Wooster men's basketball has been tabbed as the favorite for the 2022-23 North Coast Athletic Conference basketball season, based on balloting of the league coaches.
Wooster, in search of its league-leading 19th NCAC title, earned seven of the possible nine first-place votes to top the poll with 79 points. Ohio Wesleyan collected one of the final two first-place votes to finish second with 69 points, while Wabash claimed the final first-place vote and third in the standings with 58 points. Denison (54) and Wittenberg (51) placed fourth and fifth just three points apart followed by DePauw (35) in sixth, Oberlin (24) in seventh, Hiram (18) in eighth and Kenyon (17) in ninth.
Wooster returns four starters from a 2021-22 squad that finished the season with an overall record of 19-9 and a 13-5 mark in NCAC play. Senior
Turner Kurt (Cambridge Springs, PA/Cambridge Springs) returns after earning All-NCAC second team honors a season ago. In his junior campaign, Kurt averaged 14.2 points, while adding 7.3 rebounds, 1.6 assists and 1.1 blocks per game. Sophomore
Jamir Billings (Lorain, OH/Lorain) was named an All-NCAC honorable mention selection last season, as well as being tabbed the conference’s Top Defensive Player and Newcomer of the Year. In his rookie season, Billings averaged 11.5 points, 5.9 assists, 5.1 rebounds and 3.0 steals per game. Also returning after starting 20+ games last season are senior
Najee Hardaway (Cleveland, OH/Shaker Heights) and junior
Elijah Meredith (Lewis Center, OH/Wellington). Meredith led the team in scoring a season ago, averaging 15.5 points, to go along with 5.1 rebounds and 1.4 steals, while Hardaway averaged 11.7 points, 3.9 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game.
The 2022-23 season begins on Tuesday, November 8, while the first league game is slated for Wednesday, November 30. The NCAC Tournament will be held at the end of February with quarterfinals scheduled for February 21 and the semifinals and championship on February 24 and 25.
2022-23 North Coast Athletic Conference
Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll
(first-place votes in parentheses, followed by total points) |
| MEN |
| 1. |
Wooster (7) |
79 |
| 2. |
Ohio Wesleyan (1) |
69 |
| 3. |
Wabash (1) |
58 |
| 4. |
Denison |
54 |
| 5. |
Wittenberg |
51 |
| 6. |
DePauw |
35 |
| 7. |
Oberlin |
24 |
| 8. |
Hiram |
18 |
| 9. |
Kenyon |
17 |