240. Ball State Cardinals - Last Season Ranking: 231
Conference: MAC
The Cardinals have been trending up under current head coach Michael Lewis. They secured an overall winning record last season despite needing more returning talent from the previous year. This year, Ball State was able to retain some talent and acquire some excellent talent through the transfer portal. Ball State could have a special year. Payton Sparks returns to add to his already illustrious Cardinals career.
239. Columbia Lions - Last Season Ranking: 271
Conference: Ivy League
Columbia had its best season in a long time, and that is true even with the current six-game losing streak in the Ivy League. The Lions return almost their whole roster from last year, and coach Jim Engles hopes his team can finish strong this year. The Ivy is wide open outside the top three, so why not Columbia? Geronimo Rubio De La Rosa returns for his final year, looking to make the All-Ivy League.
238. Albany Great Danes - Last Season Ranking: 312
Conference: America East
The Great Danes had one of the best offenses in the country last year, but they coupled that with one of the worst defenses in the country. That led to them being on the wrong side of .500 overall and finishing near the bottom of the America East. Offense won’t be a problem this year, but can they get better on defense? Amar’e Marshall is back and may lead the America East in scoring.
237. Rice Owls - Last Season Ranking: 146
Conference: American
The Owls won 11 games in their first year in the American conference, which led to the Athletic Department deciding to go another way. Head coach Rob Lanier is in his first year as the Owls' coach. He assembled the roster in the transfer portal, with many of his former players coming from SMU. Kellen Amos will fill the stat sheet for the Owls after coming from Central Connecticut.
236. South Alabama Jaguars - Last Season Ranking: 152
Conference: Sun Belt
South Alabama is always a threat to make noise in the Sun Belt with its coach, and it usually has many interesting transfers who are just looking for a fresh start. The Jaguars' roster is unrecognizable this season compared to last season, but as in the past, there are many interesting transfers in their last year or just looking for a fresh start. Maxwell Land comes back from a season-ending injury to lead the Jaguars.
235. Texas A & M Corpus Christi Islanders - Last Season Ranking: 274
Conference: Southland
Corpus Christi is turning into a perennial power in the Southland, and it is fun to watch. The Islanders play fast but don’t shoot a lot of threes. They rely on quick guards to get to the lane and get fouled, and an athletic big man. 4 out of 5 starters return from the 21-win team a season ago. Corpus Christi is likely going to be there again. Garry Clark is unstoppable in the paint.
234. Boston University Terriers - Last Season Ranking: 308
Conference: Patriot League
The Terriers finished second in the Patriot League behind Colgate a season ago, and given that they didn’t have much returning from the previous year, it was a tremendous coaching job by head coach Joe Jones. This year, the Terriers return almost their entire roster and will be a force in the Patriot League. Miles Brewster is the best point guard in the Patriot League.
233. Saint Peter's Peacocks - Last Season Ranking: 287
Conference: MAAC
The Peacocks made it to the NCAA tournament last year after winning the conference tournament. Saint Peter’s won their games in true Saint Peter’s fashion: they play slow on both ends of the floor, make scoring a chore on both ends, and keep games low-scoring. The Peacocks will do the same this year to win their games. Marcus Randolph has a high ceiling and will be the star this year.
232. Harvard Crimson - Last Season Ranking: 221
Conference: Ivy League
Harvard missed the Ivy League tournament for the first time last season, and this year may be the second year in a row that the Crimson misses out on the four-team event. Harvard enters the year with a young roster of people who need more experience. NIL and the transfer portal really hurt them in the offseason. Louis Lesmond must become a star quickly to lead the Crimson this year.
231. William & Mary Tribe - Last Season Ranking: 318
Conference: Coastal Athletic
It is no secret how the Tribe likes to play. They love to shoot threes, and their goal is to run a high-efficiency offense. The offense was a problem last year for William & Mary. The Tribe did have a key injury and not much depth after their starting five. That has changed on the roster this year through the transfer portal, and with Gabe Dorsey returning, the hope is to be much more competitive.
230. American Eagles - Last Season Ranking: 277
Conference: Patriot League
American finished second in the Patriot League a season ago and was one of the most experienced teams in the country. This year, the Eagles head into the season with four out of five starters back and over 80% of their minutes. American is going to be one of the best teams in the Patriot League again. Matt Rogers is going to be in the running for the league Player of the Year.
229. Illinois-Chicago Flames - Last Season Ranking: 247
Conference: Missouri Valley
On December 16th, 2023, the Flames were 7-4. Illinois Chicago went on to go 5-17 the rest of the season and finish at the bottom of the MVC. Coach Luke Yaklich is still trying to figure out the best way to construct this roster. This season, he went out and got a lot of shooters in the transfer portal, hoping that will help Illinois-Chicago win more games. Filip Skobalj is a great three-point shooter and will have a breakout year.
228. Pepperdine Waves - Last Season Ranking: 195
Conference: West Coast
Lorenzo Romar didn’t work out at Pepperdine, and he was let go in favor of known player development coach Ed Schilling. The hard part about any coaching change is the inability of most coaches to keep the players they already had on the roster. Pepperdine flipped a bad roster with many older transfers to mix in with many freshmen. Alonso Faure has the highest ceiling of any of the Waves.
227. UTSA Roadrunners - Last Season Ranking: 242
Conference: American
UTSA decided to part ways with former coach Steve Henson. That allowed the Roadrunners to hire Austin Claunch to rebuild the program in the American and given what the roster looks like this year it was the right decision. The roster is full of transfers but many of them were former leading scorers or played at power conference schools. There is a lot to like with this roster. Primo Spears can dominate in the American.
226. Kennesaw State Owls - Last Season Ranking: 227
Conference: Atlantic Sun
Kennesaw State was a lot of fun to watch, especially on the offensive end of the floor. They averaged over 82 points per game and gave up over 80 points per game. Year 2 of Antoine Pettway's tenure should be better if the team defends. The Owls have a talented roster, but it is young. Coach Pettway is going to have to rely on his star, Simeon Cottle, to be the floor leader on offense and defense.
225. Portland State Vikings - Last Season Ranking: 215
Conference: Big Sky
Under current head coach Jase Coburn, Portland State has an identity: play as hard as you can for as long as you can. The Vikings play hard and do the little things right. That accounts for their lack of talent in other areas and makes them a tough out because you know they will be competitive. Isaiah Johnson is ready for a breakout season.
224. Valparaiso Beacons - Last Season Ranking: 317
Conference: Missouri Valley
The Beacons were a mess last year on both ends of the floor. They could not score and could not stop anyone, which only led to seven wins overall. The lack of offense and defense is not uncommon for a first-year coach, but coach Roger Powell hopes year two is much better than the first year. Three out of five starters are back, including all-conference hopeful Isaiah Stafford.
223. Merrimack Warriors - Last Season Ranking: 302
Conference: Northeast
Merrimack finished at the top of the NEC yet again. This year, they lost in the conference tournament with a chance to attend the NCAA tournament. The Warriors will be a tough out again with their physical defensive style of basketball. Head coach Joe Gallo is slowly turning the Warriors into an NEC powerhouse. Budd Clark is the favorite for the Player of the Year in the NEC.
222. Norfolk State Spartans - Last Season Ranking: 263
Conference: MEAC
At this point, it isn’t wise to trust Robert Jones and his Spartans. Norfolk State will finish near the top or in the top spot in the MEAC almost every year. The same holds this year, even with an unproven roster. Coach Jones will get his guys playing well and be a MAAC force. Christian Ings returns for one final year to lead Norfolk State.
221. Wyoming Cowboys - Last Season Ranking: 218
Conference: Mountain West
Sundance Wicks is the new coach at Wyoming, and the Cowboys hope he can turn their program around just like he did with Green Bay. He turned around Green Bay in a year, and Wyoming hopes for the same. The roster mostly transfers, which isn’t always good in a deep conference like the Mountain West. The Cowboys are still some years away. Touko Tainamo is a rebounding machine that may never leave the floor.
220. Southern Mississippi Eagles - Last Season Ranking: 139
Conference: Sun Belt
The Eagles were a mess and largely inconsistent last season, which led them to finish with a .500 overall record and 6th place in the Sun Belt. Head coach Jay Ladner hopes to fix that by getting a ton of high-ceiling players in the transfer portal and hoping that most players from last year take a step forward. Southern Mississippi is a team I like a lot this year. Andre Curbelo hopes to stay healthy and lead the Eagles to the tournament.
219. Jacksonville State Gamecocks - Last Season Ranking: 217
Conference: Conference USA
Jacksonville State's goal this year was to gain some more balance. Last year, they had trouble scoring outside of one player, which made them very easy to defend. The Gamecocks and coach Ray Harper have flipped the roster with older transfers who have had success and younger guys who can develop into quality depth. Marcus Fitzgerald Jr. finishes his career after four successful seasons at Tennessee State.
218. North Dakota State Bison- Last Season Ranking: 214
Conference: Summit League
North Dakota State has always had a good basketball program within the Summit, and many players have gone on to power schools to finish their careers. The same happened from last year’s roster, but this season, the Bison secured some very interesting transfers that can make North Dakota State a contender in the Summit again. Brennan Watkins averaged 15 a game last season at VMI.
217. Monmouth Hawks - Last Season Ranking: 292
Conference: Coastal Athletic
Monmouth is close to being the best team in the CAA. Head coach King Rice is recruiting well and has a lot of young talent ready for a breakout. The Hawks improved by 11 wins last season, and most of the roster is back and ready to finish near the top of the CAA. Jack Collins was one of the best freshmen in the CAA last year and is a breakout candidate.
216. Howard Bison - Last Season Ranking: 236
Conference: MEAC
Howard has made the NCAA tournament two seasons in a row and showed very well for themselves each time. The Bison are entering the year as the favorite in the MEAC for the third year. The roster returns a lot of the minutes and a lot of the scoring from last season. There will be competition at the top, but Howard has experience in the postseason. Bryce Harris will win the MEAC Player of the Year.
215. Drexel Dragons - Last Season Ranking: 109
Conference: Coastal Athletic
The Dragons had a huge year, and one of the biggest wins in Drexel history was beating Villanova. However, after winning 21 games, Drexel lost in the first round of the CAA tournament and didn’t play in a postseason tournament. The Dragons' window may have closed for a while, as they lost a lot of talent and have a young roster this season. Freshman Josh Reed has a lot of talent.
214. Colgate Raiders - Last Season Ranking: 138
Conference: Patriot League
It was another year and another conference title sweep for the Raiders. Head coach Matt Langel has turned Colgate into the team to beat in the Patriot League. Until someone in the Patriot League can prove they can unseat the champs, they will head into the year as the favorites. Coach Langel is too good a coach, and Colgate's style of play can turn anyone into a star, even if star power is lacking this year. Jeff Woodward gets his chance to shine for the Raiders.
213. North Alabama Lions - Last Season Ranking: 226
Conference: Atlantic Sun
The Lions have been on the verge of breaking through for a few years under head coach Tony Pujol. If there were ever a year for North Alabama to finish at the top of the Atlantic Sun, this would be the year. They have shooting, they have depth, and they run great offense. The issue is on the defensive end. If North Alabama can figure out their defense, they will be good. Jacari Lane is the best point guard in the Atlantic Sun.
212. Miami (Ohio) Redhawks - Last Season Ranking: 238
Conference: MAC
The rebuild is going smoothly for the Redhawks. Miami has improved over the last two seasons under head coach Travis Steele. Improvement for three years in a row could be a chore for the Redhawks, though. This season's roster is young and has some unproven pieces found in the transfer portal. Peter Suder was the best player for Bellarmine last year and hopes to be the best Redhawk this season.
211. Mercer Bears - Last Season Ranking: 237
Conference: Southern
Head coach Ryan Ridder has won a lot everywhere he has been but has yet to be able to guide his teams to the NCAA tournament. Mercer needed an energetic coach who could bring in talent to get the Bears back to the NCAA tournament. They found that now let the rebuild begin with a roster that should compete just fine. Ahmad Robinson was one of the best players in the entire transfer portal.