SEWARD, Neb. – In the 2023-24 GPAC Men’s Basketball Coaches’ Preseason Poll released on Thursday (Oct. 19), the Concordia University Men’s Basketball team appeared exactly where it finished this past season. League coaches pegged the Bulldogs in fifth place with a total of 68 points in the poll. The conference’s top four teams, according to the coaches, heading into the season are Morningside, Northwestern, Dordt and Jamestown.
Head Coach Ben Limback is on the cusp of his 11th season leading his alma mater. Concordia returns three all-conference players, including first teamer Noah Schutte, an NAIA Honorable Mention All-America selection. All-GPAC Honorable Mention choices Brad Bennett and Tristan Smith are also back following their sophomore campaigns. Smith had played like one of the league’s top performers before suffering an injury in the middle of the season.
The highest the Bulldogs have appeared in the GPAC preseason poll during Limback’s coaching tenure was third in advance of the 2021-22 season. That Concordia team went on to capture GPAC regular season and tournament championships before reaching the NAIA national quarterfinals. The Bulldogs then landed at No. 4 in the conference poll to begin 2022-23. Nationally, last year’s squad climbed as high as 19th in the NAIA coaches’ poll. Limback has led the program to three combined GPAC championships (two in the postseason).
Concordia will open the 2023-24 season at the 24th annual Cattle Classic coming up the weekend of Nov. 3-4. The opponents at the Cattle Classic will be Mayville State University (N.D.) and William Penn University (Iowa).
2023-24 GPAC Men’s Basketball Coaches’ Preseason Poll
--First-place votes in parentheses
1. Morningside – 93 (5)
2. Northwestern – 92 (5)
3. Dordt – 85 (1)
4. Jamestown – 72
5. Concordia – 68
6. Dakota Wesleyan – 47
7. Doane – 46
8. Briar Cliff – 33
9. Hastings – 30
10. Mount Marty – 22
11. Midland – 17