KANSAS CITY, Mo. – For the first time in school history, Talladega College has earned the No. 1 position in the NAIA Division I Men’s Basketball Coaches’ Top 25 Poll.
The Tornadoes moved to the top spot in the eighth edition of the 2014-15 poll released Tuesday. With a 23-3 overall record, the TC posted seven first-place votes and 248 total points.
With the NAIA’s longest active winning streak at 18-straight, Talladega moved up from No. 2 after former top-ranked team Cal State San Marcos dropped an 86-67 decision over the weekend.
Talladega has been on the winning streak ever since a 12-point victory over Cincinnati Christian (Ohio) on Nov. 22, 2014.
Along the way, the Tornadoes have jumped to first place (11-0) in the Gulf Coast Athletic Conference (GCAC) with three regular-season games remaining. Brandon Peters has been the individual star with 19.6 points per game (No. 17 in NAIA) and 2.2 steals (No. 13 in NAIA).
Last year’s team won the GCAC Regular Season Crown and The GCAC Tournament Championship. They finished the regular season ranked 6th in the nation while reaching the “Sweet 16” of The NAIA National Tournament in Kansas City.
Coach Matt Cross, who has led the team for the last three years, said “I could not be more excited for these young men who all decided to come be a part of something real special here at Talladega College. These guys have totally bought into the vision I laid out before them during the recruiting process and we are all fired up that we have conquered one of our biggest goals in becoming number one in the country.”
Talladega College
