ANDERSON, S.C. - After advancing to the South Atlantic Conference Tournament championship for the second time in three seasons last weekend, Anderson University remained third in the weekly Southeast Region Media Poll, sponsored by D2SIDA, announced by the regional committee on Monday.
The Trojans closed the SAC Tournament on Sunday and shift their attention to the NCAA Southeast Regional, as they earned the No. 3 seed with their 25-4 overall record. AU enters the regional winning 18 of its last 19 games after suffering a setback to conference rival Newberry in the conference title game.
With the No. 3 ranking, Anderson remains the highest rated team in the poll from the SAC, as the Black and Gold are one of five teams from the league to be represented in the weekly ranking. Following the Trojans is SAC Tournament champion, Newberry, moving five spots to the fourth spot, while Wingate dropped three positions to seventh.
Catawba, which earned the region's final at-large bid into the NCAA Tournament, was slotted eighth in the regional rankings, while Carson-Newman rounded out the poll in the 10th slot. All five conference teams listed in the media poll earned a spot into next week's NCAA Tournament, as the SAC placed the most teams into the field-of-64 than any conference in the country.
Limestone (No. 1) and Columbus State (No. 2) continue to lead the pack, as both teams won their respective conference tournaments and boast identical 30-1 records. Following Newberry in fourth was Lander in the fifth spot, while North Georgia, which failed to earn a spot into the regional tournament, landed sixth.
Georgia College was the final Peach Belt Conference school to reach the top-10, ranking ninth, after the Bobcats reached the PBC Tournament final before losing to top-seeded CSU. Similar to North Georgia, GC also came up short and did not land a position into the NCAA Tournament. USC Aiken and Belmont Abbey just missed the top-10 after receiving two votes apiece.
Anderson begins its NCAA Tournament campaign on Friday when it squares off with sixth-seeded Newberry in a rematch of the SAC Tournament final. The teams are scheduled to get underway for the fourth time this season at noon from the Timken Center in Gaffney, S.C.
Southeast Region Media Poll
1. Limestone, 30-1
2. Columbus State, 30-1
3. Anderson, 25-4
4. Newberry, 20-10
5. Lander, 23-6
6. North Georgia, 21-9
7. Wingate, 21-9
8. Catawba, 18-11
9. Georgia College, 16-13
10. Carson-Newman, 19-10
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RANKINGS
