Oct. 29, 2009

IRVINE, Calif. - The UC Davis men's basketball team is picked to finish sixth in the Big West Conference this season in a preseason media poll released Thursday by the conference. In addition, Joe Harden and Mark Payne were among six players selected to the Preseason Media All-Conference Team.

The 24-member voting panel selected Long Beach State to finish first out of nine teams. The 49ers received 17 first-place votes. UC Santa Barbara is second with six first-place votes. Defending champion Cal State Northridge is third followed by UC Riverside, Pacific and UC Davis. Cal State Fullerton is seventh with UC Irvine and Cal Poly rounding out the poll.

UC Davis is the only school with two student-athletes on the Preseason All-Conference Team. Both Harden and Payne were Second-Team All-Conference selections last year, as voted upon by the coaches. Harden averaged 14.8 points and 7.2 rebounds last year as a sophomore. Payne finished with 10.4 points and 5.8 rebounds per game and led the Aggies in assists and steals.

UC Davis will host Cal State East Bay next Wednesday, Nov. 4, in its lone exhibition game. Tip-off is set for 7 p.m. at The Pavilion, and there is no charge for admission.

2009-10 Big West Men's Basketball Media Poll
1. Long Beach State (17 first-place votes), 209 points
2. UC Santa Barbara (6), 178
3. Cal State Northridge, 130
4. UC Riverside, 127
5. Pacific (1), 126
6. UC Davis, 114
7. Cal State Fullerton, 90
8. UC Irvine, 76
9. Cal Poly, 30

Preseason Media All-Conference Team
Larry Anderson (Long Beach State), So, G
Kyle Austin (UC Riverside), Jr, F
Joe Harden (UC Davis), Jr, G
Orlando Johnson (UC Santa Barbara), So, G
Mark Payne (UC Davis), Jr, G
Eric Wise (UC Irvine), So, F