King Enters 2016-17 as Favorite to Win Conference Carolinas Men's Basketball Championship
HIGH POINT, N.C. – The King University Tornado was named the favorite to win the 2016-17 Conference Carolinas Men's Basketball Championship, the Conference announced today. King collected eight first-place votes and 87 total points from Conference coaches.
A season ago, The Tornado won both the Conference Carolinas regular season title and Conference Carolinas Men's Basketball Championship. The tournament title was the program's first. King went 25-7 overall, including a 17-3 mark in Conference Carolinas play and earned its second NCAA Division II Men’s Basketball Championship appearance in the process.
Barton College enters the 2016-17 ranked second with one first-place vote and 75 total points. The 2015-16 Conference Carolinas Men's Basketball Championship runner-up will look to build off of its 20-11 overall record and 13-7 conference mark from a season ago.
Limestone College garnered 72 points from coaches with one first-place vote to enter the year ranked third. The Saints will look to rebound from a 12-18 overall record in 2015-16, which included a 9-11 conference record. However, Limestone would make an appearance in the semifinals of the Conference Carolinas Men's Basketball Championship and will use that late season success to its advantage in 2016-17.
Traditional power University of Mount Olive was tabbed fourth after receiving 60 points, while Lees-McRae College was close behind in fifth with 57 points.
The Trojans were 17-13 a season ago with an 11-9 Conference Carolinas mark. The Bobcats posted a 16-15 overall mark and 12-8 league record.
Coming sixth in the poll was Erskine College with 48 points, with Pfeiffer University and North Greenville University in a tie for seventh with 46 points each.
The Fleet's 2015-16 campaign saw them go 12-15 and 9-11 in conference. The Falcons managed a 14-15 overall record and even 10-10 record in league contests. The Crusaders finished 11-18 overall and 7-13 in conference.
Closing out the poll in ninth is Belmont Abbey College with 26 points and in 10th is Southern Wesleyan University with 23 points.
The Crusaders concluded 2015-16 at 9-19 and 5-15 in conference play, while the Warriors were 2-26 and 1-19 in Conference Carolinas.
The 2016-17 Conference Carolinas men's basketball season begins on Friday, Nov. 11.
2016-17 Men's Basketball Preseason Poll
| School (first-place votes) |
Total |
| 1. King (8) |
87 |
| 2. Barton (1) |
75 |
| 3. Limestone (1) |
72 |
| 4. Mount Olive |
60 |
| 5. Lees-McRae |
57 |
| 6. Erskine |
48 |
| 7. Pfeiffer |
46 |
| 7. North Greenville |
46 |
| 9. Belmont Abbey |
26 |
| 10. Southern Wesleyan |
23 |
2016-17 Conference Carolinas Men's Basketball Players to Watch:
Guards (Year):
Danny Shand (Jr.) - Barton
R.J. Claypool (Sr.) - Barton
Drexler Clark (Sr.) - Belmont Abbey
Joby Glymph (Sr.) - Erskine
Thomas Nolan (Jr.) - Erskine
C.J. Good (Sr.) - King
Hunter LeVeau (Sr.) - King
Jonathan Honore (Sr.) - Lees-McRae
Lepreece Lynch (Jr.) - Lees-McRae
Shaq Dance (Sr.) - Limestone
Shaun Stewart (Sr.) - Limestone
Daniel Burchette (So.) - North Greenville
Miguel Reyes Cartagena (Sr.) - North Greenville
Justin Dotson (Sr.) - North Greenville
AJ Clark (Sr.) - Pfeiffer
Andrew Guerrero (Sr.) - Pfeiffer
Mike Smith (Sr.) - Pfeiffer
Josh Calhoun (Jr.) - Pfeiffer
Darius Sharpe (Sr.) - Southern Wesleyan
Daryl Myers (Fr.) - Southern Wesleyan
Forwards (Year):
Daniel Westbrook (Sr.) - Barton
Troy Henderson (So.) - Belmont Abbey
Deion Lane (Jr.) - Belmont Abbey
Brannon Dark (Jr.) - Erskine
Malcolm St. Louis (Sr.) - King
Donte Falls (Jr.) - Lees-McRae
Donovan Harris (Jr.) - Limestone
Justice McCullough (So.) - Southern Wesleyan
Conference Carolinas is a NCAA Division II athletics conference made up of 12 teams from Georgia, North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee. These institutions consist of: Barton College, Belmont Abbey College, Converse College, Emmanuel College, Erskine College, King University, Lees-McRae College, Limestone College, University of Mount Olive, North Greenville University, Pfeiffer University, and Southern Wesleyan University. Emmanuel College is currently completing the NCAA Membership Process and will be fully competing in league championships in the near future.