, NCAA 4th Round)
* Nolan Ebel, 6-1 Sr G; 16.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 3.8 apg
* Chrishawn Orange, 6-2 Sr G; 15.6 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.5 apg
* Brett Benning, 6-6 Sr G; 10.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg
(*Pierson Wofford, 6-4 Jr F; 14.7 ppg, 11.7 rpg, 3.0 apg[/i]; 3 games/injured)

#5) Williams (23-6, 7-3 NESCAC, NESCAC Co-champ, NCAA 2nd Round)
* James Heskett, 6-8 Sr F; 19.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg 
* Kyle Scadlock, 6-8 Sr F; 18.0 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 2.3 apg
* Bobby Casey, 6-3 Sr G; 15.8 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.1 apg

#6) Swarthmore (25-6, 15-3 CC, CC Co-champ, NCAA 4th Round)
* Cam Wiley, 6-0 Sr G; 16.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg
* Zac O'Dell, 6-7 Jr F; 10.6 ppg, 8.2 rpg
* Nate Shafer, 6-6 Jr F; 9.7 ppg, 6.4 rpg

#7) UW-Platteville (24-5, 12-2 WIAC, WIAC Champ, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Robert Duax, 6-4 Sr F; 15.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.2 apg
* Carter Voelker, 6-3 Jr G; 10.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 2.2 apg
* Quentin Shields, 5-8 So G; 10.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg

#8) Hamilton (24-5, 7-3 NESCAC, NESCAC Co-Champ, NCAA 3rd Round
* Kena Gimour, 6-3 Jr G; 18.5 ppg, 7.2 rpg
* Peter Hoffman, 6-5 Sr F; 13.9 ppg, 5.0 rpg
* Michael Grassey, 6-4 Sr F;  12.8 ppg, 7.1 rpg 

#9) MIT (25-6, 10-4 NEWMAC, NEWMAC Co-champ; NCAA 4th Round)
* Bradley Jomard, 6-6 Sr G; 15.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 6.0 apg
* AJ Jurko, 6-3 Sr G; 14.2 ppg; 4.7 rpg, 5.9 apg
* Cameron Korb, 6-1 Sr G; 14.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg

#10) Whitman (29-2, 16-0 NWC, NWC Champ, NCAA 4th Round)
* Joey Hewitt, 6-2 Sr G; 16.9 ppg, 4.5 rpg
* Darne Duckett, 5-11 So G; 10.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 2.9 apg
* Trevor Osborne, 6-2 Jr F; 9.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg

#11) Illinois Wesleyan (19-8, 12-4 CCIW, CCIW Co-champ, NCAA 1st Round)
* Brady Rose, 6-3 Sr G; 21.4 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 3.1 apg
* Colin Bonnett, 6-4 Sr G; 12.3 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.6 apg
* Alex O'Neil, 6-9 Jr C; 9.2 ppg, 5.5 rpg

#12) Plattsburgh State (24-5, 17-1 SUNYAC, SUNYAC Champ, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Jonathan Patron, 6-2 Sr F; 23.7 ppg, 10.4 rpg
* Brandon Johnson, 5-10 Sr G; 8.8 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 2.6 apg
* Nick DeAngelis, 6-4 Jr G; 8.1 ppg, 2.2 rpg

#13) Whitworth (24-4, 14-2 NWC, NWC 2nd, NCAA 1st Round
* Kyle Roach, 6-5 Sr G; 18.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 3.8 apg
* Ben College, 6-1 Jr G; 16.5 ppg, 2.1 apg
* Jordan Lester, 6-2 Sr G; 15.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 4.6 apg

#14) UW-Stevens Point (21-9, 11-3 WIAC, WIAC 2nd, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Nate Dodge, 6-3 Sr G; 11.6 ppg, 3.1 rpg
* Canon O'Heron, 6-5 Sr F; 10.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg
* Drew Frederickson, 6-0 Sr G; 7.9 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.2 apg

#15) Loras (19-7, 12-4 IIAC, IIAC 2nd, NCAA n/a)
* Josh Ruggles, 6-2 Sr G; 22.4 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 3.5 apg
* Ryan Dicanio, 6-3 Sr G; 17.8 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 4.7 apg
* Rowan McGowen, 6-4 So G; 10.5 ppg, 3.2 rpg

#16) Marietta (21-7, 14-4 OAC, OAC Co-champ, NCAA 1st Round
* Kyle Dixon, 6-3 Sr G; 14.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 3.8 apg
* Anthony Wallace, 6-2 Sr G; 12.9 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.0 apg
* Avery Williams, 6-7 Sr F; 11.6 ppg, 7.5 rpg 

#17) Wittenberg (27-3, 16-2 NCAC, NCAC Champ, NCAA 2nd Round)
* Mitchell Balser, 6-0 Sr G; 12.2 ppg, 3.2 ppg, 3.5 apg
* Connor Seipel, 6-6 Jr F; 11.0 ppg, 6.8 rpg
* Jacob Bertemes, 5-11 Jr G; 11.0 ppg, 2.4 ppg, 3.2 apg

#18) Emory (23-5, 12-2 UAA, UAA 2nd, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Romin Williams, 5-9 So G; 15.1 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.6 apg
* Gebereal Baitey, 6-2 Sr G; 11.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.8 apg
* Matt Davet, 6-7 So F; 8.4 ppg, 3.1 rpg

#19) Middlebury (21-7, 7-3 NESCAC, NESCAC Co-champ, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Matt Folger, 6-8 Jr F; 13.7 ppg, 6.9 rpg
* Eric McCord, 6-7 Sr F; 8.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg
* Jack Farrell, 6-1 So G; 8.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg 

#20) Johns Hopkins (24-5, 15-3 CC, CC Champ, NCAA 2nd Round)
* Michael Gardner, 6-2 Sr G; 14.2 ppg, 4.1 rpg
* Conner Delaney, 6-0 So G; 10.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg
* Joey Kern, 6-1 So G; 8.9 ppg, 2.9 rpg

#21) St. John's (23-4, 19-1 MIAC, MIAC Champ, NCAA 1st Round)
* David Stokman, 6-2 Sr G; 13.8 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 3.2 rpg
* Jubie Alade, 6-4 Jr F; 11.0 ppg, 3.4 rpg
* Lucas Walford, 6-8 Jr C; 9.0 ppg, 9.3 rpg

#22) St. Olaf (20-8, 15-5 MIAC, MIAC 2nd, NCAA 2nd Round)
* Austin Korba, 6-5 Sr F; 14.1 ppg, 5.6 rpg
* Nate Albers, 6-3 Jr G; 12.5 ppg, 3.4 rpg
* Dominic Bledsoe, 6-0 So G; 10.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg

#23) Wooster (22-7, 14-4 NCAC, NCAC 2nd, NCAA 2nd Round)
* Danyon Hempy, 6-5 Jr G; 15.0 ppg, 3.7 rpg
* Reece Dupler, 6-2 Sr G; 14.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg
* Blake Blair, 6-2 Sr G; 7.5 ppg, 3.8 rpg 

#24) Hope (19-10, 10-4 MIAA, MIAA Co-champ; NCAA 2nd Round)
* Jason Beckman, 5-11 Sr G; 22.3 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 3.1 apg
* Preston Granger, 6-6 So C; 9.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg
* Teddy Ray, 6-5 Sr F; 9.7 ppg, 7.4 rpg 

#25) Wesleyan (22-7, 7-3 NESCAC, NESCAC Co-champ; NCAA 2nd Round)
* Jordan Bonner, 6-4 Sr G; 15.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg
* Austin Hutcherson, 6-6 So G; 12.0 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 2.7 apg
* Antone Walker, 6-0 So G; 7.6 ppg
------------------------
First Two Out:

#26) Bethel (21-7, 14-6 MIAC, MIAC 3rd; NCAA n/a)
* Granger Kingland, 6-4 Jr G; 14.4 ppg, 6.3 rpg
* Matt Ambriz, 6-2 Sr G; 13.1 ppg, 2.6 rpg
* Jack Jenson, 6-1 Jr G; 11.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg

#27) Maryville TN (22-7, 14-2 USAC, USAC Champ; NCAA 1st Round)
* Dante Hoppa, 6-5 Sr. F; 12.7 ppg, 5.1 ppg, 2.2 apg
* Calvin Songster, 6-2 Sr G; 12.7 ppg, 2.6 ppg, 2.5 apg
* Emier Bowman, 6-3 Sr F; 12.1 ppg, 6.7 rpg 

There are many teams I'd keep an eye on outside of the 27 above.  That list would include, but certainly not be limited to: New Jersey City; Washington U (re-loading with a very talented nucleus); North Central and Wheaton from the CCIW; UW-Whitewater; and Amherst. 

I'm sure I am missing a few legit Top 25 contenders above.  Any thoughts on who those are?

Hey, I'll tell you this much... NJCU is loaded.... easily the best team we've had since the 1992 Final Four squad... we have all 5 starters back and likely ONLY Sam Toney will be an opening day starter among the five ... we are THAT deep. We a couple of pieces coming at midyear...we lost two letter winners out of 16 players and both were third teamers

We are without a doubt a Top 15 team to start the year.

Also, watch out for Montclair State... they are young but they will be excellent this year. I think they're the one team that could challenge us for the NJAC title this year.

[Titan Q]

Hey, I'll tell you this much... NJCU is loaded.... easily the best team we've had since the 1992 Final Four squad... we have all 5 starters back and likely ONLY Sam Toney will be an opening day starter among the five ... we are THAT deep. We a couple of pieces coming at midyear...we lost two letter winners out of 16 players and both were third teamers

We are without a doubt a Top 15 team to start the year.

Also, watch out for Montclair State... they are young but they will be excellent this year. I think they're the one team that could challenge us for the NJAC title this year.

Thanks.  That is why I asked...sounds like I missed on NJCU.  I will go back and check them out.

[nescac1]

Looks pretty solid Titan Q.  WIAC will be just brutal this year.  I'd probably drop Springfield about ten spots as they lost two key guys from a team that was very thin already.  Even though Ross is clearly the best player in the country. 

Midd seems a bit high to me too.  I'd drop them below Wesleyan to the bottom of top 25-30 after losing Daly and a few quality bigs. 

Roanoke seems like a team that merits inclusion.  Look like the class of the ODAC.

[Titan Q]

Looks pretty solid Titan Q.  WIAC will be just brutal this year.  I'd probably drop Springfield about ten spots as they lost two key guys from a team that was very thin already.  Even though Ross is clearly the best player in the country. 

Midd seems a bit high to me too.  I'd drop them below Wesleyan to the bottom of top 25-30 after losing Daly and a few quality bigs. 

Roanoke seems like a team that merits inclusion.  Look like the class of the ODAC.

Thanks.

So in your opinion, what should be the preseason poll order of the NESCAC candidates?

[coachwilson55555]

Thank you for doing this list!  I'm looking forward to the season.

[Greek Tragedy]

Not mentioned as a "top 3 returning scorers" for Stevens Point is the return of Ethan Bublitz who missed all but one game last year. The previous year he led the team in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals, I think.

[Titan Q]

Not mentioned as a "top 3 returning scorers" for Stevens Point is the return of Ethan Bublitz who missed all but one game last year. The previous year he led the team in scoring, rebounding, assists and steals, I think.

Thanks.  I edited my original post to include Bublitz. 

Greek, what is your preseason WIAC order (in terms of poll ranking candidates)?

[y_jack_lok]

Looks pretty solid Titan Q.  WIAC will be just brutal this year.  I'd probably drop Springfield about ten spots as they lost two key guys from a team that was very thin already.  Even though Ross is clearly the best player in the country. 

Midd seems a bit high to me too.  I'd drop them below Wesleyan to the bottom of top 25-30 after losing Daly and a few quality bigs. 

Roanoke seems like a team that merits inclusion.  Look like the class of the ODAC.

I think it's hard to know if any ODAC team is a top 25 candidate. At this point, probably not. Emory & Henry had the best overall record last season (22-7) and won the conference tournament. W&L seems on the rise under their new coach. Roanoke surprised last season. I don't know what those teams lost to graduation, though. Randolph-Macon has a solid senior class this season and graduated only one last year. Va. Wesleyan is always a team to watch.

[Titan Q]

I think it's hard to know if any ODAC team is a top 25 candidate. At this point, probably not. Emory & Henry had the best overall record last season (22-7) and won the conference tournament. W&L seems on the rise under their new coach. Roanoke surprised last season. I don't know what those teams lost to graduation, though. Randolph-Macon has a solid senior class this season and graduated only one last year. Va. Wesleyan is always a team to watch.

I looked at the ODAC pretty closely, thinking there should be an ODAC team in the Top 25, but I had trouble making a case for one in the preseason.

[nescac1]

My preseason northeast guess goes like this:

Williams, Hamilton, MIT (top ten teams), Springfield (right behind), Wesleyan (top 25).

I think Midd and Keene State are in the 25-35 range but either could break through.  Endicott another team to watch.  I would not be shocked to see Bowdoin or Amherst in the top 25 at some point especially Amherst because of a ridiculously soft first semester schedule.  But I think the middle of Nescac is down a bit and the bottom way up so the records could be pretty bunched up 3-10.   

[y_jack_lok]

I think it's hard to know if any ODAC team is a top 25 candidate. At this point, probably not. Emory & Henry had the best overall record last season (22-7) and won the conference tournament. W&L seems on the rise under their new coach. Roanoke surprised last season. I don't know what those teams lost to graduation, though. Randolph-Macon has a solid senior class this season and graduated only one last year. Va. Wesleyan is always a team to watch.

I looked at the ODAC pretty closely, thinking there should be an ODAC team in the Top 25, but I had trouble making a case for one in the preseason.

The ODAC is a conference with five or six good teams, but no really outstanding, All-America type players. The Nov 25th game between R-MC and Emory (your #18) will answer questons about both teams.

[rlgyank]

If I had to submit a ballot for the D3hoops.com Preseason Top 25 poll at this early stage (Sept 29), it would look something like this...

(Top three returning scorers for each team noted.)

#1) Nebraska Wesleyan (30-3, 13-3 IIAC, IIAC Champ, NCAA National Championship)
* Cooper Cook, 6-5 Sr F; 16.8 ppg, 5.8 rpg
* Ryan Garver; 6-3 Sr G; 14.2 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 4.6 apg
* Jack Hiller; 6-6 Jr G; 13.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg

#2) Springfield (22-9, 12-2 NEWMAC, NEWMAC Champ; NCAA National Semifinal Game)
* Jake Ross, 6-4 Jr G; 24.8 ppg, 9.8 ppg, 4.3 rpg
* Heath Post, 6-6 Jr F; 12.6 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 2.1 apg
* Cam Earle, 6-5 Sr G; 9.4 ppg, 2.6 rpg 

#3) UW-Oshkosh (25-8, 9-5 WIAC, WIAC 3rd, NCAA National Runner Up)
* Ben Boots, 6-1 Sr G; 16.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 4.4 apg
* Jack Flynn, 6-8 Jr C; 12.8 ppg, 7.0 rpg
* Adam Fravert, 6-8 Jr F; 12.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 2.9 apg

#4) Augustana (25-6, 12-4 CCIW, CCIW Co-Champ, NCAA 4th Round)
* Nolan Ebel, 6-1 Sr G; 16.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 3.8 apg
* Chrishawn Orange, 6-2 Sr G; 15.6 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.5 apg
* Brett Benning, 6-6 Sr G; 10.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg
(*Pierson Wofford, 6-4 Jr F; 14.7 ppg, 11.7 rpg, 3.0 apg[/i]; 3 games/injured)

#5) Williams (23-6, 7-3 NESCAC, NESCAC Co-champ, NCAA 2nd Round)
* James Heskett, 6-8 Sr F; 19.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg 
* Kyle Scadlock, 6-8 Sr F; 18.0 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 2.3 apg
* Bobby Casey, 6-3 Sr G; 15.8 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.1 apg

#6) Swarthmore (25-6, 15-3 CC, CC Co-champ, NCAA 4th Round)
* Cam Wiley, 6-0 Sr G; 16.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg
* Zac O'Dell, 6-7 Jr F; 10.6 ppg, 8.2 rpg
* Nate Shafer, 6-6 Jr F; 9.7 ppg, 6.4 rpg

#7) UW-Platteville (24-5, 12-2 WIAC, WIAC Champ, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Robert Duax, 6-4 Sr F; 15.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.2 apg
* Carter Voelker, 6-3 Jr G; 10.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 2.2 apg
* Quentin Shields, 5-8 So G; 10.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg

#8) Hamilton (24-5, 7-3 NESCAC, NESCAC Co-Champ, NCAA 3rd Round
* Kena Gimour, 6-3 Jr G; 18.5 ppg, 7.2 rpg
* Peter Hoffman, 6-5 Sr F; 13.9 ppg, 5.0 rpg
* Michael Grassey, 6-4 Sr F;  12.8 ppg, 7.1 rpg 

#9) MIT (25-6, 10-4 NEWMAC, NEWMAC Co-champ; NCAA 4th Round)
* Bradley Jomard, 6-6 Sr G; 15.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 6.0 apg
* AJ Jurko, 6-3 Sr G; 14.2 ppg; 4.7 rpg, 5.9 apg
* Cameron Korb, 6-1 Sr G; 14.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg

#10) Whitman (29-2, 16-0 NWC, NWC Champ, NCAA 4th Round)
* Joey Hewitt, 6-2 Sr G; 16.9 ppg, 4.5 rpg
* Darne Duckett, 5-11 So G; 10.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 2.9 apg
* Trevor Osborne, 6-2 Jr F; 9.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg

#11) Illinois Wesleyan (19-8, 12-4 CCIW, CCIW Co-champ, NCAA 1st Round)
* Brady Rose, 6-3 Sr G; 21.4 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 3.1 apg
* Colin Bonnett, 6-4 Sr G; 12.3 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.6 apg
* Alex O'Neil, 6-9 Jr C; 9.2 ppg, 5.5 rpg

#12) Plattsburgh State (24-5, 17-1 SUNYAC, SUNYAC Champ, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Jonathan Patron, 6-2 Sr F; 23.7 ppg, 10.4 rpg
* Brandon Johnson, 5-10 Sr G; 8.8 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 2.6 apg
* Nick DeAngelis, 6-4 Jr G; 8.1 ppg, 2.2 rpg

#13) Whitworth (24-4, 14-2 NWC, NWC 2nd, NCAA 1st Round
* Kyle Roach, 6-5 Sr G; 18.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 3.8 apg
* Ben College, 6-1 Jr G; 16.5 ppg, 2.1 apg
* Jordan Lester, 6-2 Sr G; 15.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 4.6 apg

#14) UW-Stevens Point (21-9, 11-3 WIAC, WIAC 2nd, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Nate Dodge, 6-3 Sr G; 11.6 ppg, 3.1 rpg
* Canon O'Heron, 6-5 Sr F; 10.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg
* Drew Frederickson, 6-0 Sr G; 7.9 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.2 apg
(Ethan Bublitz, 6-2 Sr G; returning from injury)

#15) Loras (19-7, 12-4 IIAC, IIAC 2nd, NCAA n/a)
* Josh Ruggles, 6-2 Sr G; 22.4 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 3.5 apg
* Ryan Dicanio, 6-3 Sr G; 17.8 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 4.7 apg
* Rowan McGowen, 6-4 So G; 10.5 ppg, 3.2 rpg

#16) Marietta (21-7, 14-4 OAC, OAC Co-champ, NCAA 1st Round
* Kyle Dixon, 6-3 Sr G; 14.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 3.8 apg
* Anthony Wallace, 6-2 Sr G; 12.9 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.0 apg
* Avery Williams, 6-7 Sr F; 11.6 ppg, 7.5 rpg 

#17) Wittenberg (27-3, 16-2 NCAC, NCAC Champ, NCAA 2nd Round)
* Mitchell Balser, 6-0 Sr G; 12.2 ppg, 3.2 ppg, 3.5 apg
* Connor Seipel, 6-6 Jr F; 11.0 ppg, 6.8 rpg
* Jacob Bertemes, 5-11 Jr G; 11.0 ppg, 2.4 ppg, 3.2 apg

#18) Emory (23-5, 12-2 UAA, UAA 2nd, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Romin Williams, 5-9 So G; 15.1 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.6 apg
* Gebereal Baitey, 6-2 Sr G; 11.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.8 apg
* Matt Davet, 6-7 So F; 8.4 ppg, 3.1 rpg

#19) Middlebury (21-7, 7-3 NESCAC, NESCAC Co-champ, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Matt Folger, 6-8 Jr F; 13.7 ppg, 6.9 rpg
* Eric McCord, 6-7 Sr F; 8.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg
* Jack Farrell, 6-1 So G; 8.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg 

#20) Johns Hopkins (24-5, 15-3 CC, CC Champ, NCAA 2nd Round)
* Michael Gardner, 6-2 Sr G; 14.2 ppg, 4.1 rpg
* Conner Delaney, 6-0 So G; 10.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg
* Joey Kern, 6-1 So G; 8.9 ppg, 2.9 rpg

#21) St. John's (23-4, 19-1 MIAC, MIAC Champ, NCAA 1st Round)
* David Stokman, 6-2 Sr G; 13.8 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 3.2 rpg
* Jubie Alade, 6-4 Jr F; 11.0 ppg, 3.4 rpg
* Lucas Walford, 6-8 Jr C; 9.0 ppg, 9.3 rpg

#22) St. Olaf (20-8, 15-5 MIAC, MIAC 2nd, NCAA 2nd Round)
* Austin Korba, 6-5 Sr F; 14.1 ppg, 5.6 rpg
* Nate Albers, 6-3 Jr G; 12.5 ppg, 3.4 rpg
* Dominic Bledsoe, 6-0 So G; 10.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg

#23) Wooster (22-7, 14-4 NCAC, NCAC 2nd, NCAA 2nd Round)
* Danyon Hempy, 6-5 Jr G; 15.0 ppg, 3.7 rpg
* Reece Dupler, 6-2 Sr G; 14.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg
* Blake Blair, 6-2 Sr G; 7.5 ppg, 3.8 rpg 

#24) Hope (19-10, 10-4 MIAA, MIAA Co-champ; NCAA 2nd Round)
* Jason Beckman, 5-11 Sr G; 22.3 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 3.1 apg
* Preston Granger, 6-6 So C; 9.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg
* Teddy Ray, 6-5 Sr F; 9.7 ppg, 7.4 rpg 

#25) Wesleyan (22-7, 7-3 NESCAC, NESCAC Co-champ; NCAA 2nd Round)
* Jordan Bonner, 6-4 Sr G; 15.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg
* Austin Hutcherson, 6-6 So G; 12.0 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 2.7 apg
* Antone Walker, 6-0 So G; 7.6 ppg
------------------------
First Two Out:

#26) Bethel (21-7, 14-6 MIAC, MIAC 3rd; NCAA n/a)
* Granger Kingland, 6-4 Jr G; 14.4 ppg, 6.3 rpg
* Matt Ambriz, 6-2 Sr G; 13.1 ppg, 2.6 rpg
* Jack Jenson, 6-1 Jr G; 11.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg

#27) Maryville TN (22-7, 14-2 USAC, USAC Champ; NCAA 1st Round)
* Dante Hoppa, 6-5 Sr. F; 12.7 ppg, 5.1 ppg, 2.2 apg
* Calvin Songster, 6-2 Sr G; 12.7 ppg, 2.6 ppg, 2.5 apg
* Emier Bowman, 6-3 Sr F; 12.1 ppg, 6.7 rpg 

There are many teams I'd keep an eye on outside of the 27 above.  That list would include, but certainly not be limited to: New Jersey City; Washington U (re-loading with a very talented nucleus); North Central and Wheaton from the CCIW; UW-Whitewater; and Amherst. 

I'm sure I am missing a few legit Top 25 contenders above.  Any thoughts on who those are?

I'm glad you have Loras in your top 25. At the end of last season, they were ranked by Massey & Bennett in the mid teens. They have most of their team returning. Offensively they are one of the top teams in the nation, but defensively they need to improve. Out of 416 ranked teams, they were 390th in scoring defense, 410th in fg% defense, and 308th in 3 pt fg% defense. If they can do that, they will really be tough. They were only 1 game behind NWU during the regular season last year.  The IIAC, oops, I mean the ARC, needs to get some more love this year.

The season is fast approaching, I can't wait!!!!!!!

[Smitty Oom]

Kind of surprised to see that you had 3 MIAC teams in your top 26! I definitely agree that in the preseason you nailed the top 3 teams with SJU, St. Olaf and Bethel. I would also probably rank them in that order. I am expecting St. Olaf and Bethel to be in the ORV category on the d3hoops.com preseason ranks.

Two years in a row we aren't talking about UST in the top 3 of the MIAC... with that said there is a lot of rumblings about a great recruiting class this year to go with a lot of freshman who saw extended playing time last year. They may be young, but making some noise may be in the range of possibilities.

[nescac1]

The more I think about it the more I think Keene State is a candidate for a major break-out team this season out of New England.  I think Ryan Cain is an excellent young coach from a great coaching tree.  Ty Nichols is likely to be an all-American, he's legit.  And Cain's first recruiting class was stellar ... by season's end 5 of the top 7 guys were frosh, led by emerging star James Anozie.  Those guys should contribute a lot more this year. 

Keene plays an absolutely brutal non-league schedule this year (MIT, Middlebury, Hamilton, Springfield, four brutal non-league games, plus potentially-tough games against Albertus Magnus, Salem State, and possibly F&M, wow) so might have a number of early losses, but they should cruise through the Little East, where no one else is likely to be at their level this year (Eastern Conn looks a bit down and no one else looks especially up), yet they will be battle-toughened for the post-season because of their early schedule. 

[Hoosiersfan2323]

If I had to submit a ballot for the D3hoops.com Preseason Top 25 poll at this early stage (Sept 29), it would look something like this...

(Top three returning scorers for each team noted.)

#1) Nebraska Wesleyan (30-3, 13-3 IIAC, IIAC Champ, NCAA National Championship)
* Cooper Cook, 6-5 Sr F; 16.8 ppg, 5.8 rpg
* Ryan Garver; 6-3 Sr G; 14.2 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 4.6 apg
* Jack Hiller; 6-6 Jr G; 13.5 ppg, 4.3 rpg

#2) Springfield (22-9, 12-2 NEWMAC, NEWMAC Champ; NCAA National Semifinal Game)
* Jake Ross, 6-4 Jr G; 24.8 ppg, 9.8 ppg, 4.3 rpg
* Heath Post, 6-6 Jr F; 12.6 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 2.1 apg
* Cam Earle, 6-5 Sr G; 9.4 ppg, 2.6 rpg 

#3) UW-Oshkosh (25-8, 9-5 WIAC, WIAC 3rd, NCAA National Runner Up)
* Ben Boots, 6-1 Sr G; 16.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 4.4 apg
* Jack Flynn, 6-8 Jr C; 12.8 ppg, 7.0 rpg
* Adam Fravert, 6-8 Jr F; 12.3 ppg, 7.5 rpg, 2.9 apg

#4) Augustana (25-6, 12-4 CCIW, CCIW Co-Champ, NCAA 4th Round)
* Nolan Ebel, 6-1 Sr G; 16.4 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 3.8 apg
* Chrishawn Orange, 6-2 Sr G; 15.6 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 2.5 apg
* Brett Benning, 6-6 Sr G; 10.7 ppg, 5.0 rpg
(*Pierson Wofford, 6-4 Jr F; 14.7 ppg, 11.7 rpg, 3.0 apg[/i]; 3 games/injured)

#5) Williams (23-6, 7-3 NESCAC, NESCAC Co-champ, NCAA 2nd Round)
* James Heskett, 6-8 Sr F; 19.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg 
* Kyle Scadlock, 6-8 Sr F; 18.0 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 2.3 apg
* Bobby Casey, 6-3 Sr G; 15.8 ppg, 3.5 rpg, 2.1 apg

#6) Swarthmore (25-6, 15-3 CC, CC Co-champ, NCAA 4th Round)
* Cam Wiley, 6-0 Sr G; 16.3 ppg, 4.4 rpg
* Zac O'Dell, 6-7 Jr F; 10.6 ppg, 8.2 rpg
* Nate Shafer, 6-6 Jr F; 9.7 ppg, 6.4 rpg

#7) UW-Platteville (24-5, 12-2 WIAC, WIAC Champ, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Robert Duax, 6-4 Sr F; 15.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg, 2.2 apg
* Carter Voelker, 6-3 Jr G; 10.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 2.2 apg
* Quentin Shields, 5-8 So G; 10.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg

#8) Hamilton (24-5, 7-3 NESCAC, NESCAC Co-Champ, NCAA 3rd Round
* Kena Gimour, 6-3 Jr G; 18.5 ppg, 7.2 rpg
* Peter Hoffman, 6-5 Sr F; 13.9 ppg, 5.0 rpg
* Michael Grassey, 6-4 Sr F;  12.8 ppg, 7.1 rpg 

#9) MIT (25-6, 10-4 NEWMAC, NEWMAC Co-champ; NCAA 4th Round)
* Bradley Jomard, 6-6 Sr G; 15.5 ppg, 5.4 rpg, 6.0 apg
* AJ Jurko, 6-3 Sr G; 14.2 ppg; 4.7 rpg, 5.9 apg
* Cameron Korb, 6-1 Sr G; 14.0 ppg, 3.0 rpg

#10) Whitman (29-2, 16-0 NWC, NWC Champ, NCAA 4th Round)
* Joey Hewitt, 6-2 Sr G; 16.9 ppg, 4.5 rpg
* Darne Duckett, 5-11 So G; 10.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 2.9 apg
* Trevor Osborne, 6-2 Jr F; 9.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg

#11) Illinois Wesleyan (19-8, 12-4 CCIW, CCIW Co-champ, NCAA 1st Round)
* Brady Rose, 6-3 Sr G; 21.4 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 3.1 apg
* Colin Bonnett, 6-4 Sr G; 12.3 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 2.6 apg
* Alex O'Neil, 6-9 Jr C; 9.2 ppg, 5.5 rpg

#12) Plattsburgh State (24-5, 17-1 SUNYAC, SUNYAC Champ, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Jonathan Patron, 6-2 Sr F; 23.7 ppg, 10.4 rpg
* Brandon Johnson, 5-10 Sr G; 8.8 ppg, 2.3 rpg, 2.6 apg
* Nick DeAngelis, 6-4 Jr G; 8.1 ppg, 2.2 rpg

#13) Whitworth (24-4, 14-2 NWC, NWC 2nd, NCAA 1st Round
* Kyle Roach, 6-5 Sr G; 18.7 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 3.8 apg
* Ben College, 6-1 Jr G; 16.5 ppg, 2.1 apg
* Jordan Lester, 6-2 Sr G; 15.7 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 4.6 apg

#14) UW-Stevens Point (21-9, 11-3 WIAC, WIAC 2nd, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Nate Dodge, 6-3 Sr G; 11.6 ppg, 3.1 rpg
* Canon O'Heron, 6-5 Sr F; 10.9 ppg, 3.4 rpg
* Drew Frederickson, 6-0 Sr G; 7.9 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.2 apg
(Ethan Bublitz, 6-2 Sr G; returning from injury)

#15) Loras (19-7, 12-4 IIAC, IIAC 2nd, NCAA n/a)
* Josh Ruggles, 6-2 Sr G; 22.4 ppg, 4.7 rpg, 3.5 apg
* Ryan Dicanio, 6-3 Sr G; 17.8 ppg, 7.1 rpg, 4.7 apg
* Rowan McGowen, 6-4 So G; 10.5 ppg, 3.2 rpg

#16) Marietta (21-7, 14-4 OAC, OAC Co-champ, NCAA 1st Round
* Kyle Dixon, 6-3 Sr G; 14.3 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 3.8 apg
* Anthony Wallace, 6-2 Sr G; 12.9 ppg, 3.3 rpg, 2.0 apg
* Avery Williams, 6-7 Sr F; 11.6 ppg, 7.5 rpg 

#17) Wittenberg (27-3, 16-2 NCAC, NCAC Champ, NCAA 2nd Round)
* Mitchell Balser, 6-0 Sr G; 12.2 ppg, 3.2 ppg, 3.5 apg
* Connor Seipel, 6-6 Jr F; 11.0 ppg, 6.8 rpg
* Jacob Bertemes, 5-11 Jr G; 11.0 ppg, 2.4 ppg, 3.2 apg

#18) Emory (23-5, 12-2 UAA, UAA 2nd, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Romin Williams, 5-9 So G; 15.1 ppg, 2.5 rpg, 2.6 apg
* Gebereal Baitey, 6-2 Sr G; 11.0 ppg, 3.6 rpg, 2.8 apg
* Matt Davet, 6-7 So F; 8.4 ppg, 3.1 rpg

#19) Middlebury (21-7, 7-3 NESCAC, NESCAC Co-champ, NCAA 3rd Round)
* Matt Folger, 6-8 Jr F; 13.7 ppg, 6.9 rpg
* Eric McCord, 6-7 Sr F; 8.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg
* Jack Farrell, 6-1 So G; 8.3 ppg, 3.0 rpg 

#20) Johns Hopkins (24-5, 15-3 CC, CC Champ, NCAA 2nd Round)
* Michael Gardner, 6-2 Sr G; 14.2 ppg, 4.1 rpg
* Conner Delaney, 6-0 So G; 10.7 ppg, 3.6 rpg
* Joey Kern, 6-1 So G; 8.9 ppg, 2.9 rpg

#21) St. John's (23-4, 19-1 MIAC, MIAC Champ, NCAA 1st Round)
* David Stokman, 6-2 Sr G; 13.8 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 3.2 rpg
* Jubie Alade, 6-4 Jr F; 11.0 ppg, 3.4 rpg
* Lucas Walford, 6-8 Jr C; 9.0 ppg, 9.3 rpg

#22) St. Olaf (20-8, 15-5 MIAC, MIAC 2nd, NCAA 2nd Round)
* Austin Korba, 6-5 Sr F; 14.1 ppg, 5.6 rpg
* Nate Albers, 6-3 Jr G; 12.5 ppg, 3.4 rpg
* Dominic Bledsoe, 6-0 So G; 10.0 ppg, 2.5 rpg

#23) Wooster (22-7, 14-4 NCAC, NCAC 2nd, NCAA 2nd Round)
* Danyon Hempy, 6-5 Jr G; 15.0 ppg, 3.7 rpg
* Reece Dupler, 6-2 Sr G; 14.4 ppg, 4.3 rpg
* Blake Blair, 6-2 Sr G; 7.5 ppg, 3.8 rpg 

#24) Hope (19-10, 10-4 MIAA, MIAA Co-champ; NCAA 2nd Round)
* Jason Beckman, 5-11 Sr G; 22.3 ppg, 2.6 rpg, 3.1 apg
* Preston Granger, 6-6 So C; 9.8 ppg, 4.6 rpg
* Teddy Ray, 6-5 Sr F; 9.7 ppg, 7.4 rpg 

#25) Wesleyan (22-7, 7-3 NESCAC, NESCAC Co-champ; NCAA 2nd Round)
* Jordan Bonner, 6-4 Sr G; 15.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg
* Austin Hutcherson, 6-6 So G; 12.0 ppg, 3.7 rpg, 2.7 apg
* Antone Walker, 6-0 So G; 7.6 ppg
------------------------
First Two Out:

#26) Bethel (21-7, 14-6 MIAC, MIAC 3rd; NCAA n/a)
* Granger Kingland, 6-4 Jr G; 14.4 ppg, 6.3 rpg
* Matt Ambriz, 6-2 Sr G; 13.1 ppg, 2.6 rpg
* Jack Jenson, 6-1 Jr G; 11.4 ppg, 4.9 rpg

#27) Maryville TN (22-7, 14-2 USAC, USAC Champ; NCAA 1st Round)
* Dante Hoppa, 6-5 Sr. F; 12.7 ppg, 5.1 ppg, 2.2 apg
* Calvin Songster, 6-2 Sr G; 12.7 ppg, 2.6 ppg, 2.5 apg
* Emier Bowman, 6-3 Sr F; 12.1 ppg, 6.7 rpg 

There are many teams I'd keep an eye on outside of the 27 above.  That list would include, but certainly not be limited to: New Jersey City; Washington U (re-loading with a very talented nucleus); North Central and Wheaton from the CCIW; UW-Whitewater; and Amherst. 

I'm sure I am missing a few legit Top 25 contenders above.  Any thoughts on who those are?

I'm glad you have Loras in your top 25. At the end of last season, they were ranked by Massey & Bennett in the mid teens. They have most of their team returning. Offensively they are one of the top teams in the nation, but defensively they need to improve. Out of 416 ranked teams, they were 390th in scoring defense, 410th in fg% defense, and 308th in 3 pt fg% defense. If they can do that, they will really be tough. They were only 1 game behind NWU during the regular season last year.  The IIAC, oops, I mean the ARC, needs to get some more love this year.

The season is fast approaching, I can't wait!!!!!!!

As a pretty avid IIAC (ugh, ARC) follower, couldn't agree more on this Loras take. 8 months ago, Loras appeared to have solved their defensive woes with the commitment of Chicagoland stud shot-blocker Jared Crutcher, but he ultimately decommitted and ended up on full scholarship at Lewis. But then, Loras reloaded by adding freshman big Jordan Boyd, who had several D2 full scholarship offers before committing to Loras. He's supposed to be a high-flyer, and if he can be a strong defensive presence inside, that Loras team (which has a core of guards that can compete with any other lineup of guards in the country) could get over the hump. The ARC is going to be a lot of fun this year.