Fayetteville, N.C. - The USA South Athletic Conference has released its preseason coaches polls for men's and women's basketball.  North Carolina Wesleyan's women received a fourth-place billing among the league's 13 institutions, while the Bishop men were tabbed sixth in their respective poll.

In women's basketball, head coach Artina Trader enters her fifth season at the helm of a program that posted a 13-14 overall record last season, which included an 11-7 league mark, a fourth-place finish in the regular season standings and a semifinal appearance in the USA South Conference Tournament. Trader returns nine players from that squad, three of which started last season. Leading her returners is a senior class of five four-year letterwinners, highlighted by returning leading scorer Tiffany Bell (12.4 ppg last season).

Elsewhere around the league, Ferrum College was picked to be the top team in the Northern Division, while Maryville College headed up the Southern Division. In the overall voting, Ferrum ranked first, followed by Maryville, Huntingdon and N.C. Wesleyan.

In men's basketball, the Battling Bishops are seeking to secure the program's sixth straight winning season and will look to the experience of their six returning letterwinners to do so. In order to continue the program’s recent success, 19th-year head coach John Thompson will rely on the leadership of his two senior captains Josh Morrison and David Gurganus, who are the Bishops’ only two returning starters from last year's 16-11 squad. Thompson’s biggest task will be finding a replacement for last year’s national leading scorer and USA South Player of the Year Brandon Givens, and he hopes to find one among a talented class of 14 newcomers.

Maryville College was picked as the preseason favorite on the men's side. Last season, the Scots finished tied for sixth in the Conference standings and were ousted from the USA South Tournament in the first round.

Both N.C. Wesleyan's men and women will kick off their 2013-14 slate the weekend of November 15th by hosting a pair of tournaments in Everett Gym. The Bishop men open with their annual Roger Taylor Invitational that Friday night at 8:00pm versus Maryland Bible, while the women will take on Wesley College the next evening at 7:30 in the inaugural Jean Edge Classic.

To view the complete USA South coaches poll in each sport, please visit www.usasouth.net.