West Babylon, N.Y. – Four teams received first place votes in the East Coast Conference Men’s Basketball Preseason Poll but Daemen came out on top in the ranking released on Wednesday afternoon. In addition, Molloy senior forward William Muller (North Babylon, N.Y.) was selected as the league’s Preseason Player of the Year.
Daemen takes the top spot in the poll with three first place votes and 69 points. The Wildcats, who have won at least 19 games in every full season since joining the ECC in 2013, look to continue that success with a different-looking roster. Ten players from last year’s squad return, including starters Andrew Mason and Ryan Salzberg, as well as key reserves Joey Atkins and Nick MacDonald, but Daemen also must contend with the exhausted eligibility of the ECC’s all-time leading scorer and rebounder, Andrew Sischo, and the reigning ECC Defensive Player of the Year, Sean Fasoyiro.
Right behind Daemen in the poll is three-time defending league champion, St. Thomas Aquinas, with three first place votes and 64 points. The Spartans, who have won six of the last seven ECC titles, also must deal with change after losing three 1,000-point scorers, Demetre Roberts, Osbel Caraballo, and Grant Singleton, as well as head coach Tobin Anderson, who moved on to the Division I rank. New head coach, Matt Capell, still returns a talented roster led by Jamal Barnes, who averaged 10.4 points per game and ranked second in the ECC in three pointers made, and Antonio Vendola, who led the conference in three point shooting percentage.
Molloy was right behind St. Thomas Aquinas at No. 3 with 60 points and two first place votes. The Lions return six of their top nine scorers from last season including First Team All-Conference honorees, Darren Fergus and Muller.
Muller had a breakout campaign in 2021-22, more than doubling his previous career-high scoring average with 14.5 points per game. The forward also finished sixth in the ECC with 6.3 rebounds per game and ranked in the top 10 in the league in points per game (7th), total rebounds (10th – 150), and field goal percentage (10th – 50.4).
District of Columbia and Roberts Wesleyan are next in the poll at No. 4 and No. 5. Staten Island, who are now eligible for ECC and NCAA tournament play after completing their transition to full Division II members, round out the expected tournament participants at No. 6. The Dolphins also received the final first place vote.
Queens, Mercy, and D’Youville round out the remainder of the poll.
2022-23 ECC Men's Basketball Preseason Poll
| Team | Pts. | Last Year's Record |
| 1. Daemen (3) | 69 | 20-9 (16-2 ECC) |
| 2. St. Thomas Aquinas (3) | 64 | 28-5 (17-1 ECC) |
| 3. Molloy (2) | 60 | 12-17 (10-8 ECC) |
| 4. District of Columbia | 46 | 9-20 (8-10 ECC) |
| 5. Roberts Wesleyan | 45 | 12-13 (9-9 ECC) |
| 6. Staten Island (1) | 43 | 7-19 (6-12 ECC) |
| 7. Queens | 40 | 11-12 (9-9 ECC) |
| 8. Mercy | 27 | 6-19 (6-12 ECC) |
| 9. D'Youville | 11 | 2-26 (1-17 ECC) |
( ) - first place votes
Preseason Player of the Year – William Muller, Molloy (Sr., F, North Babylon, N.Y.)
