Wayne State was picked second overall and tied for first in the NSIC South Division in the 2021-22 Preseason NSIC Men’s Basketball Coaches Polls released Thursday afternoon by the league office in Burnsville, Minnesota. Junior forward Jordan Janssen was voted by league coaches as the Preseason South Division Player of the Year and Wildcat to Watch this season.
Wayne State returns all five starters from last year’s club that was 11-7 overall and captured the NSIC South Division for the second time in three seasons with a 10-4 league mark. The Wildcats also qualified for the NCAA Division II National Tournament for the first time in 21 years.
MSU Moorhead was voted the team to beat this season with 222 points and 13 first-place votes with Wayne State second at 195 points and two first-place votes. Minnesota State was a close third with 192 points and the final first-place vote with Augustana (175) and Upper Iowa (164) rounding out the top five teams.
Minnesota Duluth was sixth at 142 points with St. Cloud State (132), Sioux Falls (131), Northern State (119) and Minot State (109) closing out the top 10 teams.
In the NSIC South Division poll, Wayne State and Minnesota State were tied for first with 42 points each as the Wildcats collected four first-place votes competed to two for MSU. Upper Iowa was third at 39 points and the remaining two first-place ballots. Augustana was fourth with 35 points followed by Sioux Falls (25), Winona State (21), Southwest Minnesota State (12) and Concordia-St. Paul (8) closed out the South Division poll.
Janssen, a 6-7 junior forward from Lincoln East HS, was voted this year’s Preseason NSIC South Division Player of the Year after averaging 16 points and 9.8 rebounds per game last season. He was named First Team All-NSIC South Division, South Division Player of the Year and First Team NABC All-Central Region First Team. Last season, Janssen ranked fourth in NCAA Division II with 10 double-doubles while shooting 52.3 percent from the field and 64 percent at the free throw line while being named NSIC South Division Player of the Week three times.
Wayne State, who received nine votes in the NABC Preseason Division II Top 25 Coaches Poll released Monday, opens the 2021-22 season on Friday, November 12th at the GAC/NSIC Challenge in Shawnee, Oklahoma playing Oklahoma Baptist at 7:30 p.m.
Wayne State College is picked seventh in the South Division and 13th overall in the NSIC Preseason Women’s Basketball Coaches Poll released Thursday morning by the league office in Burnsville, Minnesota. Senior guard Kylie Hammer was listed as the Wildcat Player to Watch this season.
Wayne State received 51 points overall and 11 points in the preseason coaches polls. The ‘Cats return one starter from last year’s club that was 6-10 overall and 5-9 in the NSIC South Division.
Minnesota Duluth was voted the team to beat in NSIC women’s basketball this season collecting 12 first-place votes and 222 points in voting conducted by league coaches. St. Cloud State was second overall at 203 points and one first-place vote with Augustana third at 187 points and two first-place ballots. Minnesota State came in fourth at 168 points followed by Sioux Falls in fifth with 159 points and the remaining first place vote.
In the NSIC South Division poll, Augustana was first with 44 points and three first-place votes. Southwest Minnesota State and Minnesota State tied for second at 38 points with Sioux Falls fourth at 32 points. Closing out the Preseason NSIC South Division poll were Winona State (27 pts), Concordia-St. Paul (25), Wayne State (11) and Upper Iowa (9).
Wayne State’s Player to Watch in the NSIC this season is Wayne senior guard Kylie Hammer. She is the lone returning starter for the Wildcats this season after averaging 9.8 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. Hammer had eight games of double digit scoring last season including two games of 20 or more points while shooting 37 percent from the field and 76 percent at the free throw line.
Wayne State plays an exhibition game at Creighton on Wednesday, November 3rd at 5 p.m. and opens the 2021-22 season on Saturday, November 13 at Newman in Wichita, Kansas at 2 p.m. The first home game for the Wildcats is Thursday, November 18 hosting Chadron State at 6:30 p.m.
