JACKSON, Miss. - Belhaven Men's Basketball has been selected atop the Collegiate Conference of the South (CCS) Preseason Coaches Poll, the league announced Tuesday.

The defending CCS Tournament Champions received 25 points and all five first place votes from the conference's six head coaches. LaGrange followed in second with 18 points, while Asbury earned 17 points and the remaining first-place vote. Covenant (13), Huntingdon (11) and Piedmont (6) rounded out the preseason rankings.

The ranking comes one season removed from a historic first season under Head Coach Boomer Roberts, who guided Belhaven to its first CCS Tournament Championship and first NCAA Division III Tournament appearance.

After finishing the regular season 13-12 overall and 7-5 in conference play, the Blazers entered the CCS Tournament as the No. 3 seed. Belhaven defeated Covenant 113-77 in the quarterfinals before taking down second-seeded Huntingdon 85-73 in the semifinals. The Blazers completed their championship run with a 92-73 victory over LaGrange, securing the program's first NCAA Tournament berth.

Belhaven's season concluded with a 69-63 overtime loss to nationally ranked St. Thomas (TX) in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament, finishing with a 16-13 overall record.

The Blazers set a program record by averaging 88.2 points per game last season. Belhaven also finished with 512 assists and 315 steals, both the second-most in a single season in program history, while tying the program record with 159 blocked shots.

Belhaven returns eight players from last season's roster, including seven who combined to account for 50.2 percent of the team's total scoring. Highlighting the returning production are seniors CJ Minton and Dan Robinson, who both earned All-CCS First Team honors last season.

Minton, the reigning CCS Tournament MVP, led Belhaven with 16.2 points per game while averaging 4.1 rebounds and 3.4 assists. The Indianola, Mississippi native knocked down a team-high 61 three-pointers, shooting 41.5 percent from beyond the arc. Minton elevated his production during Belhaven's championship run, averaging 21.3 points per game across the three tournament victories.

Robinson, an All-CCS Tournament selection, led the Blazers with 410 total points, 119 assists and 59 steals last season. The Milwaukee, Wisconsin native averaged 14.6 points, 4.4 rebounds, 4.3 assists and 2.1 steals per game across 28 appearances. Robinson finished the conference championship victory with 17 points, eight rebounds and eight assists.

Senior guard DJ Jones also returns after averaging 9.3 points and 3.2 rebounds per contest. Jones appeared in all 29 games last season, making 15 starts and contributing 270 points. Fellow senior Kam Beverly averaged 6.1 points and 3.5 rebounds while recording 22 blocked shots across 29 appearances.

Christian McGahan, who appeared in 28 contests with eight starts last season, also returns alongside Jaylen Sanford, who will make his Blazer debut after a season-ending injury in preseason last year, Ryan Tillman, and Kade West.

Belhaven opens the 2026-27 regular season this Friday, hosting Centenary at 6:00 PM inside Rugg Arena.

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