ALISO VIEJO, Calif. - Cal State San Bernardino has been selected as the favorite in a tightly contested 2026-27 CCAA Men's Basketball Preseason Coaches Poll presented by Pollo Campero.
 
Cal State San Bernardino collected 178 points and six first-place votes to edge Cal Poly Humboldt by just two points for the top spot. The Lumberjacks received two first-place votes and 176 points. Defending CCAA regular-season and tournament champion Cal State East Bay earned four first-place votes and 167 points to place third.
 

2026-27 CCAA Men's Basketball Coaches Preseason Poll
School	Points
Cal State San Bernardino (6)	178
Cal Poly Humboldt (2)	176
Cal State East Bay (4)	167
Cal State Dominguez Hills (2)	163
Cal Poly Pomona	129
Cal State LA	116
Cal State San Marcos	101
Cal State Monterey Bay	99
Chico State	77
Stanislaus State	77
UC Merced	58
Fresno Pacific	49
San Francisco State	46
Menlo	33
First-place votes in parentheses

Cal State Dominguez Hills received the remaining two first-place votes and finished fourth with 163 points. Just 15 points separated the top four teams in the voting, with each receiving multiple first-place votes.
 
Cal Poly Pomona was selected fifth with 129 points, followed by Cal State LA (116), Cal State San Marcos (101) and Cal State Monterey Bay (99). Chico State and Stanislaus State tied for ninth with 77 points apiece.
 
UC Merced was picked 11th with 58 points. New CCAA member Fresno Pacific followed with 49 points, while San Francisco State (46) and Menlo College (33) completed the 14-team poll.
 
Cal State San Bernardino enters 2026-27 looking to move back toward the top of the conference after finishing 11-11 in CCAA play and 14-15 overall last season. The Coyotes finished just outside the six-team CCAA Tournament field, but closed the regular season by winning five of their final eight contests, including victories over Cal Poly Humboldt and Chico State. CSUSB has been one of the conference's most successful postseason programs in recent years, winning the 2023 CCAA Tournament Championship and reaching the NCAA national semifinals in back-to-back seasons (2023 & 2024).
 
Cal Poly Humboldt jumped from eighth in last year's preseason poll to second after a strong finish to the 2025-26 season. The Lumberjacks went 13-9 in CCAA play (17-15 overall) to finish third in the conference standings before making a run to the CCAA Tournament championship game. Humboldt defeated Cal State San Marcos and Cal State Dominguez Hills to reach the final before falling to Cal State East Bay. The tournament run helped the Lumberjacks earn the No. 8 seed in the NCAA West Regional and their first NCAA postseason appearance since 2016.
 
Cal State East Bay was voted third following the greatest season in program history. The Pioneers completed a perfect 22-0 run through CCAA play and carried a 30-0 record into the postseason before capturing their first CCAA Tournament Championship with an 80-63 victory over Cal Poly Humboldt. East Bay went on to host and win the NCAA West Regional, defeating Humboldt, Cal State Dominguez Hills and Point Loma to advance to the NCAA Division II Elite Eight. The Pioneers finished the season 33-1. East Bay's 22 conference victories marked the first perfect CCAA regular season since 1992-93, and the program's first West Regional title.
 
Cal State Dominguez Hills earned two first-place votes and was picked fourth after another NCAA postseason season. The Toros finished second in the CCAA standings at 17-5 and went 22-9 overall. After an overtime loss to Cal Poly Humboldt in the CCAA Tournament semifinals, CSUDH earned an at-large berth to the NCAA West Regional and defeated Alaska Anchorage in the opening round before falling to Cal State East Bay in the semifinals. The 2025-26 campaign followed the Toros' historic run to the NCAA Division II national championship game the previous season. CSUDH has now reached the NCAA postseason in each of the past three seasons.
 
Cal Poly Pomona was selected fifth after finishing 18-12 overall and 12-10 in CCAA play last season. The Broncos tied Cal State Monterey Bay for fourth in the conference standings and earned a spot in the CCAA Tournament before their season ended in the semifinals against eventual champion Cal State East Bay.
 
Cal State LA was voted sixth with 116 points as the Golden Eagles look to rebound from a 9-19 campaign. Cal State LA went 8-14 in conference play last season but recorded wins over Cal State San Bernardino and Cal State Dominguez Hills during the year. The Golden Eagles move up four positions from their 10th-place finish in the 2025-26 standings.
 
Cal State San Marcos and Cal State Monterey Bay were picked seventh and eighth, respectively. San Marcos finished 11-11 in CCAA play and earned the final spot in last year's conference tournament, while Monterey Bay went 12-10 and tied Cal Poly Pomona for fourth in the regular-season standings. The Otters finished 17-12 overall after leading the CCAA in scoring during conference play at 82.4 points per game.
 
Chico State and Stanislaus State tied for ninth in the preseason voting. UC Merced follows in 11th as the Bobcats prepare for their second season competing on a CCAA men's basketball schedule.
 
Fresno Pacific and Menlo College will begin their first basketball seasons as members of the CCAA after officially joining the conference on July 1, 2026. Fresno Pacific finished its final PacWest season 14-15 overall and 13-9 in league play, tying for third in the conference standings. Menlo went 5-23 overall and 5-17 in its final PacWest campaign.
 
The additions of Fresno Pacific and Menlo bring the CCAA to 14 men's basketball programs for the 2026-27 season. Fresno Pacific is immediately eligible for CCAA and NCAA postseason competition, while Menlo continues through the NCAA Division II membership process.
 
The 2026-27 CCAA men's basketball season gets underway Friday, Oct. 30, when Cal State San Bernardino faces Western Washington at the Central Washington D2 Tip-Off Classic. Conference play begins Thursday, Dec. 3. The CCAA Men's Basketball Tournament will expand to seven teams when it returns to Coussoulis Arena in San Bernardino on March 3-6.
 
All CCAA home contests will once again be available live and on-demand through FloCollege at GoCCAA.org/FloCollege.