Lewis & Clark Unanimous Favorite For 2007-08 NWC Title
| 2007-08 Men's Basketball Coaches Pre-Season Poll: |
| School |
(1st) |
Pts. |
2006-07 All |
2006-07 NWC |
| Lewis & Clark (Ore.) |
(9) |
90 |
19-7 |
13-3 |
| Puget Sound (Wash.) |
|
71 |
18-7 |
11-5 |
| Whitworth (Wash.) |
|
61 |
24-4 |
13-3 |
| Pacific (Ore.) |
|
47 |
12-13 |
8-8 |
| Pacific Lutheran (Wash.) |
|
45 |
9-14 |
6-10 |
| Willamette (Ore.) |
|
38 |
10-15 |
6-10 |
| George Fox (Ore.) |
|
25 |
12-13 |
7-9 |
| Linfield (Ore.) |
|
23 |
8-17 |
3-13 |
| Whitman (Wash.) |
|
15 |
9-16 |
5-11 |
(First-place votes in parenthesis. Points awarded on 10-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1 basis).
Spokane, Wash. - Lewis & Clark College, a co-champion of the Northwest Conference last season, is a unanimous pick to win the title in 2007-08, according to the preseason poll of NWC coaches.
The Pioneers picked up all nine first place votes and the maximum 90 points in the poll. L&C returns all five starters, including First Team All-NWC guard Thomas Tillery and Second Team all-conference players Joey Taboni and Dave Berggren, from a squad that finished 19-7 last season and 13-3 in the NWC.
The University of Puget Sound is second in the poll with 71 points and the Loggers will try to return to the top of the NWC standings after winning three straight conference titles from 2004 through 2006. UPS also returns all five starters from last season's team that finished 18-7 and 11-5, including First Team All-NWC forward Jason Foster and Second Team choice Taylor Marsh.
Whitworth University, the other co-champion from last winter, is third in the poll with 61 points. The Pirates must replace four starters from last year's 24-4 team, including 2007 NWC Player of the Year Bryan Williams. First Team All-NWC forward Ryan Symes is the lone returning player.
Pacific University (47 points) is fourth in the poll, just ahead of Pacific Lutheran University (45 points). Both teams will try to get into the 2007 NWC tournament, comprised of the top three teams in the standings at the end of the regular season. The Boxers will build around junior forward Ross Bartlett, a Second Team All-NWC choice last year, while the Lutes look to senior guard Landon Heidenreich.
Willamette University is sixth in the poll with 38 points. The Bearcats return three starters, including wing Michael Smith, from last season.
George Fox University (25 points) and Linfield College (23 points) were seventh and eighth in the poll, respectively. The Bruins will be led by honorable mention All-NWC guard Brent Satern, while the Wildcats will look to Brian Murphy, who sat out all last season with an injury.
Whitman College is ninth in the poll with 15 points. The Missionaries have honorable mention All-NWC guard Chris Faidley to build around.
The Northwest Conference will use a conference tournament to decide the automatic (Pool A) bid to the NCAA tournament. At the conclusion of the regular season the second place team in the final standings will host the third place team in a playoff. The winner will play at the regular season champion for the NCAA bid.
Games get underway on Friday, November 16th.