Men's Basketball | January 02, 2024
AIKEN, S.C. – After a victory over Southern Wesleyan on Dec. 30, the University of South Carolina Aiken men's basketball team is now No. 21 in the latest NABC/Division II men's basketball rankings.
Head coach
Mark Vanderslice's team picked up 66 points in the poll. The team was previously No. 25.
Defending national champion Nova Southeastern remains at No. 1 while MSU Morehead and Minnesota State round out the top three teams. West Texas A&M moved up a spot while Saint Martin's stands at No. 6.
USC Aiken has won eight straight contests after falling to then-No. 8 UNC Pembroke by six points. Since Nov. 15, the Pacers have defeated Tusculum, Limestone, Barton, Emmanuel, Claflin, St. Augustine's, Francis Marion and Southern Wesleyan.
For the season, the Pacers are averaging 82.2 points per game while giving up 67.7 points. The team has connected on 45.9 percent of its shots from the floor, including 38.5 percent from behind the three-point stripe. Vanderslice's team is averaging 41.3 rebounds per game and 13.1 assists per night. USC Aiken's defense forces 12.5 turnovers per game and converts them into 16.1 points. The squad averages 6.7 steals per game and 4.2 blocks a contest.
The Pacers return to action Wednesday, Jan. 3, when they open PBC play at Lander. Tip-off is slated for 7:30 p.m.
| 1. Nova Southeastern, Fla. |
10-0 |
400 |
1 |
| 2. MSU Moorhead, Minn. |
10-0 |
382 |
2 |
| 3. Minnesota State |
13-0 |
370 |
3 |
| 4. West Texas A&M |
13-0 |
336 |
5 |
| 5. Saint Martin's, Wash. |
10-1 |
308 |
6 |
| 6. DBU, Texas |
11-1 |
298 |
7 |
| 7. North Georgia |
9-1 |
278 |
9 |
| 8. Benedict, S.C. |
10-0 |
262 |
8 |
| 9. California, Pa. |
11-0 |
255 |
10 |
| 10. Fort Lewis, Colo. |
9-1 |
245 |
12 |
| 11. Angelo State, Texas |
10-1 |
243 |
14 |
| 12. Central Oklahoma |
12-2 |
232 |
5 |
| 13. St. Thomas Aquinas, N.Y. |
11-1 |
206 |
15 |
| 14. Colorado Mesa |
9-2 |
181 |
16 |
| 15. Ferris State, Mich. |
11-2 |
177 |
17 |
| 16. Cal State San Bernardino |
9-2 |
140 |
18 |
| 17. Gannon, Pa. |
10-1 |
124 |
11 |
| 18. Post, Conn. |
10-1 |
112 |
20 |
| 19. Northwest Missouri State |
9-3 |
94 |
21 |
| 20. Chico State, Calif. |
8-2 |
69 |
23 |
| 21. USC Aiken |
9-1 |
66 |
25 |
| 22. West Liberty, W.Va. |
9-3 |
59 |
22 |
| 23. Minnesota Duluth |
10-3 |
57 |
24 |
| 24. West Georgia |
9-2 |
53 |
13 |
| 25. Florida Tech |
9-1 |
32 |
NR |
Others receiving votes: Eastern New Mexico 26, Ashland (Ohio) 25, East Stroudsburg (Pa.) 24, Colorado School of Mines 15, Wet Alabama 15, Catawba (N.C.) 14, Charleston (W.Va.) 11, Washburn (Kan.) 11, Fort Hays State (Kan.) 8, Lander (S.C.) 7, Illinois Springfield 6, Minot State (N.D.) 6, Augusta (Ga.) 5, Carson-Newman (Tenn.) 4, Concord (W.Va.) 4, Dominican (N.Y.) 4, Lake Superior State (Mich.) 4, Cal State East Bay 3, Saint Michael's (Vt.) 3, Cal State Dominiguez Hills 1, Cal State LA 1, Lincoln Memorial (Tenn.) 1, Missouri Western 1, Southern New Hampshire 1.
Dropped out: Cal State Dominguez Hills (19).
Records are through games of Sunday, Dec. 31. Previous ranking was from the Dec. 21, 2023 poll.
