Men's Basketball | 9/28/2019 1:24:00 PM

NCAA.com Division II Preseason Top 25 

    INDIANAPOLIS – Coach Ben Howlett's powerhouse West Liberty men's basketball program has been ranked No. 3 in the Preseason Top 25 NCAA Division II rankings posted on the NCAA.com website.
    The NCAA.com Top 25 was compiled by NCAA Division II specialist Wayne Cavadi, who researched the teams in last year's NCAA D2 Tournament field and reached out to selected sports information directors for additional insight and guidance to create his Top 25 rankings.
    Defending champion Northwest Missouri State, which returns four starters from a team that went 38-0 in a "rebuilding" year last winter, is Cavadi's pick for No. 1 with perennial power Bellarmine (Ky.) slotted in at No. 2 in their final NCAA D2 season before departing for the Division I ranks.
    Cavadi's capsule on Howlett's Hilltoppers, who are coming off their eighth NCAA Division II Sweet 16 run in the past 10 years along with back-to-back Mountain East Conference titles, focuses on the Black and Gold's long-standing tradition of putting bushels of points on the board and bunches of wins in the scorebook.
    Along with highlighting the return of the top two scorers – Dalton Bolon and Will Yoakum – from the only NCAA Division II team to average more than 100 points per game last year, Cavadi notes the addition of several talented transfers and freshmen and concludes: "Historically speaking, we know that any team that faces the Hilltoppers will have to score points just to keep up. This rendition of West Liberty looks like more of the same."
    Nova Southeastern (Fla.) and West Texas A&M round out the top five followed by Missouri Southern, Queens (N.C.), Tarleton State (Texas), Lincoln Memorial (Tenn.) and St. Edward's (Texas). Atlantic Region rival Indiana (Pa.) checked in at No. 14 with Daemen (N.Y.) – a future West Liberty opponent – making the list at No. 24.
    West Liberty tips off Nov. 9-10 in the Atlantic Region Crossover Tournament, hosted by Shaw University in Raleigh, N.C. The Hilltoppers play Mansfield (Pa.) on Nov. 9 and the host Bears on Nov. 10.
    NOTE: Wayne Cavadi has covered all things Division II sports for NCAA.com since 2016. His work has appeared on Bleacher Report, MLB.com, AJC.com, SB Nation and FoxSports.com and in publications like The Advocate and Lindy's Sports. Follow him on Twitter at @UofDWayne.
                                                                         2019
School                                                            Rec.
  1. NW Missouri State                                 38-0
  2. Bellarmine (Ky.)                                      28-5
  3. WEST LIBERTY                                        28-5
  4. Nova Southeastern (Fla.)                      29-4
  5. West Texas A&M                                   34-4
  6. Missouri Southern                                 25-8
  7. Queens (N.C.)                                          31-5
  8. Tarleton State (Texas)                           21-10
  9. Lincoln Memorial (Tenn.)                     20-9
10. St. Edward's (Texas)                              30-4
11. Alabama-Huntsville                                24-8
12. Findlay (Ohio)                                         28-5
13. Davenport (Iowa)                                   27-4
14. Indiana (Pa.)                                            30-3
15. Southern Nazarene (Okla.)                  29-6
16. Azusa Pacific (Calif.)                               20-11
17. USC-Aiken                                               27-6
18. Colorado School of Mines                    25-6
19. Concordia (Calif.)                                   23-11
20. Lewis (Ill.)                                                25-6
21. Ashland (Ohio)                                       23-7
22. Catawba (N.C.)                                        25-8
23. Florida Southern                                    25-8
24. Daemen (N.Y.)                                         24-6
25. UC-San Diego                                          26-8