(STATS) – Three-time defending champion Jacksonville State was an overwhelming choice to win another Ohio Valley Conference title in a preseason vote of media members who cover the conference Friday.
The Gamecocks, who have won 24 straight OVC games dating to the 2013 season, received 13 of the 16 first-place votes and 141 overall points to outdistance UT Martin, which received one first-place vote and 120 points.
Those two teams were followed in the preseason poll by Tennessee State (112 points; two first-place votes), Eastern Illinois (96), Tennessee Tech (70), Murray State (62), Eastern Kentucky (61), Southeast Missouri (33) and Austin Peay (25).