Summit League Basketball: Preseason power rankings for 2019-20 season
By Austin Hamm
4. Omaha Mavericks
Key Returner: J.T. Gibson
Previous iterations of Omaha that contended for the conference did it on defense, forcing turnovers at a ridiculous rate. Last year, however, scoring at a top-50 rate in the nation was the key to success. Gibson and fellow senior K.J. Robinson will make up the starting backcourt, but both got nearly 10 shots a game last year and sniffed the 40% mark from three.
Matt Pile, the other returner from last year’s potent starting 5, will be relied upon for a sizable portion of the rebounding and anchoring the defense. And if the offense slips from last year, the defense intensity may have to turn up again to keep winning games in Omaha.
3. South Dakota Coyotes
Key Returner: Stanley Umude
The ‘Yotes were just 13-17 a year ago and finished below .500 in Summit League play, but reasons for optimism abound in 2019-20. Umude was picked as the preseason player of the year by coaches and media, and he headlines a crew that returns all but one starter and 6 of the eight players that saw double-digit minutes per game a season ago.
In a conference that saw many top players graduate, South Dakota is in a position to capitalize on a combination of rising talent and continuity. If everything coalesces in year two under Todd Lee, USD may have their best shot at a tournament berth since Matt Mooney was in town.