FAIRBORN — Wright State’s Brandon Noel collected Preseason Player of the Year honors in the Horizon League as part of its 2024-25 Horizon League Preseason Poll voting conducted by the league’s head coaches, SIDs and media members.
Milwaukee and Purdue Fort Wayne shared the top spot in the preseason rankings. Wright State was picked to finish fifth in the 11-team league.
Noel earned All-League Second Team honors in 2023-24, averaging 14.5 points and 8.0 rebounds per contest while shooting 53.5 percent from the field.
Joining him on the league’s preseason all league lists is teammate Alex Huibregtse. He posted 12.3 points and 3.3 assists per game in 2023-24, shooting 52.5 percent from the field, earning a spot on the Preseason All-League Second Team.
Wright State finished the 2023-24 season with an 18-14 record and lost its only game in the Horizon League Tournament at home to Northern Kentucky. The Raiders will have a first-year head coach this season with Clint Sargent taking over as one of five new coaches in the Horizon League.
Wright State opens the season playing at Kentucky on Nov. 4 in a 7 p.m. to be televised on ESPNU. The Raiders open the home schedule hosting Ohio Christian on Nov. 6 and start league play with a contest at reigning league champion Oakland on Dec. 5.
2024-25 Under Armour #HLMBB Preseason Poll
Pl. Team – Pts. (First-place votes)
T1. Milwaukee (15) – 421
T1. Purdue Fort Wayne (14) – 421
3. Northern Kentucky (4) – 389
4. Oakland (5) – 345
5. Wright State (4) – 315
6. Youngstown State (1) – 272
7. Cleveland State – 252
8. Green Bay – 171
9. RMU – 148
10. IU Indianapolis (1) – 91
11. Detroit Mercy – 79
Preseason All-League First Team
Trey Robinson, Northern Kentucky
Sam Vinson, Northern Kentucky
Rasheed Bello, Purdue Fort Wayne
Jalen Jackson, Purdue Fort Wayne
Brandon Noel, Wright State (POY)
Preseason All-League Second Team
AJ McKee, Milwaukee
Erik Pratt, Milwaukee
DQ Cole, Oakland
Quinton Morton-Robertson, Purdue Fort Wayne
Alex Huibregtse, Wright State
Returning 2023-24 #HLMBB All-Academic Team Selections
Ryan Wade, Green Bay (Honorable Mention)
Brandon Noel, Wright State
Women picked to finish sixth in Horizon League
Wright State’s women’s basketball team was voted into the middle of the pack in the 2024-25 Horizon League Preseason Poll.
No players for the Raiders were selected as preseason first or second team.
Wright State went 18-15 last season and 11-9 in conference play. The Raiders only return two of seven leading scorers from last year’s team in Lauren Scott and Makiya Miller, and has nine new players with six transfer and three freshman joining the roster this season.
The Raiders begin the 2024-25 season at Wisconsin on Nov. 5. Its first home will be on Nov. 12 against Indiana State, and the team begins league play at Detroit Mercy on Dec. 4.
2024-25 Under Armour #HLWBB Preseason Poll
Pl. Team – Pts. (First-place votes)
1. Cleveland State (7) – 117
2. Green Bay (4) – 114
3. Purdue Fort Wayne – 98
4. Milwaukee – 85
5. Youngstown State – 63
6. Wright State – 58
7. Northern Kentucky – 53
8. Detroit Mercy – 39
9. Oakland – 38
10. IU Indianapolis – 36
11. RMU – 25