Lenoir-Rhyne Tops SAC Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll; Preseason All-Conference and Players to Watch Announced
ROCK HILL, S.C. (theSAC.com) – The Lenoir-Rhyne Bears have been selected as the preseason favorites in the 2025-26 South Atlantic Conference Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll. The Bears went 29-6 overall and 20-4 in SAC play last season and won a SAC Tournament Title for the first time since 2003. The Bears would go on to win the Southeast Regional before falling in the Elite Eight.
Lenoir-Rhyne is led by SAC Coach of the Year Brent Owen who won the honor in his first year in the conference. LR's 20 SAC wins a year ago are the most in a season in program history but one win shy of Lincoln Memorial for the outright regular season title. Conrad Luczynski returns for the Bears and earned a spot on the Preseason All-Conference team after finishing fourth in the league in field goal percentage and averaging 12 points and 7 rebounds per night.
Anderson finished second in the preseason voting and earned three first place votes. The Trojans 109 points in the poll tied them for second and they are led by Preseason All-Conference selections AJ Wright Jr and Ian Blue. Wright averaged 11.2 points per game last year and led the SAC with 181 assists. Blue, a Coker transfer, averaged 13 points per game and shot 52 percent from the field last season. The duo makes Anderson the only program in the league with multiple Preseason All-Conference selections.
Perennial power Lincoln Memorial tied with Anderson with 109 points in the poll after a season that saw them go 21-3 in the conference and claim their 13th SAC Regular Season title. LMU has posted a 296-73 mark in conference play since joining the league and are led by first-year head coach Tony Jasick.
Carson-Newman earned the final first place vote and received 104 points in the voting. Jack Browder is back for the Eagles after pouring in 19.7 points per game and finishing second in the league in 3-point percentage at 46.1%. He was also second in the SAC in rebounding at 8.9 per night.
Catawba slotted in at fifth in the voting, garnering 97 points. Nick Walker is a Preseason All-SAC honoree for the Catawba Indians after connecting on 61.8 percent of his field goals and averaging 14 points per game a season ago.
The UVA Wise Cavaliers are predicted to finish sixth in the conference and are led by Preseason All-SAC selection Evan Ramsey. Ramsey was the only player in the league to average a double-double with 14.5 points and 10.0 rebounds per game and led the SAC in field goal percentage at 64.8%. UVA Wise went 15-9 in the conference last year, by far the best mark they have posted since joining the league.
Wingate was tabbed for a seventh-place finish after going 11-13 in the league last year. Newberry slots in at No. 9 in the voting with 60 points. Tusculum was picked ninth and are led by Preseason All-SAC selection Bryce Jackson.
Coker, Emory & Henry and Mars Hill round out the voting.
Teams get a maximum of two players total between the Preseason All-Conference Team and Players to Watch which is listed below.
The season tips off on Saturday with UVA Wise and Lenoir-Rhyne in the Same Basketball Hall of Fame Classic at Lakeland, Fla. The rest of the league opens on Friday, November 14 with the regular season leading to Rock Hill, S.C. where the top eight teams will compete in the league tournament at the Rock Hill Sports and Events Center on March 4-7.
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2025-26 SAC Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll
| Rank | School (First Place Votes) | Score |
| 1. | Lenoir-Rhyne (8) | 128 |
| 2t. | Anderson (3) | 109 |
| 2t. | Lincoln Memorial | 109 |
| 4. | Carson-Newman (1) | 104 |
| 5. | Catawba | 97 |
| 6. | UVA Wise | 86 |
| 7. | Wingate | 70 |
| 8. | Newberry | 60 |
| 9. | Tusculum | 54 |
| 10. | Coker | 50 |
| 11. | Emory & Henry | 31 |
| 12. | Mars Hill | 26 |
2025-26 SAC Men's Baskeball Preseason All-Conference
Jack Browder, Carson-Newman
Evan Ramsey, UVA Wise
Conrad Luczynski, Lenoir-Rhyne
Nick Walker, Catawba
Bryce Jackson, Tusculum
AJ Wright Jr., Anderson
Ian Blue, Anderson
2025-26 SAC Men's Basketball Players to Watch
Carson-Newman: Braden Ilic
Catawba: Ibra Athie
Coker: Isayah Owens, Aaron Hall
Emory & Henry: Jackson Crawford, Korbin Dixon
Lenoir-Rhyne: Julian Dozier
Lincoln Memorial: Nate Mims, Yassin Hussein
Mars Hill: Aljaz Vidmar, Jaheim Taylor
Newberry: Drake Downs, Malakhi Stremlow
Tusculum: TJ Printup
UVA Wise: Patrick Shelley
Wingate: Jordan Miller, Corbin Pack