Wright State Men’s Basketball | Photo by Soham Parikh | The Wright State Guardian
The Wright State University (WSU) men’s basketball team was voted the number one team in the Horizon League preseason poll, while receiving 37 of the 44 first place votes.
The Raiders have been selected as the favorite going into the season for the third consecutive season. They earned a total of 517 votes, while Youngstown State, who finished second in the poll, received 423 total votes and three first place votes.
Loudon Love
Loudon Love is going into his redshirt senior season, and was named the Horizon League’s preseason player of the year and earned a First Team preseason selection.
“Loudon was selected based on voting by the League’s head coaches, sports information directors and select media members,” said Horizon League Director of Communications and Digital Media Strategy Dan Gliot.
Love was named the Horizon League Player of the Year last season after averaging 15.9 points per game and 9.7 rebounds per game. He also earned a selection to the Lou Henson All-America Team for the second consecutive season.
Love is already in the record books for this program, and this season he will look to firmly establish himself as one of the most accomplished players to ever come through WSU. He needs 26 rebounds to pass Bill Edwards for the most rebounds all-time in program history. He currently sits at 15 in the all-time scoring list in program history as well.
Love was named to the watch list for the 2021 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year award. He is among 20 players across the country named to the list, which is announced by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
“It feels great and it is a testament to what we have built over the years. I would not be in this position today if it wasn’t for my teammates and coaching staff,” said Love.
Scott Nagy
Ever since Head Coach Scott Nagy arrived at WSU, the accolades have been pouring in for him and his team. Nagy has received three straight Horizon League Coach of the Year honors, and his team is poised for another big season.
Last season was historic for this Raider program after winning 25 regular season games and the first outright Horizon League regular season title in program history.
The team has not finished with lower than 20 wins ever since Nagy arrived. Before he came to WSU, the Raiders last 20-win regular season was in 2008. Nagy has changed the standard for this program as they sit atop the Horizon League.
“The culture has been established in the recruiting of young men who embody what Wright State basketball is all about… We have an expectation now to be picked at the top of the league and we look forward to the challenge of having the target on our back every night,” said Nagy.
