Little Earns Spot on SAC Men's Basketball PreSeason Team

ROCK HILL, SC -- Wingate, the 2012 South Atlantic Conference Men’s Basketball Tournament champion, has been picked by the league’s coaches as the preseason favorite to win the conference title in 2012-13 as announced by the league office.  Catawba was picked eighth in the poll. 

Wingate received five first-place votes in the poll, while Lincoln Memorial garnered two first-place votes.  Newberry, Carson-Newman and Anderson also received a first-place vote.

Catawba returns seven players from last season and will be led by pre-season All-SAC pick, Tyrece Little.  Little led the team last year with an 8.5 rebounding average and broke the school record with 85 blocked shots.  He also chipped in with 11.2 points per contest.

The preseason All-Conference team was voted on by the league’s media relations directors.

2012-13 SAC Men’s Basketball Preseason Coaches’ Poll
1. Wingate, 77 (5)
2. Lincoln Memorial, 73 (2)
3. Newberry, 62 (1)
4. Carson-Newman, 57 (1)
5. Anderson, 54 (1)
6. Lenoir-Rhyne, 43
7. Tusculum, 30
8. Catawba, 28
9. Brevard, 14
10. Mars Hill, 12

2012-13 SAC Men’s Basketball Preseason All-Conference Team
First Team
Denzail Jones, Anderson*
Vincent Bailey, Lincoln Memorial^
Antoine Davis, Carson-Newman^
Ishmael Sanders, Carson-Newman^
Dondray Walker, Newberry^+
Odell Turner, Wingate

Second Team
Allan Jones, Lenoir-Rhyne
Tyrece Little, Catawba+
Quayshun Hawkins, Newberry
Chandler Hash, Anderson
Jake Troyli, Lincoln Memorial
Paidrick Matilus, Wingate

*2011-12 All-SAC First Team
^ 2011-12 All-SAC Second Team
+ 2011-12 SAC All-Freshman Team