The Florida Southern College men’s basketball team has cracked the Top Ten in the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Coaches Poll, improving to No. 9. The Mocs improved to 15-2 last week, winning games against Eckerd, 92-84, and Palm Beach Atlantic, 81-79.
The Mocs are riding a three-game winning streak, and have now won 12 of its last 13 games. Its lone loss since November came in a tightly-contested overtime defeat to then-No. 4 Nova Southeastern on Jan. 4.
The Mocs’ latest ranking is its highest since ascending to No. 7 in week five of the 2018-19 campaign. Florida Southern is one of only two SSC schools ranked in this week’s poll, with Nova Southeastern moving up to eighth. Barry, who had been ranked at No. 19, fell out of the rankings altogether. Southern has now been ranked in the NABC Coaches Poll a total of 222 weeks, including 21 times under head coach Mike Donnelly.
The top seven spots in the new NABC/Division II rankings remained the same this week, with Bellarmine, Northwest Missouri, and Lincoln Memorial occupying the top three spots. Nova Southeastern improved to No. 8, the Mocs are No. 9, with St. Thomas Aquinas (N.Y.) rounding out the Top Ten.
The Lone Star Conference joins the SSC with two teams apiece in this week’s top 10. STAC makes its first appearance in the top 10 in the coaches poll since Dec. 27, 2016.
Dixie State and Queens (N.C.) return to the top 25 this week as two of the three new entries. The third is Charleston at No. 21, who has reached the top 25 for the first time since Jan. 22, 2013.
The California Collegiate Athletic Association and Lone Star Conference are the only conferences with three teams in this week’s poll. A total of 14 conferences have teams ranked in this week’s top 25.
NABC COACHES POLL – WEEK 9
Record Points Last
1. Bellarmine (Ky.) 14-0 400 1
2. Northwest Missouri State 16-1 384 2
3. Lincoln Memorial (Tenn.) 17-1 364 3
4. West Texas A&M 17-1 351 4
5. UC San Diego 17-1 339 5
6. St. Edward’s (Texas) 16-1 322 6
7. Indiana (Pa.) 15-1 303 7
8. Nova Southeastern (Fla.) 13-2 279 9
9. Florida Southern 15-2 263 11
10. St. Thomas Aquinas (N.Y.) 16-2 255 13
11. Grand Valley State (Mich.) 15-2 240 15
12. Azusa Pacific (Calif.) 14-3 203 17
13. Ferris State (Mich.) 18-3 194 8
14. Jefferson (Pa.) 15-2 162 22
15. Missouri Southern 14-3 150 10
16. Alabama Huntsville 14-3 146 21
17. Bridgeport (Conn.) 14-2 132 24
18. Missouri-St. Louis 15-2 131 18
19. Chico State (Calif.) 13-3 100 25
20. DBU (Texas) 14-3 93 16
21. Charleston (W.Va.) 14-2 62 NR
22. West Chester (Pa.) 14-3 55 12
23. Dixie State (Utah) 14-3 47 NR
24. Queens (N.C.) 13-3 44 NR
25. Cal Poly Pomona 14-3 40 20
Records through games of January 19, 2020.
Last ranking is from poll released Jan. 14.
First place votes – Bellarmine (16).
Others receiving votes: Walsh (Ohio) 23, Indianapolis (Ind.) 20, Point Loma (Calif.) 14, Shippensburg (Pa.) 13, Barry (Fla.) 12, Bentley (Mass.) 10, Pittsburgh-Johnstown (Pa.) 10, Rogers State (Okla.) 7, Valdosta State (Ga.) 7, West Liberty (W.Va.) 6, UNC Pembroke 4, Northern State (S.D.) 3, Cal State San Bernardino 1, Southeastern Oklahoma State 1.
Dropped out: Bentley (14), Barry (19), Indianapolis (23).