Preseason All-Atlantic Sun Conference Team

CLARKSVILLE, Tenn. – Devontae Blanton was chosen as the Atlantic Sun Conference Preseason Player of the Year and Isaiah Cozart was picked as the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, the league announced today at the 2023 ASUN Basketball Tipoff event in Clarksville, Tennessee.
 
Both Blanton and Cozart were also chosen to the Preseason All-ASUN Team, as selected by the league head coaches.  Cozart, a Richmond, Kentucky native, was a unanimous selection as Defensive Player of the Year.
 
The Colonels were picked to win the ASUN Championship in two preseason polls conducted by the league office – a Coaches Poll and a Media Poll.  EKU earned eight first-place votes in the Coaches Poll, seven more than any other team.  The Colonels had 32 first-place votes in the Media Poll, 26 more than any other team.
 
Four starters and a total of 11 players return from EKU's 2022-23 team that finished the season with a 23-14 record and advanced to the championship of the College Basketball Invitational (CBI).  EKU returns 84 percent of its scoring, 74 percent of its rebounds, 88 percent of its assists, 74 percent of its steals and 76 percent of its blocks from 2022-23.
 
Blanton was a NABC All-District III First Team and an ASUN First Team All-Conference pick last season.  He also earned spots on the ASUN All-Tournament Team and the College Basketball Invitational (CBI) All-Tournament Team.  The 6-foot-6 wing averaged 16.9 points, 6.1 rebounds, 2.78 assists and 1.0 steals per game.  The Macedonia, Ohio native was fourth in the ASUN in scoring, third in field goal percentage, 10th in rebounding and 14th in free throw percentage.
 
On Feb. 6, 2023, Blanton was chosen as the ASUN Player of the Week after he averaged 22.5 points, 5.0 rebounds and 3.5 assists while leading EKU to wins over Jacksonville State and first-place Kennesaw State.
 
Cozart was picked to the CBI All-Tournament Team last March.  He broke the EKU single season records for blocks (94) and blocks per game (2.54).  The 6-foot-7 forward had the fifth-most blocks in one season in ASUN Conference history.  Cozart averaged 9.9 points, 7.5 rebounds and 2.54 blocks per game while shooting 64 percent from the field.  He was first in the ASUN in blocks per game, rebounds per game and offensive rebounds per game (3.16).  He ranked fourth in the NCAA in total blocks, seventh in blocks per game.
 
In an overtime CBI win against Cleveland State, Cozart set career-highs for points (20), rebounds (17), minutes (34) and field goals (8).  Two days later, he set new career-highs for points (31), field goals (14) and minutes played (40) in the CBI semifinal win over Southern Utah.
 
Season tickets are on sale now and can be purchased online at EKUSports.com or by calling 859-622-2122.  Fans can also purchase in person from 9-5 p.m. at the ticket office located in the Olympic Sports Training Center.