Southland announces 2021-22 men’s basketball preseason all-conference teams

Seven programs represented on two preseason all-conference squads

FRISCO, Texas – Nicholls guard and reigning Southland Conference Newcomer of the Year Ty Gordon headlines the 2021-22 Southland Conference Men’s Basketball Preseason All-Conference teams, announced by the league Tuesday. Seven schools were represented among 10 selections.

A transfer out of Troy University, Gordon finished his debut season with the seventh-best scoring output in conference play (16.1) and shot 46.2 percent from the field and 34.4 percent from beyond the arc against league foes. He averaged a team-high 34.5 minutes per game in Southland competition, good for fifth in the league.

The Colonels, along with Southeastern and UIW, lead the way with two selections each. Nicholls’ Ryghe Lyons joined his teammate on the top squad. Southeastern’s Keon Clergeot and Gus Okafor landed on the first and second team, respectively, while Brandon Swaby and Drew Lutz represented the Cardinals on the second team.

Lyons was a dominating presence in the Nicholls frontcourt, ranking second in the Southland with 1.8 blocks per game in conference play. In addition to his 8.1 PPG, he averaged 6.1 boards in league action, which ranked 13th.

Clergeot finished second to Player of the Year Zach Nutall in scoring against league opponents (17.9), and Okafor posted the 10th-best rebounding mark in Southland play (7.0).

New Orleans’ Troy Green was voted to the first team after finishing as one of just three Southland student-athletes to rank in the top 10 in scoring (15.7) and field-goal percentage (.500), and top-20 in rebounding (5.3) in conference competition.

Entering his final season, Texas A&M-Corpus Christi’s Myles Smith ranks seventh in program history in career three-pointers made (126) after averaging 1.6 per game last year against Southland foes, which ranked 16th league-wide.

HBU’s Za-Ontay Boothman and Northwestern State’s Larry Owens rounded out the preseason honorees on the second team.

The preseason teams were chosen by a poll of the conference’s head coaches and sports information directors. Voters were not allowed to select their institution’s players.

The Southland men’s basketball season gets underway Tuesday, Nov. 9, and will culminate at the 2022 Southland Conference Tournament, March 9-12, at the Leonard E. Merrell Center in Katy, Texas.

2021-22 Southland Conference Men’s Basketball Preseason All-Conference Teams

* Automatic Selection, 2020-21 All-Conference Team Member