INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana -- The Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) announced the 2025-26 men's basketball preseason coaches poll today, with the Storm landing tied for eighth place. This comes after a highly successful 2025 campaign that saw Lake Erie finish nine games over .500 and fifth in the conference. After overshooting expectations last year, the Storm will look to do the same this season with the help of their 11 returners, seven freshmen, and eight new additions from the transfer portal.

Preseason G-MAC Overview

After leading the conference in wins last season and being ranked No. 15 nationally before stumbling in the G-MAC quarterfinals—and ultimately being passed over for the D-II Tournament—Findlay returns 10 of its 11-man core and was selected to pace the G-MAC. The Oilers received 126 points, including eight of a possible 12 first-place votes.

Following closely behind sits Ashland with 117 points and two first-place votes. Last season, the Eagles finished sixth in the conference with an 11-9 record and return not only Cooper Davis (Second Team All-Conference) but also Maceo Williams, the reigning G-MAC Player of the Year. The Saints from Thomas More are right on their heels with 112 points and the remaining two first-place votes. The Saints will have to replace the production of their best player, Casey George, a First Team All-Conference selection who led the team in points, assists, and steals.

Picked to finish fourth in the G-MAC is Cedarville (105 points), who, despite finishing last year at 7-13 and barely sneaking into the conference tournament without any All-Conference players, managed to knock off No. 1 Findlay and end the Oilers' season prematurely. Playing essentially a nine-man rotation last year, Cedarville returns eight members of that key foundation.

Next up is Hillsdale (81 points), which graduated its heart and soul, Joe Reuter (First Team All-Conference). As a senior, Reuter led the Chargers—who finished 13-7—in rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks. Following Hillsdale is Kentucky Wesleyan (80 points), picked to finish sixth. The Panthers were one of the best teams last year, finishing second in the conference with a 16-4 record, but they took the toughest hit entering this season, losing all four of their All-Conference players to graduation and the transfer portal.

Picked one spot ahead of the Storm at seventh place is Walsh, with 73 points. The Cavaliers have been the G-MAC's most successful program in recent years, winning four of the last seven conference tournament titles. Last year, however, they fell short of their usual standard, winning just seven of 20 conference matchups and missing the G-MAC tournament altogether. Working in their favor this year is the return of six of their seven highest-usage players, including both Second Team All-Conference selections, Zack Oddo and Kobe Mitchell.

Tied with the Storm for eighth place at 61 points are the Panthers from Ohio Dominican, coming off a 6-14 campaign that saw them miss the G-MAC tournament. ODU hasn't had a winning season in seven years, but four returning starters—including 6'7" Second Team All-Conference forward Elijah Hinton—will look to change that.

Rounding out the preseason conference rankings are last year's G-MAC Champion, Malone, picked to finish 10th with 49 points, followed by Northwood (48 points) and Tiffin (22 points).

2024-2025 Storm Season Recap

Last season, the Storm opened their year with what would prove to be their most impressive victory, defeating a Lake Superior State squad that would go on to reach the NCAA Division II Tournament Elite Eight. After falling the next day to No. 25 Ferris State to close out the annual GLIAC-G-MAC Crossover at 1-1, the Storm responded by winning their next four non-conference games by an average margin of 49.8 points. After beating two much higher-quality non-conference opponents, D'Youville and Slippery Rock, Lake Erie sat at 7-1 — their best start since joining Division II in the 2008-09 season.

When conference play began, the Storm started 0-2 after a four-point loss to Thomas More and a five-point loss to Malone. They bounced back quickly, though, with an impressive win over Ashland, who featured the conference's best player in Maceo Williams. Another highlight came in January when the Storm upset No. 20 nationally ranked Hillsdale after falling to them in dramatic fashion earlier in the year.

After reeling off six consecutive conference victories entering the final stretch of the season, it looked like a lock that the Storm would host a G-MAC playoff game. However, Lake Erie dropped its final three games, including a tough home loss to 5-15 Northwood. In the regular-season finale, the Storm took No. 12 Findlay to double overtime but ultimately fell to the Oilers, wrapping up a 19-9 regular season that saw them win a program-record 12 G-MAC games since joining the conference in 2010-11.

Finishing as the fifth seed in the conference tournament, Lake Erie traveled to Crestview Hills, Kentucky, to face the fourth-seeded Thomas More Saints. After splitting the regular-season series 1-1, the Storm knew they were in for a tough test. Thomas More had been hyper-efficient from the field in both prior meetings and one of the conference's top rebounding teams all season. The quarterfinal proved no different, as the Saints limited Lake Erie to just 22 rebounds (the second-lowest mark the Storm recorded all year, behind only another Thomas More matchup where they were held to 19). Offensively, the Saints found easy looks and shot 59.3% from the field — the second-highest percentage allowed by the Storm defense all season.

Storm Forecast

Lake Erie is losing a lot of talent from last year's historic squad. Of the top 12 players in minutes, only three return: senior Jake Leibacher, redshirt sophomore Kai Bloom, and junior Aidan Filippini. Lake Erie also lost two Second Team All-Conference players — Derrick Anderson and Cameron Johnson — both of whom entered the transfer portal after highly productive seasons in the Green and White.

The Storm continue to be led by head coach Kyle Conley, who enters his 10th season at the helm. With the transfer portal becoming such a major part of college sports, rosters now change dramatically year to year, making his job increasingly difficult. It's challenging to establish a lasting culture and identity with so much turnover. Yet, that very culture is precisely why the Storm have not only endured during this era of player movement but thrived — enjoying one of their most successful seasons ever last year. Although the team looks much different and the conference remains highly competitive, there's still strong belief and high expectations surrounding this group.

The Storm open their season on Friday, November 14th, competing in the annual GLIAC-GMAC Crossover Challenge. They'll face Lake Superior State in the opener, followed by Ferris State the next day — the same schedule for the third straight year. Both opponents boast strong programs, providing an early and valuable test for this new-look Storm squad as they work to build chemistry and cohesion.
 

2025-26 Men's Basketball Coaches Preseason Poll
1. Findlay- 126 points (8 first place votes) 
2. Ashland - 117 points (2 first place votes)
3. Thomas More- 112 points (2 first place votes) 
4. Cedarville- 105 points
5. Hillsdale- 81 points
6. Kentucky Wesleyan- 80 points 
7. Walsh - 73 points
t8. Lake Erie- 61 points
t8. Ohio Dominican- 61 points
10. Malone- 49 points
11. Northwood- 48 points
12. Tiffin- 22 points