The Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) has just released the 2023-24 Preseason Men’s and Women’s Basketball All-GCAC Teams as well as the Predicted Order of Finish for the conference, per a statement obtained by HBCU Pulse. Both lists were selected by the GCAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Councils.

Philander Smith College’s Raymond Reece was selected as the Men’s Preseason Player of the Year. Reese returns to the Panthers as a sophomore after a storied season as he led his team to the 2023 Hope Credit Union Men’s Basketball Championship title game against Tougaloo College. Togaloo won in a tight 62-61 contest to secure their second straight conference title. Nevertheless, Philander Smith is projected to finish at the top of the conference as they boast an impressive championship-tested roster and two players selected on the All-GCAC first and second teams.

Philander Smith also boasts a talented women’s basketball team that is expected to be competitive in the conference. Lady Panthers star Myia Yelder was named the Preseason Player of the Year. Yelder, entering her senior year, had an outstanding season last year. She averaged 16.4 points per game and led the Lady Panthers to the 2023 Hope Credit Union Women’s Basketball Championship where they lost to Rust College 51-50. However, the team’s incredible level of play secured them a spot in the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) Women’s Basketball Opening Round for the first time in the history of the program. The Lady Panthers were eliminated from the conference after a 79-48 loss to Montana Western

The 2024 Hope Credit Union Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championship, hosted by GCAC, will take place at Stillman College in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Stillman College is one of the conference’s newest members.

The preseason awards list is below.

Men’s Basketball Preseason All-GCAC
Player of the Year
Raymond Reece, Philander Smith University

First Team
Raymond Reece, Philander Smith University
Antonio Patterson, Tougaloo College
Tyrus Crawford, Dillard University
Naythan Shaw-Clarke, University of the Virgin Islands
Ethelbert Anum, Talladega College

Second Team
Christione Rufus, Philander Smith University
Jalil Langston, University of the Virgin Islands
Devin Daniels, Southern University at New Orleans
Catthadious Moore, Rust College
Andre’ Brunt, Tougaloo College

Men’s Predicted Order of Finish

1. Philander Smith University
2. Dillard University
3. Fisk University
4. Tougaloo College
5. Wiley College
6. Oakwood University
7. Talladega College
8. Southern University at New Orleans
9. Rust College
10. University of the Virgin Islands

Women’s Basketball Preseason All-GCAC
Player of the Year
Myia Yelder, Philander Smith University

First Team
Mya Yelder, Philander Smith University
Nekaya Williams, Oakwood University
Diamond Hawthorne, Wiley College
Treneisha Adams, Oakwood University
Dasia, Turner, Philander Smith University

Second Team
Niya McGuire, Rust College
Zipporah Davis, Fisk University
Sharisse Bridges, Tougaloo College
Anayah Davis, Fisk University
Morgan Williams, Tougaloo College

Women’s Basketball Predicted Order of Finish
1. Rust College
2. Philander Smith University
3. Fisk University
4. Wiley College
5. Tougaloo College
6. Dillard University
7. Talladega College
8. Oakwood University
9. Southern University at New Orleans
10. University of the Virgin Islands