KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Missouri Southern men's and women's basketball attended the 2026 Mid-America Intercollegiate Athletics Association (MIAA) Basketball Media Day Tuesday at The College Basketball Experience in downtown Kansas City.

The event was sponsored by Seigfreid Bingham, with Brenda VanLengen serving as the emcee. All 28 MIAA head coaches gathered at The College Basketball Experience to preview the upcoming season and take questions from media members in attendance.

Men's basketball head coach Sam McMahon and women's basketball head coach Ronnie Ressel addressed the media at 9:30 a.m. CT. Basketball student-athletes Nariah Clay, Ashlyn Alloway, Gavyn Elkamil, Isaiah Atwater and Colin Ruffin also represented the Lions in Kansas City.

The MIAA Basketball Media Day was streamed live for free on The MIAA Network.

McMahon is in his fifth season at MSSU and owns a 59-59 career record. The Lions went 18-13 (10-9 MIAA) in 2025-26 and return three starters, including All-MIAA selections Gavyn Elkamil and Colin Ruffin, from a team that advanced to the MIAA Tournament semifinals.

Ressel is in his 11th season at the helm of the Lions program and owns a 168-129 career record. MSSU returns three All-MIAA selections in Ashlyn Alloway, Grace Frazier and Nariah Clay, who helped lead Southern to a 20-10 (13-6 MIAA) record in 2025-26 and an appearance in the MIAA Tournament semifinals.

2026-27 MIAA BASKETBALL PRESEASON POLLS
The MIAA also announced its 2026-27 men's and women's basketball preseason coaches and media polls Tuesday.

The Missouri Southern women were selected third in both polls. The Lions received 143 points and one first-place vote in the coaches poll and 325 points in the media poll.

The league's defending women's regular-season champion, Central Missouri, was picked to reclaim the conference crown by both MIAA head coaches and media representatives.

Central Missouri collected 163 points and 10 first-place votes to secure the top spot in the 2026-27 MIAA women's basketball preseason coaches poll. The Jennies were also picked as the MIAA favorite by media members who cover MIAA teams, receiving 372 points and 16 first-place votes in the preseason media poll.

Fort Hays State was selected second in both preseason polls. The Tigers earned one first-place vote and totaled 147 points in the coaches poll, while receiving 13 first-place votes and 355 points from media representatives.

On the men's side, Missouri Southern was selected fourth in the MIAA Preseason Coaches Poll and seventh in the MIAA Preseason Media Poll. The Lions received 120 points and one first-place vote from league coaches and 241 points in the media poll.

Washburn, the defending MIAA men's regular-season and tournament champion, was picked as the favorite in both preseason polls. The Ichabods collected 168 points and 12 first-place votes to secure the top spot in the coaches poll. Washburn was the unanimous choice of media representatives who cover MIAA teams, receiving 392 points and all 30 first-place votes in the media poll.

Central Missouri was selected second by MIAA head coaches and third by media members.

The 2027 MIAA Basketball Championships return to Kansas City's Municipal Auditorium March 3-7.

MEN'S PRESEASON COACHES POLL

1. Washburn [12] – 168 points
2. Central Missouri [1] – 154 points
3. Missouri Western – 123 points
   4. Missouri Southern [1] – 120 points
4. Arkansas-Fort Smith – 114 points
5. Rogers State – 111 points
6. Pittsburg State – 104 points
7. Fort Hays State – 103 points
8. Central Oklahoma – 90 points
9. Northwest Missouri – 59 points
10. Nebraska Kearney – 43 points
11. Emporia State – 36 points
12. Northeastern State – 35 points
13. Newman – 14 points

[#] – First-place votes

MEN'S PRESEASON MEDIA POLL

1. Washburn [30] – 392 points
2. Rogers State – 326 points
3. Central Missouri – 322 points
4. Missouri Western – 293 points
5. Fort Hays State – 253 points
6. Arkansas-Fort Smith – 252 points
   7. Missouri Southern – 241 points
7. Pittsburg State – 206 points
8. Central Oklahoma – 193 points
9. Northwest Missouri – 155 points
10. Nebraska Kearney – 101 points
11. Northeastern State – 86 points
12. Emporia State – 79 points
13. Newman – 41 points

[#] – First-place votes

WOMEN'S PRESEASON COACHES POLL

1. Central Missouri [10] – 163 points
2. Fort Hays State [1] – 147 points
   3. Missouri Southern [1] – 143 points
3. Northwest Missouri – 120 points
4. Washburn [1] – 113 points
5. Pittsburg State – 108 points
6. Missouri Western [1] – 107 points
7. Nebraska Kearney – 93 points
8. Northeastern State – 91 points
9. Emporia State – 56 points
10. Central Oklahoma – 53 points
11. Rogers State – 35 points
12. Arkansas-Fort Smith – 28 points
13. Newman – 17 points

[#] – First-place votes

WOMEN'S PRESEASON MEDIA POLL

1. Central Missouri [16] – 372 points
2. Fort Hays State [13] – 355 points
   3. Missouri Southern – 325 points
3. Washburn [1] – 298 points
4. Pittsburg State – 281 points
5. Northwest Missouri – 245 points
6. Missouri Western – 204 points
7. Northeastern State – 201 points
8. Emporia State – 171 points
9. Nebraska Kearney – 149 points
10. Central Oklahoma – 122 points
11. Rogers State – 109 points
12. Arkansas-Fort Smith – 75 points
13. Newman – 33 points

[#] – First-place votes

NEXT: Missouri Southern men's and women's basketball will officially open the 2026-27 season in November, with both programs facing a challenging non-conference schedule before beginning MIAA play. The men's basketball team will open the season at the MIAA/GAC Crossover in Wichita, Kansas, facing Arkansas Tech on Nov. 13 and Southwestern Oklahoma State on Nov. 14. The women's basketball team will open its regular season at home on Monday, Nov. 9, against Cottey College at the Robert Ellis Young Gymnasium.

MSSU Tickets: Fall MSSU Athletic tickets are currently on sale online. Fans can also purchase an MIAA Network subscription to support Missouri Southern Athletics and catch all the Lions action this 2026-27 season.