Huntington, Ind. – The Bethel College men’s basketball team will enter the 2014-15 season picked to finish second in the Crossroads League, according to a vote taken by all ten head coaches.

The Pilots, who return starting guards Zach Miller and Matt Schauss from last season’s 28-8 team, and whose group of newcomers include sophomore transfer Clay Yeo (Triton HS) and redshirt freshman Chris Mitchell (Mishawaka HS), received 86 of 100 possible votes in the preseason poll Monday afternoon on the campus of Huntington University.

Defending national champion Indiana Wesleyan University is picked to finish first earning 98 possible votes. The University of Saint Francis finished just one vote behind Bethel earning 85 votes followed by Huntington (68), Grace (53), Taylor (48), Mount Vernon Nazarene (46), Spring Arbor (29), Marian (24) and Goshen (13).

The senior duo of Miller and Schauss were voted Pre-Season First Team All-Crossroads League while Valparaiso University transfer Clay Yeo was voted Pre-Season Second Team.

Saint Francis guard Austin Fox, who helped guide the Cougars to a 21-11 record while scoring 15.0 points per game last season, received the nod as Crossroads League Preseason Player of the Year. Fox edged out Miller for the award followed by IWU’s Jonny Marlin, who transferred from Indiana University.

This is the second-highest ranking the Pilots have earned since 2010 when they were picked first.

Logan Irwin of Grace College, a former standout at Whitko High School, was tabbed for the preseason second team.