BAY CITY - The Saginaw Valley State University men's basketball team was picked to finish in seventh place in the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) North Division for the 2014-15 season.
The Cardinals finished with 38 points in the annual preseason poll, 16 behind Ferris State, which received a single first-place vote. Michigan Tech was chosen to win the North Division with 121 points and 10 first-place nods. Grand Valley State had 100 points and two first-place votes to finish in second.
Sophomores C.J. Turnage and Garrett Hall were named to the Preseason All-GLIAC Second Team. Turnage was the 2013-14 GLIAC "Freshman of the Year" in what was a breakout first season for the forward from Ypsilanti, Michigan.
Click here for 2014-15 SVSU Men's Basketball GLIAC Preview Page
2014-15 Saginaw Valley State Preview (by Brian Lester, GLIAC contributor)
Coach: Randy Baruth is entering his third season as the head coach of the Cardinals
Overview: Saginaw struggled down the stretch, losing its last five games, but the Cardinals have hope that things will turn around for the better this season. Success starts with the return of forward C.J. Turnage, who was the GLIAC Freshman of the Year. Turnage averaged 16.9 points per outing and grabbed 5.5 rebounds per game. If he can build on his success, SVSU will be in good shape. Sophomore guard Garrett Hall and junior guard Damon Bozeman also return, which is good news for an offense that averaged only 69.3 ppg. Bozeman poured in 14.2 ppg and Hall averaged 13.3 ppg. The Cardinals should also be tough defensively after allowing only 70.8 ppg last season. SVSU will also benefit from adding Oakland University transfer Mitch Baenziger. The Cardinals have proven they can be a competitive team and they have an opportunity to put together a winning season.
Noteworthy: Turnage was more than just a great scorer last year, dishing out 49 assists, tallying 29 steals and blocking 17 shots.
Saginaw Valley Sports Information Preview
The Saginaw Valley State University men's basketball team looks to improve upon a 2013-14 season that saw the Cardinals post a 9-17 overall record and 5-17 mark in GLIAC play. SVSU returns 64% of last year's offense in Garrett Hall (13.3 ppg), Damon Bozeman (14.2 ppg) and last year's GLIAC "Freshman of the Year" C.J. Turnage.
SVSU welcomes the addition of Mitch Baenziger to the team as well, as he will add an additional outside threat. The transfer from Oakland University shot 38% from beyond the arc for OU last year while playing in all 33 games. Saginaw Valley hosts this year's GLIAC/GLVC Challenge and will square-off against St. Joseph's (11/14) and Bellarmine (11/15) at SVSU's renovated O'Neill Arena to open the 2014-15 season.
