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Basketball Preseason Picked Third In SoCon North Division
Nov. 5, 2009
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - In only its second season as a member of the Southern Conference, the Samford University men's basketball team was predicted to finish third in the conference's North Division Thursday, as the league office unveiled its annual preseason vote taken by the league's 12 head coaches. College of Charleston and Western Carolina were tabbed as the favorites to capture the SoCon's divisional titles in 2009-10. College of Charleston's junior guard Andrew Goudelock was also named the SoCon Preseason Player of the Year. Western Carolina returns all five starters from a team that tied for the North Division Championship last season with an 11-9 mark in league play. The Catamounts earned 10 first-place votes and finished the balloting with 64 points. Appalachian State earned the remaining two first-place votes in the North Division and finished with 55 points. Samford (44) was chosen third in the North's preseason rankings while last season's tournament champion, Chattanooga (39), was slotted fourth. Elon and UNC Greensboro were both tied for fifth place with 22 points apiece. Behind eight first-place votes, College of Charleston was picked to win the South Division. The Cougars finished 15-5 in league play last season and advanced to the tournament championship game against Chattanooga. Wofford picked up three first-place votes and finished second in the preseason balloting with 54 points. Davidson, which has won the South Division in each of the past three years, earned the final first-place vote in the South Division and came in third with 48 points. The Citadel (36) finished fourth, followed by Furman (24) and Georgia Southern (21). In addition to the preseason polls, the coaches also selected an all-conference team. Goudelock, who ranked fourth in the league in scoring last season (16.7 ppg), was joined on the preseason team by backcourt mate Tony White, Jr. Western Carolina and Wofford also placed two student-athletes on the preseason all-conference team. The Catamounts were represented by Harouna Mutombo, last season's Freshman of the Year, and Brandon Giles. Noah Dahlman and Junior Salters earned preseason plaudits for the Terriers.
Other members of the preseason team included Will Archambault (Davidson), Kellen Brand (Appalachian State), Willie Powers (Georgia Southern) and Cameron Wells (The Citadel). The 2009-10 men's basketball regular-season schedule opens Friday, Nov. 13, as nine SoCon teams hit the court. Eleven of the 12 SoCon teams will begin play that weekend. The 2010 SoCon Tournament will be held March 5-8 in Charlotte, N.C. Samford boasts four starters and an additional seven returning lettermen from last year's squad. In 2008-09, the Bulldogs concluded the year with a 16-16 overall record and a 9-11 mark against conference opponents. Samford finished its inaugural season in the SoCon as the third-place team in the North Division and qualified for postseason play for an unprecedented 16th-consecutive year. At the 2009 SoCon Tournament, the Bulldogs knocked off Furman and The Citadel to advance all the way to the semifinal round of the competitive 12-team tournament. Samford ended up losing to eventual-champion Chattanooga at The McKenzie Arena in downtown Chattanooga, Tenn. The Bulldogs will begin their 2009-10 regular-season schedule on Nov. 13, as they square off against the Kent State Golden Flashes at 6 p.m. (CST), in the Memorial Athletic & Convocation (M.A.C.) Center (6,327). The matchup will be a part of the 2009 Hispanic College Fund Classic being held in Kent, Ohio. 2009-10 SoCon Men's Basketball North Division South Division 2009-10 Preseason All-Conference Team 2009-10 Preseason Player of the Year |
