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October 29, 2010

2010-11 Season - D3hoops.com ranks Vikings 24th in pre-season

Bryant Voiles returns to the Vikings' lineup after missing the 2009-10 season with an injury. Augustana is ranked 24th in the D3hoops.com preseason poll.

Although the first game for the Augustana men’s basketball team is still over two weeks away, the Vikings are already beginning to garner some national recognition. Veteran head coach Grey Giovanine’s team has been picked in the 24 th spot in the NCAA Division III pre-season national poll according to D3hoops.com. Augustana, which was 16-10 a year ago, had 106 points.

Wisconsin Stevens-Point is the number one ranked team in the pre-season after finishing the 2009-10 campaign with a 29-4 record. Two teams in the College Conference of Illinois & Wisconsin are ranked ahead of the Vikings in the pre-season poll. Illinois Wesleyan, which had two first place votes, is fourth with 511 points while Carthage is fifth with 503 points. Last year the Titans were 23-8 while the Red Men went 24-6. In the CCIW coaches’ poll, released earlier this week, Carthage nudged past Illinois Wesleyan for the top spot by a margin of 46 to 45 while Augustana was third with 37.

The Vikings were 16-10 a year ago and finished fourth in the CCIW. They have been a fixture in the D3hoops.com “top 25 for most of the last decade. Since the 2000-01 season there have been 161 weekly polls conducted by D3hoops.com and Augustana has been in the top 25 for 72 of those weeks for a percentage of .447. Giovanine’s teams have been in either the top 25 or the “receiving votes” category in 113 of the 161 weeks for a percentage of .701. There have only been 48 weeks where they have not been ranked.

From the first week of the 2005-06 season until the 10 th week of the 2008-09 campaign Augustana was in the “top 25” for a remarkable 56 week run. The preseason ranking of 24 th this year snaps a 10 week streak for the Vikings where they were not in the “top 25”. The last appearance in the D3hoops.com “top 25” came in week four of the 2009-10 season when they were 20 th.

Augustana returns four starters and 13 letter winners from last year’s team and the Vikings will open the 2010-11 season on November 16 at Simpson in Indianola, Iowa. On the current schedule there are a total of seven games against teams that are ranked in the “top 25”. They will play fourth ranked Illinois Wesleyan twice (January 26 at home and February 23 in Bloomington, Illinois) and fifth ranked Carthage twice (January 15 in Kenosha, Wisconsin and February 5 at home). Augustana will also have single games, all at home, against number 14 Anderson (November 27), 20 th rated Washington (November 22) and 21 st ranked Wisconsin-Whitewater (December 15).

Also on the schedule will be two games against Wheaton and one against Chicago and both of those teams were in the “receiving votes” category.

2010-11 NCAA DIVISION III MEN’S BASKETBALL PRE SEASON POLL

(conducted by D3hoops.com)

OTHERS RECEIVING VOTES: Worcester Polytech 74, Rhode Island 67, Wheaton 66, Brandeis 55, Carleton 53, Chapman 41, Cabrini 32, Loras 30, William Paterson 29, Centre 27, Albright 16, DeSales 16, Amherst 11, Merchant Marine 11, Ramapo 10, St. John Fisher 9, Gettysburg 8, SUNY-IT 7, Wittenberg 6, Claremont-Harvey-Mudd-Scripps 4, Franklin 4, Wisconsin-River Falls 4, Calvin 3, Farmingdale State 3, Ripon 3, Western Connecticut 3, Bridgewater State 2, Chicago 2, Christopher-Newport 2, Heidelberg 2, NYU 2, Case Western 1, Ferrum 1.

 AUGUSTANA IN THE D3HOOPS.COM NATIONAL RANKINGS SINCE 2000-01

KEY – Number designates weekly ranking…NR = not ranked…RV = received votes.

NOTE – There was no week 14 in 2009-10; 2008-09; 2006-7, 2005-06, 2002-03 and 2001-02.

TOTAL WEEKS RANKED IN TOP 25 (since 2000-01) = 72

TOTAL WEEKS LISTED IN D3HOOPS.COM POLL (including receiving votes since 200-01) = 113 out of a possible 161 (as of 10/30/10)

CONSECUTIVE WEEKS RANKED IN TOP 25 = 56 (from week one of 2005-06 season until the 10 th week of the 2008-09 season)