Lock Haven, Pa. - Kutztown in the Eastern Division and IUP in the Western Division have been chosen by the PSAC’s head coaches as the preseason favorites to win their respective divisions in the PSAC men’s basketball preseason poll. This marks the second straight year that the Golden Bears have been tabbed the East favorites as the Bears will be looking for their third straight PSAC East title while IUP is coming off a season in which it improved by nine wins over the previous season and is looking to continue its climb up the PSAC West standings after finishing third last year.
Both squads received five out of eight first place votes. In the East, the Golden Bears were followed in the poll by West Chester, which received two first place votes, and Mansfield, which received the remaining first place votes. Cheyney placed fourth, followed by Shippensburg, East Stroudsburg, Millersville and Bloomsburg.
In the West, IUP was followed in second place by California, which receiving a single first place vote, and defending PSAC West and PSAC Tournament champion and NCAA Regional champion Gannon in third place, which also garnered a single first place vote. Slippery Rock, Mercyhurst, Edinboro, Clarion and Lock Haven rounded out the poll, with Mercyhurst receiving the remaining first place vote.
Two-thirds of the preseason All-PSAC East team was made up of players from the two teams picked to finish atop the standings, Kutztown and West Chester. Kutztown teammates Stephen Dennis, the PSAC’s leading scorer last year, and Ryan Washington as well as West Chester teammates Ralph Hegamin and Kenny St. George were named to the team. Tamir Smith of Cheyney and Yuseff Carr of Mansfield rounded out the team.
IUP individuals made up half of the preseason All-PSAC West team. Thomas Young, Darryl Webb and Julian Sanders, were each named to the team. Jordan Armstrong of Mercyhurst, Maron Brown of Slippery Rock and Kelsey Williams of California make up the other half of the team.
The results of the coaches’ poll are listed below. First place votes are in parenthesis. After the preseason all-conference teams is a brief synopsis on each team in reverse order of predicted finish.
Eastern Division
1. Kutztown (5)
2. West Chester (2)
3. Mansfield (1)
4. Cheyney
5. Shippensburg
6. East Stroudsburg
7. Millersville
8. Bloomsburg
Western Division
1. IUP (5)
2. California (1)
3. Gannon (1)
4. Slippery Rock
5. Mercyhurst (1)
6. Edinboro
7. Clarion
8. Lock Haven
Preseason All-PSAC East Team
Yuseff Carr Jr. Mansfield New York, N.Y./East NY Transit Tech
Stephen Dennis Sr. Kutztown West Chester, Pa./Henderson
Ralph Hegamin Sr. West Chester Virginia Beach, Va./Floyd Kellam
Tamir Smith Sr. Cheyney Philadelphia, Pa./Simon Gratz
Kenny St. George Sr. West Chester Philadelphia, Pa./Central
Ryan Washington Jr. Kutztown Philadelphia, Pa./Wissahickon
Preseason All-PSAC West Team
Jordan Armstrong Sr. Mercyhurst Muncie, Ind./Muncie Central
Maron Brown Jr. Slippery Rock Salisbury, Md./Wicomico
Julian Sanders So. IUP Medford, N.J./Shawnee
Darryl Webb Jr. IUP Elkridge, Md./Long Reach
Kelsey Williams So. California Sandusky, Ohio/Sandusky
Thomas Young Sr. IUP Philadelphia, Pa./Plymouth-Whitemarsh
BLOOMSBURG (4-24, 1-13) had one of the youngest teams in the PSAC last year and are hopeful that the experience gained by numerous freshmen on the roster will translate into more success this season. Highlighting that group is five-time PSAC East Freshman of the Week selection Larry Webster, the team’s leading rebounder, as well as Jesse Betar, Ronnie Benson and Trevon Johnson. Senior Ruben Britt, the team’s leading scorer, also returns -- headlining a Husky contingent that has its top seven scorers back in the fold.
MILLERSVILLE (10-17, 4-10) went through some growing pains last year after losing four starters off the 2007-08 regional runner-up team. Head coach Fred Thompson has had just three losing seasons in his 11 years at Millersville, so look for the Marauders to bounce back this season with the return of three starters. They will likely look to use an up-tempo style, as the team is heavy on guards, led by sophomore Brandon Widener, who averaged double figures in PSAC games. Starters Palmer McDurfee and Jason Blake, who shared time last year and combined 131 assists and 63 steals, will guide the team from the point.
EAST STROUDSBURG (16-12, 7-7) will have to contend with the loss of forward Chris Bach, who nearly averaged a double-double last year, but in his absence, the team’s strength will likely shift to the backcourt with senior guard Andy Heimbach. Just two three-pointers away from breaking the school record, Heimbach will team with junior guard Mike DeMarco, the team’s only other returning starter. Rounding out the experienced players are sophomores Eric Bryan and Dan Robinson, who look to increase their playing time in the upcoming campaign.
SHIPPENSBURG’s (12-15, 4-10) roster was dealt an unexpected blow when leading scorer Derrick Graff elected to forgo his final year of eligibility, but the Red Raiders will have the services of three returning starters. Daziah Miller will man the low post for the Red Raiders while experienced guards Brian Oleksiak and Justin Minter return to man the backcourt.
CHEYNEY (18-9, 10-4) , last year’s runner-up in the PSAC East standings, returns only a pair of starters but both provided big numbers and will be relied upon to do the same this season. First team All-PSAC East guard and Tyrone Smith brings his 16.7 points per game back to the Wolves’ backcourt where he will be joined by Kevin Presbery, who was Cheyney’s third-leading scorer last year at just a shade below 10 points per game. That duo, along with some newcomers in the front court, look to keep the Wolves in the upper half of the Eastern Division.
MANSFIELD (15-12, 8-6) developed into one of the highest scoring teams in the PSAC last year and the Moutaineers should be in position to do the same once again as they return all five starters and five of their top six scorers from a year ago. At the forefront is leading scorer and second team All-PSAC East forward Yuseff Carr and last year’s PSAC East Freshman of the Year Tony Fannick. Senior guards Ryan Callahan and Chris Pender also return as the Mountaineers will likely look to continue their exciting up-tempo style of play.
There is reason for optimism at WEST CHESTER (18-10, 9-5) as second-year head coach Damian Blair will have his top three scorers returning from last year’s team that finished third in the PSAC East. Those top three scorers, Ralph Hegamin, Kenny St. George and Kehinde Roberts, were all All-PSAC East selections last year. That trio all averaged double figures and leads a group looking to take the next step up the ladder in the PSAC East.
For the second straight year, the KUTZTOWN (28-5, 13-1) Golden Bears are the PSAC East preseason favorite to win the division. A big part of that projection has to do with the return of the PSAC’s leading scorer, senior Stephen Dennis, who was one of just four players to average more than 20 points per game last year, and the only one that is returning this year. Fellow All-PSAC East selection Ryan Washington is also back as the NCAA regional and PSAC tournament runner-up Golden Bears aim for their third straight Eastern Division title.
LOCK HAVEN (5-22, 3-11) will have to contend with the loss of one of the top players in school history as the departed Billy Arre finished his career ranking sixth all-time on the PSAC scoring chart. Luckily for the Bald Eagles, they return three starters, including second-leading scorer Warren Christian, who averaged 11.3 points per game, and Eric Brennan, who was one of the top freshmen in the league last year while leading the team in assists.
CLARION (11-16, 2-12) looks to bounce back after missing the PSAC tournament last year -- an event the Golden Eagles have played in 11 of the last 13 seasons. Coach Ron Righter returns just two starters – junior guards Mike Sherry and Shameel Carty -- but those individuals were two of the team’s top three scorers a year ago. Sophomore forward Paul McQueen saw plenty of minutes last year and hopes to take charge in the frontcourt with the loss of top scorer Josh Yanke.
EDINBORO (18-10, 8-6) will be looking for its 10th straight trip to the PSAC tournament, but in order to do so, the Fighting Scots will need to replace the production of three of its top four point producers -- guards Joe Jones, Gil Cummings and Larry Bryant. Edinboro’s strength may be in the frontcourt this year, as forward and leading rebounder Justin Moore returns, as does second leading rebounder Vlad Kovalevsky. The frontcourt will also be aided with the presence of Cory Somerville, a transfer from Slippery Rock.
MERCYHURST (16-11, 4-10) battled through a number of injuries last year that left it with limited depth. This year, the Lakers appear healthy again and return four starters, including Jordan Armstrong, Nnamdi Nnadili and Elliot Engelmann, all of whom averaged more than 10 points per game. Armstrong and Englemann were also the team’s top rebounders, and with Nnadili, will join forces with a pair of Division I transfers who give the Lakers a great deal of excitement heading into 2009-10.
SLIPPERY ROCK (21-8, 11-3) posted one of the best improvements of any team in Division II last year, finishing second in the PSAC West, advancing to the PSAC tournament semifinals and just narrowly missing out on an NCAA tournament berth. With three returning starters from the PSAC’s second-highest scoring team, The Rock is optimistic about earning its first NCAA berth since 1991. Leading the way is Michael Evans Jr., Maron Brown and Maurice Douglas, a trio which all averaged double digits in scoring last year.
GANNON (30-4, 12-2) had a season for the ages last year, winning 30 games en route to capturing the PSAC West, the PSAC Tournament Championship and the NCAA regional championship. The Golden Knights will have their work cut out for them this year, as they lost six of the top seven scorers and return just one starter in George Johnson. Gannon will try to meld together nine newcomers, including four junior college transfers, as they attempt to stay in the upper half of the PSAC West and challenge for their ninth NCAA Tournament bid of this decade.
One year after making it to the NCAA Elite Eight, CALIFORNIA (13-13, 6-8) struggled with the loss of four starters, eventually finishing just one spot out of a PSAC Tournament berth as it lost 10 games by single digits. Veteran head coach Bill Brown hopes that experience will lead to a return to the postseason for the Vulcans, who return their two top scorers in Kelsey Williams and Jerial Nixon. Williams, a six-time PSAC Freshman of the Week last season, will again team up with Chris Moore, the PSAC’s top shot blocker, in forming one of the league’s best big men duos.
The favorite in the PSAC West is IUP (22-8, 10-4) , coming off a season when it qualified for the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2005. Three starters return led by second leading scorer and leading rebounder Darryl Webb. Thomas Young and Ashton Smith also return, as does last year’s PSAC West Freshman of the Year, Julian Sanders. Joining the already talented cast will be a pair of Division I transfers and a pair of junior college transfers, which should lead to a very deep squad that will be looking to finish atop the PSAC West for the first time since 2002.