Florida Southern men's basketball opens the 2025-26 campaign as the 15th-ranked program, as the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) announced the 2025-26 Division II Coaches Preseason Poll Tuesday (Oct. 28).
"We know that preseason rankings are more about program history and recognition, rather than performance," stated Moccasin head coach Mike Donnelly. "But our team is talented this year and we are looking forward to seeing how we stack up against two very good programs this weekend at the Small College Basketball Tournament."
The Moccasins make their 18th appearance in the NABC Preseason Poll, coming in four spots higher than last year's 19th ranking. The new campaign is set to start on Nov. 1 inside the George W. Jenkins Field House with the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic. Seven of the 10 teams participating in the classic are ranked in the top 25, with three programs ranked in the top five.
Three teams that reached the NCAA Division II national semifinals last season were voted into the top three spots in the NABC/Division II pre-season rankings for the 2025-26 season. Defending champion Nova Southeastern was a near-unanimous selection for the top spot as it heads into the season – which gets underway with five games on the slate – seeking its third national title in four years. Washburn and DBU, who both fell in the semifinal round, were picked for the second and third spots, respectively. The fourth team in that group, national finalist Cal State Dominiguez Hills, is also in the pre-season rankings at No. 12.Â
Daemen, ranked first in the final poll of last season, comes into the pre-season at No. 4 and Mountain East Conference favorite Fairmont State is fifth. The next five teams are headed by Alabama Huntsville – whose only two losses a year ago came to Nova Southeastern – followed by Point Loma, Missouri S&T, Southwest Minnesota State and Colorado School of Mines.
The first DII college basketball game of the year will be UVA-Wise vs. No. 25 Lubbock Christian at the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic. The No. 15 Moccasins will open their season, facing Alaska Anchorage on Saturday and UVA-Wise on Sunday, with a 5:45 PM tip for both contests.Â
The SCB National Hall of Fame Classic Tournament Page can be located HERE.
NABC Division II Coaches Poll (Oct. 28, 2025 – Preseason Poll)
|
Rank
|
Team
|
Record
|
Points
|
Previous
|
|
1
|
Nova Southeastern (Fla.) (15)
|
36-1
|
399
|
2
|
|
2
|
Washburn (Kan.)
|
30-4
|
326
|
5
|
|
3
|
DBU (Texas)
|
34-5
|
325
|
4
|
|
4
|
Daemen (N.Y.) (1)
|
28-1
|
291
|
1
|
|
5
|
Fairmont State (W.Va.)
|
27-5
|
274
|
11
|
|
6
|
Alabama Huntsville
|
32-2
|
272
|
3
|
|
7
|
Point Loma (Calif.)
|
29-6
|
258
|
9
|
|
8
|
Missouri S&T
|
25-6
|
240
|
12
|
|
9
|
Southwest Minnesota State
|
21-9
|
229
|
NR
|
|
10
|
Colorado School of Mines
|
29-5
|
214
|
7
|
|
11
|
West Liberty (W.Va.)
|
30-5
|
199
|
6
|
|
12
|
Cal State Dominguez Hills
|
30-6
|
190
|
14
|
|
13
|
Michigan Tech
|
24-8
|
144
|
23
|
|
14
|
Lincoln Memorial (Tenn.)
|
25-6
|
130
|
13
|
|
15
|
Florida Southern
|
26-9
|
126
|
18
|
|
16
|
Columbus State (Ga.)
|
27-5
|
117
|
8
|
|
17
|
Black Hills State (S.D.)
|
18-12
|
110
|
NR
|
|
18
|
Central Washington
|
22-10
|
97
|
NR
|
|
19
|
Lenoir-Rhyne (N.C.)
|
29-6
|
94
|
10
|
|
20
|
Southern Nazarene (Okla.)
|
22-7
|
91
|
NR
|
|
21
|
Virginia State
|
22-9
|
76
|
NR
|
|
22
|
Gannon (Pa.)
|
27-7
|
71
|
22
|
|
23
|
Findlay (Ohio)
|
24-5
|
68
|
NR
|
|
24
|
Bentley (Mass.)
|
18-10
|
67
|
NR
|
|
25
|
Lubbock Christian (Texas)
|
25-9
|
56
|
21
|
Others receiving votes:
St. Cloud State (Minn.) 52; UNC Pembroke (N.C.) 49; St. Mary's (Texas) 46; Lake Superior State (Mich.) 45; Valdosta State (Ga.) 42; USCA (S.C.) 39; MSU Moorhead (Minn.) 37; Assumption (Mass.) 36; Rogers State (Okla.) 35; Miles (Ala.) 27; Lincoln (Mo.) 25; Minnesota Duluth 25; Adelphi (N.Y.) 24; Minnesota State 22; Northern Michigan 22; Chico State (Calif.) 21; Clark Atlanta (Ga.) 20; North Georgia 20; Catawba (N.C.) 15; Tampa (Fla.) 15; Concordia–St. Paul (Minn.) 12; Central Oklahoma 11; Dominican (N.Y.) 10; St. Thomas Aquinas (N.Y.) 10; Carson–Newman (Tenn.) 9; Northwest Nazarene (Idaho) 9; Fayetteville State (N.C.) 8; Cal State San Bernardino 7; Missouri–St. Louis 7; West Texas A&M 7; Cal Poly Pomona 6; Ferris State (Mich.) 6; Fort Hays State (Kan.) 6; Oklahoma Baptist 6; Colorado Mesa 2; Montana State Billings 1; Montevallo (Ala.) 1; Pace (N.Y.) 1.
