GREENSBORO, N.C. – The winning culture of the UNC Greensboro men’s basketball program has been noticed nationally as it received a vote in the Associated Press Top 25 poll released Monday afternoon.
UNCG was among 18 programs in the other receiving votes section of the Top 25, which was anchored by preseason No. 1 Gonzaga.
The Spartans were the only Southern Conference program to receive a vote.
It is believed to be the first time in program history that UNCG received votes in the preseason Top 25. Under head coach Wes Miller, who was named the top coach under 40 by ESPN, the Spartans have become one of the nation’s top men’s basketball programs.
UNCG has won at least 20 games in four consecutive seasons. The 104 victories over that span are the second most for a Division I men's basketball program in the state of North Carolina.
The Spartans return 12 players from last season, including reigning SoCon Player and Defensive Player of the Year Isaiah Miller, who was recently named the Mid-Major Preseason Player of the Year by ESPN.com. Kaleb Hunter averaged 10.3 points per game and had a double-double on the road against third-ranked Kansas.
Six of the Spartan returnees saw at least 13 minutes per game.
Combining defensive tenacity, rebounding ferocity, and tough-minded fierceness, the Spartans led the SoCon last year in field goal percentage defense (42.2), blocked shots per game (4.3), steals (9.3), and offensive rebounds (12.9).
They were also second in the conference scoring defense (63.1) and scoring margin.
Sophomore guard Keyshaun Langley was named SoCon Freshman of the Year and earned a spot on the All-Freshman Team after averaging 6.6 points in 17.2 minutes while seeing action in all 32 games. He contributed on both ends of the floor with 36 steals (second on the team) and 60 assists (third on the Spartans).
Langley along with juniors Angelo Allegri and Michael Hueitt Jr. combined to make 136 3-pointers last season, which was 48.7 percent of UNCG's season total of 279.
The Spartans will also receive a boost from seven-foot transfer Hayden Kovac. A transfer from Central Arkansas, Koval is eligible this season for the Spartans. Cementing himself as one of the top shot blockers in Southland Conference history after just three years of playing with the Bears, Koval joins a Spartan squad that ranked among the top defensive teams in the country.
He ranked fourth in the country with 95 rejections last year, while averaging 12.2 points and 7.6 rebounds per game last year. He earned SLC All-Defensive Team honors for a third consecutive season and finished his career at UCA with a career program record of 272 blocks.
UNCG begins its season on Wednesday, Nov. 25, against Little Rock at Louisville’s KFC Yum! Center. UNCG will play five games over nine days to start the campaign. In addition to Little Rock, the Spartans will battle Winthrop (Nov. 27), Duquesne (Nov. 29), Prairie View A&M (Dec. 2), and Louisville (Dec. 4). Louisville also received votes in the Associated Press Top 25 preseason poll.