Excerpt from the Dayton Daily News
For the first time in four years, another team besides Wright State sits atop the Horizon League men’s basketball preseason poll.
Cleveland State, which won its first league tourney title in 11 years last season and shared the regular-season crown with the Raiders, earned 30 of the 44 first-place votes among coaches, administrators and media.
The overachieving Vikings, coming off a 19-7 record and NCAA tourney trip, and were bolstered by the return of Trotwood-Madison grad Torrey Patton, who led the team in scoring (14.7) and rebounding (8.0) and was a first team all-league pick.
The 6-foot-6 forward was a senior last season but opted to take advantage of the NCAA’s COVID-19 rule, giving all 2020-2021 athletes a free year of eligibility.
Point guard Craig Beaudion, who led the Vikings with 3.4 assists per game, also decided to return for a fifth season.
The Raiders received nine first-place votes and were picked second after being the preseason favorite in 2018-19, 2019-20 and 2020-21.
Sixth-year coach Scott Nagy said he wasn’t surprised by the order at the top.
