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Patriot League Basketball: Preseason rankings for 2019-20 season

By Gregory Levinsky

MANHATTAN, KS - NOVEMBER 24: Jordan Cohen #11 of the Lehigh Mountain Hawks drives against Cartier Diarra #2 of the Kansas State Wildcats during the first half on November 24, 2018 at Bramlage Coliseum in Manhattan, Kansas. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images)
MANHATTAN, KS - NOVEMBER 24: Jordan Cohen #11 of the Lehigh Mountain Hawks drives against Cartier Diarra #2 of the Kansas State Wildcats during the first half on November 24, 2018 at Bramlage Coliseum in Manhattan, Kansas. (Photo by Peter Aiken/Getty Images) /
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ANN ARBOR, MI – NOVEMBER 10: Connor Niego #5 of the Holy Cross Crusaders reacts after making a three point shot during the first half of the game against the Michigan Wolverines at Crisler Center on November 10, 2018 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Michigan defeated Holy Cross Crusaders 56-37. (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images)
ANN ARBOR, MI – NOVEMBER 10: Connor Niego #5 of the Holy Cross Crusaders reacts after making a three point shot during the first half of the game against the Michigan Wolverines at Crisler Center on November 10, 2018 in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Michigan defeated Holy Cross Crusaders 56-37. (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images) /

How will Patriot League Basketball work out for the upcoming season? Here’s a look at how the teams stack against one another.

Colgate was a half away from losing to Boston University in last season’s Patriot League Basketball Tournament quarterfinals. They also were within reach of upsetting Tennessee, a No. 2 seed, in the first round of the NCAA Tournament.

The Raiders won the Patriot League’s regular-season and tournament titles, and there’s no doubt they’re the favorites once again. In a league where parity is a constant, plenty of other teams could come out of the Patriot League.

Here’s a power ranking of the Patriot League basketball teams for the 2019-20 season.

10. Holy Cross

Filling the shoes of graduated Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year Jehyve Floyd is tough. It’s even more of a challenge for the Crusaders who lost a pair of starters on the transfer market. Leading scorer Jacob Grandison (13.9 PPG, 5.0 RPG) went to Illinois and point guard Caleb Green (10.8 PPG, 3.2 APG) left for Fairfield.

Freshman guards Drew Lowder and Ryan Wade could start.

A largely unproven roster will be guided by first-year head coach Brett Nelson, who spent the five previous seasons on the staff at Marquette University. Bill Carmody, who led the Crusaders to an NCAA Tournament berth in the first of his four seasons, retired after last year.

Austin Butler (12.6 PPG, 4.1 RPG) is the team’s returning leading scorer. The junior guard shot 40% from distance last year and could contend for the league scoring title. Classmate Matt Faw (6.7 PPG) started 20 games last season and is the lone other major rotational player returning.

9. Navy

The Mids scuffled to a 12-19 overall record last year, including an 8-10 mark in league play. They had some good league wins, at Colgate and at home over Bucknell, but don’t return an overly promising group.

Freshman guard Trae Broadnax spurned the likes of Florida State, Rice and Georgia to commit to Navy. He and sophomore guard John Carter Jr., a reigning Patriot League All-Rookie Team member, should be fun to watch. Broadnax is my early favorite for the Patriot League Rookie of the Year honor. Senior center Evan Wieck (8.8 PPG, 5.5 RPG) is a solid piece.

The graduation of multi-year league honoree Hasan Abdullah (10.1 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 4.4 APG) and leading scorer George Kiernan (12.4 PPG, 5.3 RPG) leave a lot of room for unproven players to make their marks.