news-record.com

CHARLOTTE (AP) — Radford is the choice to win a second straight Big South title and Highlanders big man Artsiom Parakhouski is the conference's preseason player of the year.

UNC Asheville is picked to finish second and Winthrop third in voting released at the league's media day on Tuesday.

The 6-foot-11 Parakhouski averaged 16.2 points and 11.2 rebounds with 17 double-doubles last season to help Radford to its first NCAA tournament berth since 1998.

The Belarus native is joined on the preseason first team by teammate Joey Lynch-Flohr, Joseph Harris of Coastal Carolina, Grayson Flittner of Gardner-Webb, Charleston Southern's Jamarco Warren and Nick Barbour of High Point.

Radford, which returns four starters from last year's 21-12 team, received 23 of 24 first-place votes from the league's coaches and a media panel. The Highlanders, coached by Brad Greenberg, are seeking their third NCAA tournament berth after losing to North Carolina 101-58 in the first round last season.

Winthrop, which reeled off four straight Big South titles before going 11-19 last year, received the only other first-place vote.

Gardner-Webb is picked to finish fourth and last season's tournament runner-up VMI fifth. High Point is picked sixth, followed by Liberty, Coastal Carolina, Charleston Southern and Division I newcomer Presbyterian, which is not eligible for the Big South tournament.

On the women's side, defending champion Liberty and High Point are co-favorites and High Point's Jurica Hargraves is the preseason player of the year.

The rest of the preseason first team includes Mackenzie Maier of High Point, Margaret Roundtree and Dominique Hudson of Gardner-Webb and Kymesha Alston of Radford.