Tusculum Picked Second in SAC Men's Basketball Poll

October 28, 2009

ROCK HILL, S.C. --- The Tusculum College men’s basketball team is picked to finish second in the South Atlantic Conference according to the 2009-10 Coaches’ Poll announced league officials Wednesday. Tusculum seniors Kyle Moore and Josh Bennett were also named to the Preseason All-Conference Team.

The Pioneers received two first-place votes and 68 total points in the poll of the league’s nine coaches. Tusculum returns four starters from last year’s 20-11 squad that advanced to the Food SAC Tournament Championship game and earned an at-large berth to the NCAA Division II Tournament.

Catawba College, which has won back-to-back Food Lion SAC Tournament titles, is the preseason favorite to win the 2009-10 regular-season championship. The Catawba Indians received six first-place votes and 77 total points. Lincoln Memorial University was picked to finish third as the Railsplitters received 63 points. Lenoir-Rhyne University picked up the final first-place vote and received 58 points and selected to place fourth in the preseason poll. The Bears have won the last two regular-season championships, and five over the last seven years. Wingate University is fifth with 39 points, followed by Mars Hill College (33), Carson-Newman College (30), Brevard College (24) and Newberry College (13) to round out the poll.

Moore, a 6-3, 185-pound guard from Gainesville, Fla., was last season’s South Atlantic Conference Player of the Year. He led the league in scoring, averaging 21.1 points per game, while establishing a pair of league records with 101 three-point field goals made and 203 made free throws. In just two seasons, Moore has recorded 1,120 points, which are 15th in Tusculum history. Moore was named to last year’s Division II Bulletin All-America squad, becoming the first player in school history to garner DII All-America distinction. Moore has garnered Preseason All-America status by two organizations this year already (The Sporting News and Division II Bulletin).

Bennett, a 6-7, 215-pound forward from Snow Hill, Md., was named to the Preseason All-SAC Second Team. Bennett finished third in the conference rebounding last season, averaging 7.2 boards per contest, including 7.8 in league outings. He led the Pioneers in field goal percentage .520 – 12th in SAC) and blocked shots per game (1.1 bpg – 10th in SAC). Bennett finished his first season in Greeneville averaging 10.1 points per game (23rd in SAC). In the SAC Tournament, Bennett averaged 13 points per game, including 18 markers on 8-for-14 shooting in a quarterfinal victory against Wingate. For his efforts, he was named to the SAC All-Tournament squad.

The Pioneers return four starters from last year’s team that posted the program’s first 20-win season in 16 years. Tusculum is ranked No. 6 in the nation according to this year’s Division II Bulletin preseason poll and 14th by the NABC/NCAA Division Preseason Poll. It is the Pioneers best rankings in school history.

Tusculum tips off its season Nov. 16 when they host Tennessee Wesleyan at Pioneer Arena, beginning at 8 p.m.

- TC -

2009-10 South Atlantic Conference Men’s Basketball Coaches’ Poll
Rk. Team (1st Place Votes) Pts.
1 Catawba (6)             77
2 TUSCULUM (2)            68
3 Lincoln Memorial        63
4 Lenoir-Rhyne (1)        58
5 Wingate                 39
6 Mars Hill               33
7 Carson-Newman           30
8 Brevard                 24
9   Newberry                13

2009-10 Preseason All-South Atlantic Conference Men’s Basketball Team
First Team
Jonathan Whitson, Brevard
Rob Fields, Catawba
Antonio Houston, Catawba
D.J. Blackmon, Lenoir-Rhyne
D'Mario Curry, Lincoln Memorial
Kyle Moore, Tusculum

Second Team
Jordan Dixon, Carson-Newman
Marcus Hodges, Lenoir-Rhyne
Desmond Johnson, Lincoln Memorial
Stoney Polite, Mars Hill
Danny Sanders, Mars Hill
Josh Bennett, Tusculum