KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Fresh off another NCAA Division II Atlantic Region championship and Elite Eight national tournament berth, the West Liberty University men’s basketball team was ranked No. 14 on Tuesday when the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) released its Preseason Top 25.
Head coach Ben Howlett, who carries a dazzling 99-18 (.846) record into his fifth season at the Hilltopper helm, welcomes back eight lettermen from his Spring 2021 squad that won an MEC North Division championship and rolled to its sixth regional crown in the past 11 seasons following a pandemic-shortened 16-game regular season.
Highlighting the returning cast for the Black and Gold are a pair of 1,000-point scorers in All-Region guard Pat Robinson III (1,531 career points) and 2-time All-MEC wing Will Yoakum (1,248 career points) along with a trio of collegiate transfers and a bumper crop of incoming freshmen.
Defending national champion NW Missouri State, which knocked off WLU in the Elite Eight quarterfinals this past spring, was a near-unanimous pick to win its fourth national title in the past five seasons. Flagler (Fla.), West Texas A&M, Colorado Mesa and Colorado School of Mines rounded out the top five.
Joining West Liberty in the Top 25 were fellow Mountain East Conference squad Fairmont State (No. 22) and the University of Charleston (No. 25). Two other Atlantic Region teams also made the list in No. 12 Mercyhurst and No. 18 Indiana (Pa.).
Coach Howlett and his Hilltoppers open the season at home on Nov. 12-13 when they host the Atlantic Region Crossover. West Liberty takes on Winston-Salem State (N.C.) in a 5:30 p.m. tilt on Nov. 12 before challenging perennial PSAC power East Stroudsburg in a 6 p.m. game on Nov. 13.
MEN’S BASKETBALL
NCAA Division II Preseason Top 25
(Oct. 26, 2021)
Team (FPV) Rec Pts Pvs
1. NW Missouri State (15) 28-2 397 4
2. Flagler (Fla.) 18-3 349 8
3. West Texas A&M 19-3 317 5
4. Colorado Mesa (1) 21-2 299 1
5. Colorado School of Mines 18-3 281 6
6. Truman State (Mo.) 20-3 258 7
7. Hillsdale (Mich.) 21-3 214 9
8. St. Thomas Aquinas (N.Y.) 14-2 212 11
9. Lubbock Christian (Texas) 18-3 203 10
10. Valdosta State (Ga.) 17-5 199 14
11. Washburn (Kan.) 20-7 191 17
12. Mercyhurst (Pa.) 12-1 177 3
13. Nova Southeastern (Fla.) 0-0 168 NR
14. WEST LIBERTY 18-5 165 18
15. Northern State (S.D.) 19-2 148 2
16. Queens (N.C.) 16-6 157 22
17. Lincoln Memorial (Tenn.) 19-4 149 13
18. Indiana (Pa.) 2-1 123 NR
19. Dallas Baptist (Texas) 17-5 120 16
20. Alabama-Huntsville 15-4 98 12
21. Seattle Pacific (Wash.) 10-3 86 NR
22. FAIRMONT STATE 15-5 78 20
23. Florida Southern 7-5 74 NR
24. Point Loma (Calif.) 8-3 68 24
25. CHARLESTON 14-4 62 15
Others receiving votes: MSU Moorhead (Minn.) 47, Southern Indiana 46, Oklahoma Baptist 45, Saint Anselm (N.H.) 43, Findlay (Ohio) 40, Lee (Tenn.) 35, Carson-Newman (Tenn.) 35, Belmont Abbey (N.C.) 28, Fayetteville State (N.C.) 26, Chico State (Calif.) 24, Cal Poly-Pomona 21, Daemen (N.Y.) 19, Emmanuel (Ga.) 19, Saint Leo (Fla.) 17, Augusta (Ga.) 15, Jefferson (Pa.) 13, Angelo State (Texas) 12, Southern Arkansas 12, Stonehill (Mass.) 12, Morehouse (Ga.) 10, Hawai’i Hilo 9, Wayne State (Neb.) 9, Missouri-St. Louis 8, St. Edward’s (Texas) 8, Ashland (Ohio) 7, Grand Valley State (Mich.) 7, Georgia Southwestern 6, Missouri Western 6, Adelphi (N.Y.) 5, Arkansas Monticello 5, Augustana (S.D.) 5, Texas A&M-Kingsville 5, Cal State-San Bernardino 4, West Georgia 4, Barry (Fla.) 1, Miles (Ala.) 1.