KANSAS CITY, Mo. – The West Liberty University men’s basketball team completed its first month as the nation’s No. 1-ranked team in unanimous fashion on Tuesday.
Coach Jim Crutchfield’s unbeaten Hilltoppers (18-0) received all eight first-place votes for the fourth consecutive week when the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC) released its weekly NCAA Division II national Top 25 coaches’ poll.
Rapidly closing in on the first back-to-back West Virginia Conference championships in school history, West Liberty has won its 18 games by an average of nearly 40 points per game and heads into the final month of the regular season scoring at a blistering 120.1 ppg. pace.
The Hilltoppers – who also lead the nation in eight other offensive categories – continued to pull away from the WVIAC pack last week with three blowout wins in the friendly confines of the ASRC.
West Liberty posted routs of Davis & Elkins, 129-88; Bluefield State, 100-74, and Concord, 133-82, to remain one of just two unbeaten NCAA Division II teams in the nation. Lincoln Memorial (Tenn.), which moved up to No. 6 this week, also boasts an 18-0 unblemished mark.
The top three teams remained unchanged for the second straight week in the coaches’ Top 25 with Bellarmine, Ky. (19-1) hanging on to the No. 2 spot and Augusta State, Ga. (19-1) staying at No. 3. Findlay, Ohio (17-1) and Alabama-Huntsville (18-2) round out the top five.
West Liberty, which is also No. 1 in the Atlantic Region rankings, is the only West Virginia Conference team receiving votes in this week’s Top 25. Mercyhurst, Pa. (15-3), which made its Top 25 debut at No. 25 this week, is the only other Atlantic Region team to crack the national poll. Bowie State, Md. is listed among other teams receiving votes.
The Hilltoppers hit the road Wednesday night for an 8 p.m. tipoff at Shepherd before returning home to host arch rival Wheeling Jesuit on Saturday afternoon. Tipoff for the Cardinals’ game is set for 4 p.m. at the ASRC.
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