CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa - Results of the American Rivers Conference's Men's Basketball Preseason Poll (as voted on by the league's head coaches): 
 

2018-19 American Rivers Conference Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches' Poll
Rank	School (1st place votes)	Points	2017-18 Record
1.	Nebraska Wesleyan (8)	64	30-3, 13-3 Conference (Reg. Season & Conf. Tour. Champion/NCAA Champion)
2.	Loras (1)	57	19-7, 12-4 Conference
3.	Simpson	42	13-12, 9-7 Conference
4.	Wartburg	41	17-10, 9-7 Conference
5.	Coe	34	9-16, 5-11 Conference
6.	Dubuque	26	15-10, 7-9 Conference
T-7.	Buena Vista	24	17-9, 10-6 Conference
T-8.	Central	24	12-16, 7-9 Conference
9.	Luther	12	5-20, 0-16 Conference

Coming off back-to-back Conference Titles and a National Championship in 2017-18, Nebraska Wesleyan University is the coaches' pick to win the 2018-19 American Rivers Conference Championship. The Prairie Wolves earned 64 points in the poll and eight first-place votes. Loras College, the leagues' runner-up a season ago is picked second in the poll. Loras garnered 57 points and one first-place vote. The Duhawks and Prairie Wolves were co-conference champions in 2016-17. Capsules on all nine teams -- follow here:

New Coaches: Todd Lorensen, Buena Vista University. Lorensen comes to Buena Vista after a four-year stent as head men's basketball coach at Southwestern Community College in Creston, Iowa. Prior to taking over at Southwestern, Lorensen served one season as head coach at Iowa Wesleyan University in Mount Pleasant, Iowa, and had stints as an assistant coach at Truman State University (2011-13), University of Nebraska-Omaha (2008-11) and Grand View University (2007-08). As a player, Lorensen played basketball collegiately for one season (2003-04) at Quincy University in Quincy, Ill., and for three years at Grand View University. He holds a bachelor's degree in business administration as well as a master's degree in business administration from Bellevue University in Bellevue, Neb.

The Schedule: At the 2018 NCAA convention, Division III membership voted to establish the first permissible contest date as November 8. (When November 8 falls on a Saturday, Sunday or Monday, a member institution may play its first contest on the Friday immediately preceding November 8.)

The 2018-19 season kicks off on Wednesday, November 8 with Nebraska Wesleyan hosting Midwest Conference member Grinnell. On the same night Dubuque travels to CCIW member Millikin and Loras hosts Greenville, out of the St. Louis Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SLIAC). On November 10 Coe also faces a SLIAC member in Iowa Wesleyan. The Kohawks will be on the road for their season opener. WIAC member UW-Rivers Falls will travel to Pella for Central's first game of the season and Simpson will host Bethany Lutheran College out of the UMAC. Wartburg kicks their season off on November 13 with a home contest against Midwest Conference member Cornell. On November 14 Luther begins their 2018-19 campaign with a road game at WIAC member UW- La Crosse. The final team to tip off the new season will be Buena Vista. The Beavers host Bethany Lutheran College on November 15. 

The 2018-19 American Rivers Conference schedule begins on Wednesday, November 28 with eight of the nine schools competing. Coe College will travel to Storm Lake for a match-up with Buena Vista University. Wartburg will host Simpson and cross-town rivals Loras and Dubuque will square off at UD. Central will hit the road for a contest with Nebraska Wesleyan in Lincoln, Nebraska. Luther will open conference play on December 1 with a home contest against Simpson.

The American Rivers Conference season is a 16-game double round robin schedule finishing on Saturday February 16. The league's top six teams from the regular season standings qualify for the A-R-C Tournament. The Conference Tournament will be held Tuesday, February 19 (First Round), Thursday, February 21 (Semifinals), and Saturday February 23 (Championship). Game locations for the A-R-C Tournament are at the higher seeded team's venue. The American Rivers Conference Tournament champion receives the leagues' automatic qualifier to the NCAA Division III tournament.  

2017-18 Season Review: The 2017-18 regular season concluded with Nebraska Wesleyan earning the No.1 seed in the conference tournament. Loras claimed the No.2 seed as the regular season runner-up followed by Buena Vista, Simpson, Wartburg, and Central. 

As the tournament's No.6 seed, Central advanced to the conference title game for the fourth time in the last five years and gave Nebraska Wesleyan all they could handle. Central started the game off in veteran fashion against a Prairie Wolf team that had lost just three games all season. The two high-powered teams would exchange the lead a handful of times before the 7:09 mark, when the score was knotted at 20 all. With 6:03 left in the first half Central would gain the lead and head into halftime up 38-35. 
 
The Dutch came out hot in the second half, growing their lead to 18 at 63-45 with 10:49 to play. Back-to-back three-pointers by the Prairie Wolves cut Central's lead to 10 points at 65-55 with 8:15 to play. Central wasn't ready to relinquish the lead, answering NWU's surge with a three-pointer of their own and pushing their lead to 13 at 70-57 with 7:28 left.

Central's hot shooting would cool off dramatically in the final minutes. as the Dutch would not make another field goal for seven minutes and 12 seconds, when there were just 16 seconds left in the game. During that time, NWU used a 12-0 run to pull within one point. With 2:12 left in the game, Jack Hiller hit a three-pointer to give NWU their first lead since the 8:11 mark of the first half, 76-74. 
 
NWU's lead would stand at three, 77-80, with just nine seconds left. NWU would send Central to the free throw line but the Dutch would hit just one of two free throws, making it a two-point advantage for NWU. Central then fouled Ryan Garver, who sank two free throws to put NWU up 82-78 with only seven seconds remaining. The free throws would prove enough to seal the victory for NWU. 

NWU made run a historic run through the NCAA Division III tournament that culminated with the hoisting of the National Championship trophy for the first time in program history. The Prairie Wolves title run came by way of six road games. In the opening round NWU defeated Maryville College 94-70. With a score of 82 to 61 NWU knocked out Aurora to advance to the Sweet-Sixteen, where they upended No.8 UW-Platteville 79-78. In the Elite-Eight NWU took down No.1 Whitman 130-97. At the Salem, Virginia Civic Center Nebraska Wesleyan advance to the title game by downing Springfield 90-78. In a thrilling championship match-up the Prairie Wolves earned the title of National Champion defeating UW-Oshkosh 78-72. 

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1st		Nebraska Wesleyan University  Head Coach: Dale Wellman (5th season) 2017-18 Record: 30-3, 13-3 Conference (Reg. Season & Conf. Tour. Champion/NCAA Champion) 2017-18 Conference Finish: 1st Returning All-Conference: Ryan Garver (Defensive MVP, Co-Offensive MVP), Cooper Cook (First-Team), Nate Schimonitz (First-Team), Jack Hiller (Honorable Mention) Starters Returning: 4 Starters Lost: 1 Dale Wellman - "I think this season will be similar to the previous couple with the outcome of the final standings coming down to the last week. Unbelievable parity in this conference, as we all just beat up on one another. Such good basketball and coaching should make for another great basketball season in the American Rivers Conference."
	Players to Watch:
	Cooper Cook - F (Sr.)	16.8-ppg // 5.7-rpg // 1.9-apg // 83-3FG // 44-steals // 50-blocked shots
	Ryan Garver - F (Sr.)	14.2-ppg // 5.5-rpg // 4.6-apg // 79-steals
	Jack Hiller - G (Jr.)	13.5-ppg // 4.3-rpg // 1.5-apg // 72-3FG
	Nate Schimonitz - G (Jr.)	17.0-ppg // 4.1-rpg // 3.6-apg // 40-3FG

 

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2nd		Loras College Head Coach: Chris Martin (3rd Season) 2017-18 Record: 19-7, 12-4 Conference 2017-18 Conference Finish: 2nd Returning All-Conference: Josh Ruggles (Co-Offensive MVP), Ryan DiCanio (First-Team), Rowan McGowen (Honorable Mention) Starters Returning: 4 Starters Lost: 1 Chris Martin - "We are looking forward to another year in one of the best Division III Conferences in the nation. With four returning starters, we are hoping to build on our recent successes over the past two seasons."
	Players to Watch:
	Ryan DiCanio - F (Sr.)	17.8-ppg // 7.1-rpg // 4.7-apg // 35-steals // 42-3FG
	Demond George - G (Sr.)	9.9-ppg // 3.1-rpg // 3.35-apg // 31-steals
	Josh Ruggles - G (Sr.)	22.4-ppg // 4.7-rpg // 3.5-apg // 89-3FG

 

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3rd		Simpson College Head Coach: Brad Bjorkgren (4th season) 2017-18 Record: 13-12, 9-7 Conference  2017-18 Conference Finish: T-4th Returning All-Conference: Conor Riordan (First-Team), Tyler Stumbo (Honorable Mention) Starters Returning: 4 Starters Lost: 1 Brad Bjorkgren - “We are looking forward to all the competitive games in the American Rivers Conference.  All teams are very capable of winning games on any given league night. Obviously, everyone is chasing NWU since they are the returning national champions. Hopefully, the league will get the respect that it deserves as one of the top leagues in the nation.”
	Players to Watch:
	Taylor Filber - W (Sr.)	7.7-ppg // 5.2-rpg // 1.7-apg // 39-3FG
	Conor Riordan - PG (Jr.)	19.4-ppg // 4.6-rpg // 3.3-apg // 49-3FG // 31-steals
	Tyler Stumbo - W (Sr.)	10.2-ppg // 4.0-rpg // 2-apg //

 

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4th		Wartburg College Head Coach: Dick Peth (22nd season) 2017-18 Record: 17-10, 9-7 Conference 2017-18 Conference Finish: T-4th Returning All-Conference: Jaran Sabus (First-Team), Cam Kickbush (Second-Team) Starters Returning: 3 Starters Lost: 2 Dick Peth - The success of our conference on the national level is at an all-time high & we are excited to compete for a league championship."
	Players to Watch:
	Josh Gehling - P (Sr.)	7.7-ppg // 4.5-rpg // 10-blocked shots
	Cam Kickbush - PG (Sr.)	11.3-ppg // 2.9-rpg // 2.2-apg // 24-steals // 71-3FG
	Jaran Sabus - G (Sr.)	15.9-ppg // 5.6-rpg // 2.5-apg // 10-blocked shots
	Max Smith-Drahos - G (So.)	6.4-ppg // 2.9-rpg // 1.7-apg // 33-steals
	Ryan Stulken - F (Jr.)	3.7-ppg // 3.3-rpg // 10-steals

  

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5th		Coe College Head Coach: Bryan Martin (7th season) 2017-18 Record: 9-16, 5-11 Conference 2017-18 Conference Finish: 8th Returning All-Conference: None Starters Returning: 3 Starters Lost: 2 Bryan Martin - "We are very excited for this season and look forward to competing in the American Rivers Conference. We will rely heavily on the senior leadership of Zach Schlabaugh, Hunter Grenier, Calvin Winker, and Nolan Timp.  Our league has earned a lot of national respect over the last few years and we expect that trend to continue this season. Each team has plenty of talent and is well-coached, so we know we have to compete at a high level each night."
	Players to Watch:
	Tommy Hook - G (Jr.)	11.0-ppg // 3.4-rpg // 1.8-apg // 33-3FG // 16-steals
	TJ Kaufmann - G (Jr.)	6.7-ppg // 1.8-rpg // 44-3FG
	Adam McDermott - G (Jr.)
	Nolan Timp - F (Sr.)	10.4-ppg // 4.0-rpg // 1.7-apg // 15-steals
	Calvin Winker - F (Sr.)	6.0-ppg // 3.6-rpg // 10-blocked shots

 

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6th		University of Dubuque Head Coach: Robbie Sieverding (12th season) 2017-18 Record: 15-10, 7-9 Conference 2017-18 Conference Finish: T-6th Returning All-Conference: None Starters Returning: 3 Starters Lost: 2 Robbie Sieverding - “Looking forward to a very competitive conference season. We have a lot of scoring to replace from last season and how well some of our younger guys develop will determine how successful our season will be.”
	Players to Watch:
	Marcus McDaniel - PG (Sr.)	10.9-ppg // 3.5-rpg // 1.9-apg // 40-3FG // 24-steals
	Deonte Newsome - G (Sr.)	5.4-ppg // 3.0-rpg // 1.7-apg // 18-steals
	Peter Ragen - F (So.)	5.6-ppg // 4.0-rpg // 11-blocked shots // 10-steals
	Michael Williams - F (So.)	8.4-ppg // 6.5-rpg // 11-blocked shots // 11-steals

 

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T-7th		Buena Vista University  Head Coach: Todd Lorensen (1st season) 2017-18 Record: 17-9, 10-6 Conference 2017-18 Conference Finish: 3rd Returning All-Conference: None Starters Returning: 2 Starters Lost: 3 Todd Lorensen - "Our group is excited to be a part of the first season under the American Rivers Conference brand. The league has tremendous tradition and is earning more respect it deserves nationally with each season. There is exceptional coaching throughout this league and we are looking forward to being challenged every single night."
	Players to Watch:
	Michael Demers - G (So.)	4.5-ppg // 2.0-rpg // 9-steals
	Tim Jeffries - G (Jr.)	9.3-ppg // 3.1-rpg // 1.9-apg // 14-steals
	Connor Winkleman - G (Sr.)	7.8-ppg // 2.4-rpg // 2.8-apg // 18-steals

 

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T-7th		Central College Head Coach: Craig Douma (7th season) 2017-18 Record: 12-16, 7-9 Conference 2017-18 Conference Finish: T-6th Returning All-Conference: Jamel McKnight (Second-Team) Starters Returning: 2 Starters Lost: 3 Craig Douma - "The league will be balanced again. Every night you need to be prepared! I feel this is the best the league has ever been, and we keep getting stronger! We have great coaches in this league that do a great job preparing our teams!"
	Players to Watch:
	Jamel McKnight - PG (Sr.)	13.0-ppg // 3.5-rpg // 3.0-apg // 36-3FG // 17-steals
	Jaden Moody - G (Jr.)	4.5-ppg // 1.3-rpg
	Seth Wood - G (Jr.)	10.1-ppg // 3.4-rpg // 48-3FG // 13-steals

 

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