Predicted Order of Finish:
- Little Rock
- Western Illinois
- Morehead St.
- Tennessee St.
- SIU-Edwardsville
- Southern Indiana
- Eastern Illinois
- Southeast Missouri St.
- UT-Martin
- Lindenwood
- Tennessee Tech
Preseason All-Conference Predictions:
- KK Robinson, G — Little Rock
- Ryan Myers, G — Western Illinois
- Ray’Sean Taylor, G — SIUE
- Dieonte Miles, C — Morehead St.
- Jack Mielke, F — USI
- Rob Martin, G —SEMO
- Mwani Wilkinson, G — Little Rock
- Brandon Weston, G —Tennessee St.
- Nakyel Shelton, G — Eastern Illinois
- Massal Diouf, F — Western Illinois
Preview:
Little Rock Trojans
When KK Robinson took his name out of the Transfer Portal on July 12, the Trojans immediately went from a promising new team to the clear favorite in the conference. The senior guard averaged 15.8 points, 5.6 rebounds and 4.3 assists per outing last season on the way to All-OVC First Team honors. He is the only returner from the first team still in the conference.
Aside from Robinson, coach Darrell Walker welcomes in transfer guards Mwani Wilkinson (LSU) and Johnathan Lawson (Creighton) to bolster what already looks to be the strongest backcourt in the OVC, and the return of senior Jordan Jefferson just adds to that.
As far as the frontcourt, the losses of Makhel Mitchell, Jaylen Crocker-Johnson and De’Antoni Gordon are going to hurt, but the Trojans bring in a plethora of players ready to make a difference. Redshirt sophomore Ante Beljan returns after redshirting last year with an injury. The forward out of Trogir, Croatia, started seven games his freshman season and looks to be a factor this season.
As for transfers, Little Rock brings in junior Charles Chukwu (Garden City CC and Tulsa) and senior Tuongthach Gatkek (Texas St. and Florida) to help bolster the big man positions. While neither have carved out roles as main scorers in the past, they are anticipated to be good opportunities for Robinson in the pick-and-roll.
Western Illinois Leathernecks
Last season the Leathernecks were one of the top defenses in the OVC with Drew Cisse holding down the middle, and this season head coach Chad Boudreau has brought in another man to hold down the paint in forward Massal Diouf. The 6-foot-9 junior out of the Netherlands comes in off two seasons for UTSA where he played a significant role in the rotation in both seasons, now taking his talents to Macomb.
Diouf joins returning guard Ryan Myers to make a scary duo for WIU. The senior out of Brooklyn, N.Y., is one of two players…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Mid-Major Madness – All Posts…
