FREELAND, Mich. -- In a preseason poll of eight Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) men's basketball coaches, Trine University was tabbed to finish first in the league after all-possible first-place votes.

Trine, the 2020-21 regular-season champion, received a total of 49 points to secure the top spot in the preseason poll.  Albion (40 points) edged Calvin (39 points), who received the other first-place vote, by a point to earn the runner-up position in the poll.  Hope landed in fourth place with a total of 31 points.  Adrian (22 points) totaled one more point than Olivet (21 points) for the No. 5 spot.  Alma (13 points) and Kalamazoo (9 points) round out the teams in seventh and eighth, respectively.

Coaches were not permitted to vote for their own teams.

Trine (17-1 overall, 5-0 MIAA in 2020-21) will feature 2021 MIAA Most Valuable Player Nick Bowman on its roster as a senior, along with the league's 2021 Defensive Player of the Year Emmanuel Mengnanglo as a sophomore.  Not only did Bowman earn conference MVP honors, he was selected as the 2021 Great Lakes Region Player of the Year and was named an All-American by D3Hoops.com for both the 2021 season and the 2021-22 preseason.  Also returning for the Thunder is 2021 First Team All-MIAA player Brent Cox and Second Team All-MIAA honoree Bryce Williams.

Albion (10-4 overall, 5-1 MIAA) will look to 2021 First Team All-MIAA recipient Cortez Garland to lead the squad in his senior year.  Garland was voted the Defensive Player of the Year in 2020.  Last season, he finished the regular season as the leader in both assists (23) and triples (17).  In conference play, Garland also totaled 10 steals, 100 points, 16.7 points per contest, 34 field goals, and a .789 free-throw percentage.

Calvin concluded 2020-21 with an overall record of 8-4 and a 3-0 mark in league play.  The Knights return Emmett Warners, who was selected to the All-MIAA First Team last season, along with two-time All-MIAA player Thad Shymanski.  In conference contests, Warners led the MIAA with 11.3 boards per game and Shymanski averaged 17.0 points per contest.

The 2021 men's basketball regular season will begin on Wednesday, January 5, with Adrian hosting Olivet, Hope hosting Trine, Alma hosting Kalamazoo, and Albion hosting Calvin.

The 2022 MIAA Men's Basketball Tournament is slated for February 22 (First Round), February 25 (Semifinals), and February 26 (Championship).  The winner of the MIAA Tournament will receive an automatic bid into the 2022 NCAA Tournament.