Big West Preseason All-Conference and Poll
IRVINE, Calif. – Cal State Fullerton guards Khalil Ahmad and Tre' Coggins were both selected to the Big West Media Preseason All-Conference Team, it was announced Wednesday.
The Titans' guard combo matched the most players on the team by one school. Long Beach State also had a pair of players selected. Overall, the seven players the media selected to the preseason all-conference team consisted of one sophomore, four juniors and two seniors.
Ahmad, the 2016 Big West Conference Freshman Player of the Year, became the first Titans player to win the conference's freshman award since 2003-04 when Bobby Brown was bestowed with the honor. Ahmad was also the third Titan overall to win the award after he broke Brown's single-season freshman record, tallying 429 points on the season. Ahmad led all Big West freshmen with a 14.3 points per game scoring average, which also ranked second in the team and seventh in the conference.
Coggins returns for his senior season after leading the team with a 15.6 points per game scoring average last season. He earned Big West Honorable Mention after ranking in the conference top-10 in free-throw percentage (3rd, .853) and three-pointers made per game (2nd, 2.6). His 75 made three-pointers tied for ninth in Cal State Fullerton single-season history, and his .853 free throw percentage ranks fourth in CSF single-season history. He also notched a career-high 41 points on Jan. 16 against CSUN, tying the second most in a single game in Titans history and becoming the first to score 41 since Josh Akognon did it on Dec. 13, 2008 against CSU Bakersfield.
The preseason all-conference squad was released along with the Big West Preseason Media Poll, which slotted the Titans to finish sixth in the conference in 2016-17. Fullerton received 83 points overall, five behind UC Davis. Long Beach State was selected as the preseason favorite, receiving 19 first-place votes and 203 points overall. UC Irvine (158), CSUN (155) and UC Santa Barbara (147) filled out the top-five along with UC Davis.
Cal State Fullerton hosts Saint Martin's for an exhibition game on Saturday, Nov. 5 at Titan Gym with tipoff set for 6 p.m. The Titans open the 2016-17 regular season on Friday, Nov. 11 against Caltech at Titan Gym. Tipoff for the season opener is set for 7 p.m.
Big West Conference Preseason Media Poll Results
1. Long Beach State (19) - 203
2. UC Irvine (1) - 158
3. CSUN (2) - 155
4. UC Santa Barbara - 147
5. UC Davis - 88
6. Cal State Fullerton - 83
7. UC Riverside - 76
8. Hawai'i (1) - 73
9. Cal Poly - 52
( ) First-place votes
Big West Conference Media Preseason All-Conference Team
Khalil Ahmad, So., Cal State Fullerton
Justin Bibbins, Jr., Long Beach State
Tre' Coggins, Sr., Cal State Fullerton
Gabe Levin, Jr., Long Beach State
Luke Nelson, Sr., UC Irvine
Kendall Smith, Jr., CSUN
Gabe Vincent, Jr., UC Santa Barbara