McDowell chosen first-team preseason All-CAA
The Tribe was picked to finish sixth in the CAA preseason poll, as voted by coaches, media, and sports information directors. It marks the highest the Tribe has been picked under head coach Tony Shaver, who enters his ninth season at the helm of the Tribe program just 16 wins shy of the W&M record for a head coach. The last time W&M was picked higher in the preseason coaches poll was in 1998 when W&M was tabbed fifth.
Drexel was picked as the preseason favorite to win the league followed by George Mason, Virginia Commonwealth University, Old Dominion, and James Madison.
McDowell earned third-team All-CAA honors for the second straight season in 2011, and is the only multiple-time returning All-CAA honoree. The Mason, Ohio, native became just the second player in CAA history to lead the league in 3-point field goal percentage (45.5) and free-throw percentage (86.6) in a single season.
McDowell also took home the Dean Ehlers Leadership Award. The award is given to the student-athlete who “embodies the highest standards of leadership, integrity and sportsmanship in conjunction with his academic athletic achievement.”
A NABC All-District honoree, McDowell averaged 5.4 rebounds per game and was one of just five players nationally to shoot 45 percent from 3-point range, 45 percent from the field and 85 percent from the free-throw line. In the first round of the CAA Tournament, he refused to let the Tribe lose to rival James Madison, scoring a tournament-record 35 points on 10-of-12 shooting from the floor, 5-of-6 from 3-point range, and 10-of-11 from the free-throw line in a 72-68 victory.
W&M will open the season by taking part in the 2K Sports Classic benefiting Coaches vs. Cancer on Monday, Nov. 7. The Tribe travels to Queens, N.Y., to face the St. John's Red Storm. The game is scheduled for 7 p.m. and will be televised nationally on ESPNU. Tribe fans can also follow the action over the Tribe Radio Network with Jay Colley, Bill McDonald and Charlie Woollum on the call. The Tide 92.3 FM in Williamsburg is the flagship station of the Tribe Radio Network, and the broadcast can also be heard over TribeAthletics.com.
The Tribe's home opener will be Monday, Nov. 14, when in-state foe Liberty comes to Kaplan Arena for a 7 p.m. tipoff. Season tickets for W&M basketball are currently on sale both online and by calling the Tribe Ticket Office at 757-221-3340.
