Three Points Separate Top Four Squads in Empire 8 Men’s Basketball Poll
If the 2013-14 preseason poll is any indication of how competitive the season is going to be, then fans are in for a real treat any time their team takes the court. St. John Fisher College picked up three first place votes towards 40 points to edge out second place Hartwick by one point. Defending champion Ithaca College and Stevens Institute of Technology are tied for third with 38 points.
The 2012-13 season saw four teams post winning records, including a pair of 20-plus game winners. Two programs made a trip to the NCAA Division III Tournament, marking the fifth straight year the Empire 8 has had multiple representation.
Ithaca earned the automatic qualifier after defeating third-seed St. John Fisher and then knocking off top-seeded Stevens in the Empire 8 title game for the Bombers’ second-straight conference championship. Ithaca advanced to the NCAA round of 16 for the first time. Stevens joined the Bombers as an at-large selection for its second trip to the big dance in the program’s 97-year existence.
Who’s Back?
Headlining the returner list for Fisher is reigning Empire 8 Rookie of the Year, Chaz Lott. He started in all of the Cardinals' 26 games, averaging 30.1 minutes of floor time. Lott paced Fisher with 2.0 steals and 4.4 assists per game and finished second on the team in points per game (14.4).
The strength of Hartwick’s squad begins with D3hoops.com preseason All-America, Jared Suderley. Suderley led the Hawks in scoring for the third straight year and was the top scorer in the Empire 8 for the 2012-13 season. He scored 20 or more points 10 times and tied for the team lead in three-point field goals (27) and was second in rebounds (174).
Ithaca won it’s second consecutive championship and third title in program history last season, and will challenge to repeat again come February. Second team all-conference selection and tournament MVP, Frank Mitchell, started 27-of-30 games and finished second on the team in scoring at 14.8 points per game and rebounding with 6.5 boards per contests. He boasted a .512 field goal percentage. Tom Sweeney also returns for the Bombers after playing in all 30 games and averaging 10.2 points per contest.
Stevens Patrick Sabatino returns to the hardwood after an all-conference second team campaign in which he led the team in rebounding (6.2 rpg) and was third on a team in scoring at 13.0 points. Matt Skrelja and Kenny Gan also return for the Ducks after starting all 28 games last season. Skrelja shot an impressive .538 from the field and averaged 8.1 ppg, while Gan averaged 6.6 points and six boards.
Nazareth returns nine players from a year ago and will look to return to the post-season behind the leadership of Brad Ford. The second-team all-conference selection led the E8 in rebounding (10.0 rpg) and was the fifth leading scorer (16.2 ppg). The Golden Flyers also return starters Scott Hayford (8.4 ppg and 4.0 rpg), Maruice Mills (7.2 ppg and 5.1 rpg) and Mitch Ford (7.0 ppg and 4.0 rpg).
Elmira College returns three of their four top scorers from last season. Point guard Derrick Vogel finished second on the team with 229 points (9.2 ppg) and led the team with 113 assists (4.52 apg). Vogel finished with a 2.62 assist-to-turnover ratio, while hauling in 80 rebounds (3.2/game). Neil Randolph and Josh Keys each averaged 7.9 ppg and shot over .375% from the field.
Utica (12-14, 8-6) guard Connor Maish returns to the hardwood after an all-conference first team campaign that saw him lead the nation in three point shooting percentage across the broad, in Division I, II and III. Maisch shot an impressive 52.8% from behind the arc on 161 attempts and he also broke Utica’s single season record for 3-pointers (85).
Alfred will look to move up the competitive Empire 8 standings after winning three league games last year. Thomas Tsatsis averaged 11.1 points and 1.6 steals while Jason Ruback chipped in with 8.5 points per game off the bench.
Houghton Highlights
The 2013-14 season marks the second year of inclusion for Houghton College as a competing Empire 8 program. The Highlanders are not eligible for post-season play (and therefore were not ranked in the poll) but will complete a full league schedule. However, games against Houghton will not factor into the standings.
The Highlander roster features ten new additions, but returners Matthew Ball and Tyler McQuaid will provide some familiarity to the court. Ball started 25 games last year and finished second on the team in rebounds (5.1 rpg), while McQuaid averaged 4.9 points and 2.5 rebounds in his rookie campaign.
Dates to remember
All nine schools take the court for non-conference contests this weekend as the 2013-14 season officially begins. Conference play starts Friday, Jan. 3, and this year's playoff schedule features two semifinal matches on Friday, Feb. 28, and the championship on Saturday, March 1 with the high seed hosting the tournament.
Follow Online
If you can’t make it out to the game be sure to check if Live Stats are available or better yet the game may be web streamed courtesy of EzStream. Be sure to check out the schedule of streamed events by visiting
empire8.tv.
A closer look
For more information, visit any of the participating schools' websites or go to the Empire 8 home on the Internet at
www.empire8.com. Don't forget to become a fan of the Empire 8 on
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@Empire8 on Twitter.
2013-14 Empire 8 Men’s Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll
|
St. John Fisher College (3 first place votes) |
40 points |
|
Hartwick College (2) |
39 |
|
Ithaca College (2) |
38 |
|
Stevens Institute of Technology (1) |
38 |
|
Nazareth College |
27 |
|
Elmira College |
18 |
|
Utica College |
16 |
|
Alfred University |
8 |