Mount Vernon Nazarene University was projected to finish seventh in men's basketball in a preseason conference poll, and MVNU guard Clay Hilliard was selected onto the Preseason All-Crossroads League Team and will play an integral role in the Cougars’ success this season.
Due to injuries and the lingering effects of the pandemic, the 2020-21 season did not go the way coach Jared Ronai and the Cougars had hoped. After going 9-13 overall and 7-9 in the Crossroads League, the Cougars will look to improve and have a successful season this time around. With that in mind, voters in the recently released Crossroads League preseason men’s basketball poll tabbed the Cougars to finish seventh in a very competitive conference. The University of Saint Francis was selected as the early favorite, with Indiana Wesleyan University and Marian University picked second and third, respectively.
Hilliard, a first-team selection in preseason, is expected to lead the team on the court. Hilliard was named as the Crossroads League Freshman of the Year in 2020-21, averaging 16.3 points per game while shooting 49.4% from the field and 46.6% from three-point range.
Returners Kade Ruegsegger and Kyle Kegley will also look to make an impact. Ruegsegger made the All-Freshman Team last season and put up averages of 12.7 points, 4.2 rebounds and 2.9 assists. Kegley had a good first season in an MVNU uniform last season as well. The athletic, versatile big averaged 12.2 points on 57% shooting from the floor. He also averaged 9.8 rebounds and just over a block per contest.
This season will be the first in a while without NAIA All-American Jevon Knox, who graduated last spring, but Ronai will bring in some fresh faces in the form of freshmen Camron Mckenzie, Trent Koning, Carver Myers and Carter Jones. In addition, graduate transfer Trace Ramsey will look to make a name for himself at MVNU. The 6’7” senior forward comes by way of UC San Diego, an NCAA Divison-1 school.
The Mount Vernon Nazarene University men’s basketball team begins its 2021-22 campaign on Wednesday, Oct. 27, as the Cougars host Denison University at Ariel Arena in Mount Vernon.
