LITTLE ROCK — BASKETBALL
Wonder Boys picked to win GAC
Arkansas Tech was tabbed by Great American Conference coaches as favorites to win the first league title in men’s basketball Wednesday. The Wonder Boys, who won the Gulf South Conference Western Division and advanced to an NCAA Division II regional last year, earned seven of the nine first place votes to finish with 63 points. Harding (1 first-place vote) was picked second with 54 points, and Arkansas-Monticello (1) third with 48 points. Southwestern Oklahoma State was fourth and Southeastern Oklahoma State was picked fifth. Under new Coach Dennis Nutt, Ouachita Baptist was picked sixth, followed by East Central, Henderson State and Southern Arkansas. Arkansas Tech, under second-year Coach Doug Karleskint, returns leading scorer Johnie Davis, who averaged 16.3 points, and has loaded its roster with several transfers, including Jeff Reese (Murray State), Paul Cooper (Texas Tech) and Will Paul (Stanford).
Sports, Pages 23 on 10/27/2011