Men's Basketball Picked Eleventh in South Atlantic Conference Preseason Coaches' Poll
ROCK HILL, S.C. - The Coker University men’s basketball team was picked eleventh in the 2020-21 preseason coaches’ poll, announced by the league today (Wednesday, Nov. 4).
FULL SOUTH ATLANTIC CONFERENCE RELEASE
ROCK HILL, S.C. - The Coker University men's basketball team was picked eleventh in the 2020-21 preseason coaches' poll, announced by the league today (Wednesday, Nov. 4).
No. 3 Lincoln Memorial took the top spot in the poll with 155 points and 11 first-place votes, while No. 12 Queens (N.C.) was second with 144 points and one first place vote. Lenoir-Rhyne was tabbed third with 122 points and the remaining first-place vote, while Tusculum was slated fourth with 117 points. Catawba was picked fifth with 107 points, while Anderson (S.C.) was slated sixth with 107 points. Wingate was picked seventh with 81 points, while Newberry was picked eighth with 78 points. Carson-Newman was slated ninth with 77 points, while Mars Hill was picked 10th with 64 points. Coker (45), UVA Wise (40) and Limestone (26) rounded out the poll.
Coker improved its win total from two seasons ago, posting seven wins in 2019-20 including six in the South Atlantic Conference. Coker began the season with a 58-53 win at Limestone on Nov. 13, before opening conference play with a 49-45 win at Wingate on Nov. 26. The Cobras hit a rough stretch through December and January in conference play, before upending Tusculum on Jan. 11 at home 67-58. The Cobras would win back-to-back games for the first time on the season later in the month, defeating UVA-Wise on the road 81-77 (Jan. 18) and Newberry at home 74-72 on Jan. 22. The Cobras were able to pick up two more wins in February, upending Lenoir-Rhyne at home on Jan. 15 76-59 and completing the season sweep of Newberry with a thrilling 77-76 win on the road on Feb. 26.
Coker returns its top three scorers from a season ago in Chandler Lindsey (13.4 PPG), Malcolm Kennedy (11.2 PPG) and Dakota Jennings (8.4 PPG), while Jennings also returns as the team's leading rebounder from a season ago at 5.4 RPG. In total, the Cobras return six players from 2019-20.
The Cobras open the season on Saturday, Nov. 21 at home when they welcome Carson-Newman. Tip-off is set for 4:00 p.m., with video and live stats available at www.cokercobras.com.