Virginia Wesleyan Tops ODAC Men’s Hoops Poll

SALEM, Va. --- The 2005-06 NCAA Division III basketball season ended with Virginia Wesleyan College standing atop the podium as the national champion, and the same is true for many national media outlets and their respective preseason rankings as the start to the 2006-07 season stands only a few weeks away. Coaches within the Old Dominion Athletic Conference (ODAC) are on the same page with many of the nationwide predictions as the Marlins hold the top spot in the annual ODAC Men’s Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll.

Virginia Wesleyan picked up nine of ten first place votes in the annual survey of the league mentors, with Hampden-Sydney College earning the lone remaining top nod and sitting in second in the preseason poll. Randolph-Macon College, last season’s ODAC runner-up and NCAA tournament qualifier, rounds out the top three.

The Marlins come into the season armed with most of their components intact from last season’s national title squad including 2006 NCAA Division III Player of the Year, senior Brandon Adair. He and fellow All-ODAC and All-Virginia State performer TonTon Balenga form a potent 1-2 scoring punch that has found Virginia Wesleyan atop several national prediction polls. D-III News, a monthly newsletter for NCAA Division III basketball, and D3hoops.com both have the Marlins tabbed to repeat as national champions with VWC garnering 23 of a possible 25 first place votes in the latter’s poll.

Hampden-Sydney comes into the new campaign looking to make some noise at the top of the standings following an 18-8 season that ended in a 93-82 loss to Randolph-Macon in the ODAC tournament semi-finals. The Tigers, rated 21st in the d3hoops.com preseason poll, return all three of their top scorers from last season in junior forward Troy Kaase (17.4 ppg), junior guard Drew Prehmus (12.0 ppg), and senior guard Mike Edwards (10.7 ppg.).

Randolph-Macon looks to make amends for its 81-78 overtime loss to the Marlins in last season’s ODAC championship. The Yellow Jackets also earned top 25 honors in both the D-III News and D3hooops.com preseason polls, garnering a 12th and 15th ranking, respectively. RMC will have to replace the production of former ODAC Player of the Year, Justin Wansley, and will look to senior forward Phil Hawley (11.8 ppg, .629 fg%) and 2006 ODAC Rookie of the Year, David Carlson (8.0 ppg), to help fill that void.

Listed below is the entire 2006-07 ODAC Men’s Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll. For more information on the upcoming season, and to keep up to date as the schedule progresses, visit the individual schools at their respective websites or browse the ODAC men’s basketball section at www.odaconline.com.

1. Virginia Wesleyan 98
2. Hampden-Sydney 89
3. Randolph-Macon 81
4. Guilford 70
5. Emory & Henry 52
5. Roanoke 52
7. Eastern Mennonite 35
8. Bridgewater 32
9. Washington & Lee 28
10. Lynchburg 13