Men’s Basketball Picked First in Preseason Poll

Thu, Oct 17, 2024

HAMILTON –

For the third-straight season Colgate Men's Basketball has been voted by the Patriot League's head coaches and sports information directors as the preseason favorite.

Colgate received 14 of a possible 18 first-place votes en route to 156 total points. American was picked second with four first-place votes, while Boston University rounded out the top three in third place with the two remaining first-place tallies.

The Raiders are coming off their fourth consecutive Patriot League title and fifth in six years under 14th-year head coach Matt Langel, a five-time Coach of the Year who is 13-for-13 in either tying or beating the league's preseason rankings.

Colgate finished 25-10 overall and 16-2 in Patriot League play before running through the conference tournament to secure a No. 14 seed in the NCAA tournament. This year's team will look different without the likes of Player of the Year Braeden Smith, and All-Patriot League selections Keegan Records and Ryan Moffatt who have both graduated.

Junior guard Brady Cummins, who scored a career-high 19 points in the Patriot League championship game, is the team's leading returning scorer (7.3 ppg). Returners Cummins, senior Nicolas Louis-Jacques, sophomore Jalen Cox, and fifth-year senior Jeff Woodward each started at least 15 games last season albeit having limited time on the court together.

For the first time since 2018 Colgate does not return an All-Patriot League honoree, which was also the last year the Raiders did not have a preseason All-Patriot League selection. Nine of the 14 players on Colgate's roster are either first-years or sophomores. The veterans are led by fifth-year senior Woodward along with seniors Chandler Baker and Louis-Jacques.

Colgate kicks off the 2024-25 season at home on Tuesday, Nov. 5, when the Raiders host SUNY Canton at 7 p.m. at Cotterell Court.

2024-25 Patriot League Men's Basketball Preseason Poll
1. Colgate, 156 points (14 first-place votes)
2. American, 144, (4)
3. Boston University, 120 (2)
4. Bucknell, 115
5. Lehigh, 103
6. Lafayette, 77
7. Army West Point, 64
8. Navy, 61
9. Holy Cross, 40
10. Loyola Maryland, 20

2024-25 Patriot League Men's Basketball Preseason Major Awards
Preseason Player of the Year – Matt Rogers, American, Gr., F
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year – Caleb Kenney, Holy Cross, Sr., F

2024-25 Preseason Men's Basketball All-Patriot League Team
Matt Rogers, American, Gr., F
Miles Brewster, Boston University, Gr., G
Noah Williamson, Bucknell, Jr., C
Tyler Whitney-Sidney, Lehigh, Sr., G
Austin Benigni, Navy, Jr., G