Chris Kielsmeier has no idea what the outside expectations concerning his 2025-26 Cleveland State team are likely to be. That’s not to say that he doesn’t know what they might be, he just isn’t sure which well-worn narrative will take hold before the ball is tipped in November. And there are several. Such are the fickle nature of expectations, unscientific calculations that attempt to synthesize known pieces of information, like a team’s recent performance and lists of incoming and outgoing student-athletes, then produce a guide to the unknowable.

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The last time the Cleveland State men’s basketball team took the court they fell to Illinois State in the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) championship game. That game in March saw the Vikings shoot 41.7% from the field, 25% from three, and 68.4% from the free throw line. These stats were par for the course under head coach Daniyal Robinson. Recent years involved a lot of defense but not much scoring by CSU.

In addition to the preseason picks and All-League teams, we have compiled a list of some additional preseason awards, given out to those we think will have the most impact during the upcoming season. Coach of the Year – Ethan Faulkner, Youngstown StateNow, conventional wisdom would dictate that this award go to the coach of the team picked at the top of the preseason poll, which is Milwaukee’s Bart Lundy.

Outside of the Player of the Year award and the all-conference teams, the Horizon League also selects several other individual awards at the end of each season. Here are our preseason picks to win those honors: Award Name School Coach of the Year Chandler McCabe Robert Morris Newcomer of the Year Bailey Kuhns Robert Morris Freshman of the Year

Well, it’s back to the drawing board. Between the HoriZone Roundtable and official Horizon League post-season accolades, only one player from any All-League team returns for consideration in the preseason teams this season, and while Detroit Mercy’s Orlando Lovejoy was highly considered for our preseason Player of the Year, it was another returnee, Oakland’s Buru Naivalurua, who was selected by the staff as our top player in one of the closest votes in HoriZone Roundtable history.

Maddy Skorupski had an outstanding case for the Horizon League’s Player of the Year award last season. As it was, she made the all-conference first team as a junior, thanks to finishing third in the HL in scoring (16.3), sixth in assists (3.1), and first in steals (2.8). The only thing that kept her from the league’s highest individual award was, arguably, her Oakland team’s 9-22 record.

Change is a constant. That’s been true in the Horizon League, especially in the advent of the era of the transfer portal and NIL. And every year, it’s a race to see which team can take advantage of its respective situation and rise to the top. And one of the teams that has been consistent in the previous three seasons is Milwaukee under the tutelage of Bart Lundy.

Projecting the Horizon League for the coming season is primarily an exercise in trust. After all, last year’s top three teams, Green Bay, Purdue Fort Wayne, and Cleveland State, were each battered by high-profile departures, whether through graduation or the transfer portal. So really, anyone attempting to place those schools for 2025-26 is first answering a fundamental question: how much do you trust the team’s coaching staff and established legacy to execute an instant rebuild?

Columnists We are seeking writers for each of the Horizon League’s member schools, as well as general assignment writers who are interested in covering any team. Candidates should be availabl…