UTD Picked Third In ASC East Poll

Comets Tabbed For Fourth Straight Trip To ASC Tournament

RICHARDSON, TX - The University of Texas at Dallas men's basketball team, which has two key starters to replace in 2007-08, have been picked to finish third in the American Southwest Conference East Division after a vote of the division's head coaches, sports information directors and media members.

UTD, which finished 18-8, 13-7 last year, was chosen to finish in third place behind longtime ASC power Mississippi College and resurgent LeTourneau University. The University of Mary Hardin-Baylor was picked as the favorite in the ASC West Division.

The MC Choctaws were the overwhelming favorite in the East, landing 146 points and 20 of the possible 21 first-place votes. The two-time defending ASC champion Choctaws are fresh off their third consecutive trip to the Sweet 16 of the national tournament. MC went 27-3 last season, making their record over the last two years 56-5, which is good for the best winning percentage (.918) among all NCAA divisions over that span.

LeTourneau University, which was the only ASC team to defeat MC in 2006-07, was picked to finish second with 107 points and picked up the final first-place vote. University of Texas at Dallas was in the third spot with 95 points and University of Texas at Tyler, which becomes eligible for postseason play after serving as an NCAA provisional the last four seasons, landed in the fourth-place position to round out the division’s postseason qualifiers.

Louisiana College was selected fifth with 68 points, followed by University of the Ozarks (59 pts.) and East Texas Baptist University (38 pts.).

UMHB, which is coming off a season in which it reached the NCAA Division III national tournament and received a national ranking both for the first time, got 170 points and 10 of the possible 24 first-place votes in the West Division. McMurry also received 10 top-spot votes but totaled seven fewer points. Both squads reached the 20-win plateau in 2006-07.

Hardin-Simmons University, which reached the ASC title game last season, came in the third spot with 140 points and garnered a first-place tally. Concordia University Texas totaled 131 points and picked up three first-place votes to round out what would be the division’s four teams to qualify for the ASC Championship Tournament. Howard Payne University was picked fifth with 84 points, followed by Sul Ross State University (80 pts.), Texas Lutheran University (61 pts.) and Schreiner University (35 pts.).

ASC men’s basketball teams may begin the 2007-08 season as early as November 16, when UTD travels to the Buffalo State Tournament in Buffalo, NY. The eight-team ASC Men’s Basketball Championship Tournament is slated for February 29-March 2 at the site of the West Division’s No. 1 seed. The winner earns an automatic berth in the NCAA Division III Men’s Basketball Championship.