Sangamon Sun

The Illinois College men's basketball team has been chosen to win the 2024-25 Midwest Conference (MWC) championship, according to a vote by league coaches announced today. The team led the preseason poll with 62 points and six first-place votes.

Last season, the Blueboys ended their campaign with a 13-3 record in MWC play and a 24-5 overall record. They won both the MWC Championship and MWC Tournament titles for the second consecutive year. In the NCAA Tournament, they advanced to the second round after defeating the University of Dubuque with a buzzer-beating three-pointer but lost in overtime by one point to Washington University in St. Louis, narrowly missing out on reaching the "Sweet 16."

The Blueboys will see two returning starters this season: senior guard Buzz Ritzel, who was a first-team all-conference pick, and senior forward Josh Harris. Head Coach Steve Schweer's team will begin its season on Friday at Webster. Their home opener is scheduled for November 15-16 during the annual Bill Merris Invitational at Sherman Gymnasium.

Grinnell College came in second place in the poll with 58 points and received three first-place votes. Last year, Grinnell finished second in league standings with a 12-4 record and had an overall record of 19-7. Their last MWC title dates back to the 2000-2001 season.

Beloit College took third place in the poll with 50 points, followed by Ripon College with 44 points and Monmouth College with 31 points rounding out the top five.

The remainder of the poll saw Cornell College earning sixth place with 28 points, Lake Forest College seventh with 26 points, Lawrence University eighth with 15 points, and Knox College ninth with ten points.