Conference Predictions Day 9: The CCS
How is the Collegiate Conference of the South projected to play out?
Another day, another conference prediction. We’ve got the Collegiate Conference of the South (CCS) today. It is D-III’s newest conference, founded in 2022, and one of three leagues in the southeastern U.S., with nine schools having left the USA South Conference to split off and form the CCS a couple years ago. That included Maryville, LaGrange, Belhaven, and Piedmont, with Berea also included in that group. This will be Berea’s first season in the HCAC, and that has an effect on the WBB landscape in the CCS. Berea would’ve been a big favorite to win the league in its first year of having an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Asbury has joined the CCS with Berea’s departure, bringing the league back to nine for the time being. Of course, that will change again in 2026, when Maryville leaves for the SAA.
But for now, let’s focus on the season ahead. This is a one-bid league, so the conference champ is extremely important. First, let’s take a look at my preseason players of the year in the CCS.
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year: Zyhia Johnson, LaGrange: Johnson was tough to stop last season with the ball in her hands, averaging 16.7 PPG and shooting 44.9% from the field, the fourth-best percentage in the league. She scores consistently and can shoot it at all three levels, making her a focal point of LaGrange’s offensive attack.
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year: Briana McGruder, Huntingdon: McGruder started all 26 games for Huntingdon in 2023-24, and really contributed well defensively with 1.5 steals/game and 1.5 blocks/game. As a senior, she has a chance to really help Huntingdon’s defense take a step forward after showing some promise last season.
Pick to Win: LaGrange
I’ll start by saying this: games aren’t played on paper. The projections can only tell us so much, and the performance on the court could certainly be different (positively or negatively) than the expectation. That said, I’m not sure this will be a very contested conference title race. LaGrange appears to be the favorite to win the CCS by a fair margin. Head coach Jasen Jonus left to take the Oglethorpe job, but four of the five starters from last year’s 18-7 team are still at LaGrange. Standout guard Zyhia Johnson, who put up 23 points against a solid Emory team last season, leads LaGrange into 2024-25. In total, 79.7% of last year’s roster is returning, an impressive stat especially with the head coaching change. Destiny Lane-Frazier is the program’s new head coach, and comes with a background that includes multiple stints at the high school level as well as two years with Berry women’s basketball in the SAA.
Johnson is the top returning scorer, but it won’t only be her leading the way. The talent that guided LaGrange to a strong year in 2023-24 will be leading the charge again, with players like Amanda Mclendon (9.8 PPG, 8.0 RPG), Laila Battle (11.9 PPG, 84 assists), and Taylor Smith (team-high 32 blocks last season). The depth beyond the starting five may be limited, at least early on, but I think we’ll also have to see what Frazier-Lane’s style of play looks like. It’s very possible she’ll have starters playing 25-30 min/game and the depth off the bench won’t be as large of a factor. The size of a rotation really comes down to style of play, so that’ll be something to watch as the year unfolds.
LaGrange has never made the NCAA Tournament, but with the CCS having an AQ this season and Berea moving to the HCAC, the door is open for this year’s team to make program history.
Picks so far → AMCC: PSU Behrend, A-R-C: Wartburg, ASC: ETBU, AEC: Marymount, Centennial: Johns Hopkins, CUNYAC: Baruch, C2C: Christopher Newport, CCIW: Illinois Wesleyan, CCS: LaGrange.
Up next: Conference of New England