MELBOURNE, Fla. – Exactly two weeks from the opening tip of the regular season, Nova Southeastern has been selected to finish tied for 10^th in the Sunshine State Conference preseason coaches' poll, announced Friday by the league office. The Sharks were slotted alongside Saint Leo, with both teams receiving exactly 22 total votes.
 
After arriving from West Liberty this past March, renowned first-year head coach Jim Crutchfield has been challenged with turning around a program that has experienced its share of ups-and-downs throughout recent memory. However, Nova Southeastern does return three of its prominent scorers from a year ago in Dwayne Gibson (13.8 ppg), Gerard Tarin (11.4 ppg) and Troy Spears (11.3 ppg). In addition, Crutchfield has brought in former West Liberty point guard David Dennis, who averaged 14.1 points and 6.0 assists per game as a sophomore, along with UMASS Lowell transfer Isaac White.
 
Two-time defending SSC regular season champion Barry has been tabbed as the preseason favorite, picking up six out of a possible 11 first-place votes. Meanwhile, Rollins lands in second following a run to the Elite Eight in 2016-17, with Tampa edging out Eckerd for third in the poll.
 
NSU will make its regular season debut at home against Florida National on Friday, November 10 at 7 p.m. To stay up-to-date with the Sharks throughout the season, follow them on Twitter @NSU_MBasketball.
 
2017 - 18 SSC Men's Basketball Preseason Poll

Rank 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 T10 T10

School (FPV) Barry (6) Rollins (3) Tampa Eckerd Embry-Riddle (1) Palm Beach Atlantic Lynn (1) Florida Tech Florida Southern Nova Southeastern Saint Leo

Total Votes 95 87 68 67 65 58 53 44 24 22 22