Photo by: Jacob Gonzalez
10/26/2017 1:04:00 PM | Men's Basketball
RIVERSIDE, Calif. — For the fourth-straight year, California Baptist University was picked to win the PacWest Conference – its last chance to do so – and Kalidou Diouf was named the Preseason Player of the Year, as announced Thursday.
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The Lancers – who transition to NCAA Division I and the Western Athletic Conference next year – look to grab their second PacWest regular-season crown, after claiming their first in the 2013-14 season. CBU also won the tournament title in 2015-16 and has made four-straight NCAA postseason appearances, grabbing a berth each year it was eligible.
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While CBU is without PacWest all-time leading scorer Michael Smith from last year, big man Diouf returns to lead the Lancers. He averaged 15.8 points and 6.9 rebounds per game last year. Diouf was an All-PacWest first team, All-West District second team and All-West Region second team selection in 2016-17.
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Diouf definitely brings a presence in the post for CBU, finishing last year with the seventh-best shooting percentage in all of D-II at .638. He also led the team with 37 blocks, averaging just about 25 minutes per game.
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With Diouf, the Lancers return six players from last year's squad, including All-PacWest honoree Jordan Heading and starter Jason Todd.
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Heading provides a scoring threat from the perimeter after leading the team in made three-pointers last year. He averaged 12.3 ppg and dished out 2.1 assists per game. Todd, who started all 31 games for the Lancers, boasted 8.7 ppg and 6.7 rpg averages.
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CBU will also rely on transfers Gabe Taylor (University of Portland) and Cory Lange (BYU-Hawaii) to help spark its prolific offense.
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The Lancers open the season at home on Nov. 10 and 11 for the annual Tip-Off Challenge, this time in the brand new Events Center. CBU tips off against Cal State Dominguez Hills first at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, before an earlier 2:00 p.m. tip time against Cal State L.A. on Saturday. Â Â
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The Lancers – who transition to NCAA Division I and the Western Athletic Conference next year – look to grab their second PacWest regular-season crown, after claiming their first in the 2013-14 season. CBU also won the tournament title in 2015-16 and has made four-straight NCAA postseason appearances, grabbing a berth each year it was eligible.
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While CBU is without PacWest all-time leading scorer Michael Smith from last year, big man Diouf returns to lead the Lancers. He averaged 15.8 points and 6.9 rebounds per game last year. Diouf was an All-PacWest first team, All-West District second team and All-West Region second team selection in 2016-17.
Â
Diouf definitely brings a presence in the post for CBU, finishing last year with the seventh-best shooting percentage in all of D-II at .638. He also led the team with 37 blocks, averaging just about 25 minutes per game.
Â
With Diouf, the Lancers return six players from last year's squad, including All-PacWest honoree Jordan Heading and starter Jason Todd.
Â
Heading provides a scoring threat from the perimeter after leading the team in made three-pointers last year. He averaged 12.3 ppg and dished out 2.1 assists per game. Todd, who started all 31 games for the Lancers, boasted 8.7 ppg and 6.7 rpg averages.
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CBU will also rely on transfers Gabe Taylor (University of Portland) and Cory Lange (BYU-Hawaii) to help spark its prolific offense.
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The Lancers open the season at home on Nov. 10 and 11 for the annual Tip-Off Challenge, this time in the brand new Events Center. CBU tips off against Cal State Dominguez Hills first at 7:00 p.m. on Friday, before an earlier 2:00 p.m. tip time against Cal State L.A. on Saturday. Â Â
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Players Mentioned
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