Denison Men's Basketball Tops Preseason Coaches Poll

CLEVELAND, OH – Denison has been named the favorite for the 2025-26 North Coast Athletic Conference men's basketball season, according to votes submitted by league coaches.
 
The Big Red, coming off their first league title in program history, earned six of the possible nine first-place votes to top the conference poll with 76 points. John Carroll collected one first-place vote to finish second with 66 points, while Wooster ranked third with 60 points. DePauw and Wabash each received one first-place vote, finishing fourth (55) and fifth (52), respectively. Ohio Wesleyan followed in sixth with 35 points, with Oberlin (23), Wittenberg (21), and Kenyon (17) rounding out the poll.
 
Denison enters the 2025-26 season after capturing the NCAC championship and NCAC Tournament title. Led by Head Coach Chris Sullivan and assistants Ethan Quinn and Nate Haller, the Big Red earned NCAC Coaching Staff of the Year honors last season after posting a 14-2 conference record and leading the league in scoring (73.9 ppg), field-goal percentage (.465), three-point percentage (.365), and assists (14.69 apg). Junior forward Trevor Reed (St. Louis, MO/John Burroughs School), a 2025 All-NCAC second-team honoree, returns to the court and will look to lead the Big Red after ranking among the conference’s top performers in multiple categories, including fifth in scoring (14.0 ppg), 11th in free-throw percentage (.677), tying for 13th in steals (1.0 spg), 16th in rebounding (4.9 rpg), and 20th in field-goal percentage (.413) during league play.
 
The 2025-26 season begins on Friday, November 7, while conference play opens on Wednesday, December 3, with Wabash taking on DePauw at home, Wittenberg traveling to Ohio Wesleyan, and Oberlin hosting Wooster. The NCAC Tournament is slated for the end of February, featuring quarterfinals on February 24, semifinals on February 27, and the tournament final on February 28.
 
2025-26 North Coast Athletic Conference
Men's Basketball Coaches' Poll
Place Institution (1st Place Votes) Total Points
1 Denison (6) 76
2 John Carroll (1) 66
3 Wooster 60
4 DePauw (1) 55
5 Wabash (1) 52
6 Ohio Wesleyan 35
7 Oberlin 23
8 Wittenberg 21
9 Kenyon 17

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