APPLETON, Wis. -- Midwest Conference men's basketball coaches made Lawrence University the overwhelming choice to repeat as conference champions this season.
Lawrence received eight of 10 first-place votes in the preseason coaches poll (coaches can't vote for their own team), with Carroll getting the other two-first place votes.
The Vikings are going for an unprecented third consecutive conference championship. Lawrence, which has five Midwest Conference championships, had never won two titles in a row until last season.
Lawrence is led by senior forward and two-time All-American Chris Braier (Wauwatosa/East), who averaged 15 points and 11.5 rebounds per game last season. Lawrence returns 15 letter winners, including senior forward Kyle MacGillis (Wauwatosa/Milwaukee Pius XI) and junior center Matt Osland (St. Charles, Ill./North).
The Vikings finished 20-6 last season, only the third 20-win season in Lawrence history. Lawrence advanced to the second round of the NCAA Division III Tournament, winning at Gustavus Adolphus College in the first round, before falling to the eventual national champion, the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.
Carroll was picked to finish second in the poll, followed by Ripon, Lake Forest, Monmouth, Knox, Grinnell, Beloit, St. Norbert, and Illinois College.