Men's Basketball Picked to Finish Atop OAC in Preseason Coaches Poll

11/8/2024 10:36:00 AM | By: JCUSID

John Carroll is looking to remain atop the OAC this year.

WESTERVILLE – The preseason prognostication for the Ohio Athletic Conference has been released.

In the annual OAC coaches poll, the Blue Streaks have been chosen as the top team in the league.

John Carroll Men's Basketball garnered 81 points and all nine possible first-place votes. Mount Union finished behind JCU with 73 points and the other first-place vote.

The Blue Streaks swept the conference a year ago, getting the vaunted OAC double with the regular season with a fantastic 17-1 record and then winning both tournament games to pick up the tourney title.

Preseason hopes are high for JCU this season, as D3hoops.com has John Carroll ranked third in NCAA Division III. JCU leaped to #1 last season for a stint, ultimately finishing at #12 after losing in the Second Round of the NCAA Tournament to eventual #6 Calvin. John Carroll and Keene State have the longest active streak of Top 25 appearances, at 28 straight (every poll since Week 1 of the 2022-23 season).

The Blue Streaks return plenty of pieces for the final run in the OAC before moving to the North Coast Athletic Conference in the fall of 2025.

The season begins on Saturday, as JCU plays Albertus Magnus College on Saturday and at Penn State Harrisburg on Sunday.

Full Basketball Poll:
1. John Carroll 81(9)
2. Mount Union 73(1)
3. Otterbein 61
4. Marietta 57
5. Heidelberg 46
6. Ohio Northern 41
7. Capital 34
8. Baldwin Wallace 22
9. Wilmington 20
10. Muskingum 15

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