ARCATA — Moving up eight spots from its preseason ranking, the Humboldt State men's basketball team is listed No. 6 in the first regular season national poll, released by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) Tuesday.
The Lumberjacks are 4-0 heading into the first two games of the California Collegiate Athletic Association season. Both games are on the road, the first set for Friday in Seaside against Cal State Monterey Bay followed by Saturday's game against Cal State East Bay in Hayward.
Returning players
Randy Hunter,
Brandon Sperling,
Kyle Baxter and
D.J. Broome have helped the Jacks cruise through their first four games unbeaten. All four contests were held in HSU's Lumberjack Arena, making this week's road trip the Jacks' first of the regular season.
Steve Kinder, now in his second year as Humboldt State's head coach, has guided the Jacks to a 30-4 overall record. Last year Humboldt State won the CCAA regular season championship and advanced to the NCAA Division II postseason for the 10th time in 11 years.
In this week's poll the Lumberjacks are the highest-ranked team among West Region programs. Great Northwest Athletic Conference members Seattle Pacific and Alaska Anchorage are listed at No. 19 and No. 21, respectively, and the Jacks' fellow CCAA member, Cal Poly Pomona, is at No. 23.
Defending national champion Bellarmine, who has opened the 2011-12 season with five consecutive wins, is ranked No. 1 in the inaugural poll.
NABC/Division II Coaches Poll (Nov. 29, 2011)
|
|
School |
Record |
Points |
Previous |
|
1. |
Belarmine (Ky.) |
5-0 |
200 |
1 |
|
2. |
Missouri Southern |
6-0 |
188 |
4 |
|
3. |
Metropolitan State (Colo.) |
5-0 |
174 |
10 |
|
4. |
Lincoln Memorial (Tenn.) |
6-0 |
171 |
5 |
|
5. |
Southern Indiana |
4-0 |
158 |
12 |
|
6. |
Humboldt State |
4-0 |
147 |
14 |
|
7. |
Alabama-Huntsville |
3-1 |
146 |
2 |
|
8. |
Indiana (Pa.) |
4-0 |
128 |
19 |
|
9. |
Kentucky Wesleyan |
4-0 |
127 |
15 |
|
10. |
Benedict (S.C.) |
2-0 |
119 |
13 |
|
11. |
Colorado School of Mines |
3-0 |
110 |
18 |
|
12. |
Georgia Southwestern |
5-0 |
109 |
21 |
|
13. |
Findlay (Ohio) |
3-1 |
103 |
7 |
|
14. |
West Liberty (W. Va.) |
4-1 |
102 |
6 |
|
15. |
Arkansas Tech |
3-0 |
85 |
24 |
|
16. |
Tarleton State (Texas) |
4-1 |
73 |
8 |
|
17. |
Bowie State (Md.) |
3-1 |
62 |
9 |
|
18. |
Augustana (S.D.) |
3-1 |
48 |
16 |
|
19. |
Seattle Pacific |
5-1 |
37 |
22 |
|
20. |
Winona State (Minn.) |
4-1 |
32 |
NR |
|
21. |
Alaska-Anchorage |
1-2 |
25 |
17 |
|
22. |
Florida Southern |
3-1 |
24 |
NR |
|
23. |
Cal Poly Pomona |
2-0 |
23 |
NR |
|
24. |
Fort Hays State (Kan.) |
6-0 |
22 |
NR |
|
25. |
Rollins (Fla.) |
4-0 |
21 |
NR |
Others receiving votes: Hillsdale (Mich.) 20, Grand Canyon (Ariz.) 16, Montevallo (Ala.) 16, Northern Kentucky 16, Charleston (W.Va.) 15, Quincy (Ill.) 14, Central Missouri 13, Lewis (Ill.) 13, Bentley (Mass.) 9, LIU-C.W. Post (N.Y.) 8, Midwestern State (Texas) 7, Arkansas-Monticello 6, Georgia College & State 6, Western Washington 5, Christian Brothers (Tenn.) 2.
Dropped out: BYU-Hawaii (3), Central Oklahoma (11), Saint Rose (20), Massachusetts-Lowell (23), Queens, N.C. (25).
Records and previous rankings are through games of Nov. 27, 2011. The next poll will be released on Tuesday, Dec. 6.
