Sunshine State Conference

NSU Takes the #1 Ranking in 2025-26 SSC Men's Basketball Preseason Poll

10.22.25

By: Phill Wood | SSC

ORLANDO, Fla. - Sunshine State Conference men's basketball coaches vote Nova Southeastern as the preseason favorites for 2025-26. The defending national champions are hunting a fifth consecutive regular-season championship. The Sharks racked up the maximum 100 points in the poll, taking 10 first-place votes.
 
Florida Southern was picked second in the conference with 85 points. Tampa and Lynn finished third and fourth in the ranking with 75 and 70 points, respectively. Palm Beach Atlantic rounds out the Top-5 with 58 points from league coaches and the final first-place vote. Rollins settles in sixth with 51 points, while Embry-Riddle (50 points) and Barry (49 points) land in seventh and eighth place. Rounding out the 2025-26 poll are Saint Leo (35 points), Eckerd (21 points), and Florida Tech (11 points).
 
2025-26 SSC MEN’S BASKETBALL SCHEDULE
 
Nova Southeastern has made it to the championship game three years in a row, winning it all in 2023 and 2025. The Sharks are the defending champions in the South Region, SSC postseason, and SSC regular season, and they have just three conference losses in the last three seasons.
 
Last year's postseason tournament run for the Sharks brought the league a 14th Final Four and 24th Elite Eight appearance. During the postseason, they defeated SSC foes Embry-Riddle (81-73) in the Regional Semifinals and Florida Southern (98-66) in the Regional Final.
 
The 2025-26 season begins with Florida Southern once again hosting nine schools in Lakeland for the Small College Basketball Hall of Fame Classic on Saturday, November 1st, and Sunday, November 2nd. The remaining league teams get started Friday, November 14th, or Saturday, November 15th. Conference play begins on Saturday, November 22nd.
 
Below are the full results of the 2025-26 SSC preseason coaches' poll. Coaches are not allowed to vote for their teams (points: 10-9-8-7-6-5-4-3-2-1, first-place votes in parentheses).

 

2025-26 SSC MEN’S BASKETBALL PRESEASON COACHES POLL

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See Also: SSC All-Americans | All-SSC Teams | SSC Champions | National Champions | Record Book

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