LA MIRADA, Calif. --- The PacWest Conference released its 2017-18 Men's Basketball Preseason coaches' poll on Thursday afternoon and the Eagles were picked to finish ninth in their first season in the league.

"We lost four starters and with those losses went a lot of experience," said Head Coach Dr. dave Holmquist. "So this year will be different from the last two, but we have really great kids who are working hard and want to enter this conference and do the best we can."

The Eagles join the PacWest Conference officially this season and feature a conference schedule stacked with familiar foes as they renew rivalries with Azusa Pacific, California Baptist, Concordia University Irvine, Point Loma and others.

The CBU Lancers were picked by the conference coaches with finish first in the 2017-18 season. They got 10 of the 14 first-place votes and are heavy favorites to move up one spot after finishing second to Hawai'i Pacific one year ago. Dixie State and Point Loma received two first place votes each and were picked to finish second and third.

Holmquist's team will lean on returning players Trevor Treinen, Alex Talma and Blake Shannon, Jr. to lead a young group of newcomers. Look out for Michael Bagatourian and Tyus Dennis to both see significant time on the floor and make big contributions. We will also have our first look at Isaiah Jones in competition.

"We only have one senior, so we feel like we are also building for the future and we feel we will continue to improve," said Holmquist.

The biggest games on the schedule for this Eagles team come in early-January and early-February. Biola plays Azusa Pacific at the Felix Events Center on January 6 and then hosts the Cougars for a big battle inside Chase Gym on February 3. This will be the first time the two teams have met as conference rivals in basketball since 2012. Ten Cornerstone Cup points are on the line for the men's basketball matchup.

Other key dates on the schedule include the team's season opener on Nov. 10 at CSU San Marcos, the home opener on Nov. 14 against Antelope Valley and the conference opener against Hawai'i Pacific (in Hawaii) on Nov. 30.

"We are excited to be in the conference. It's good to be back playing some of the teams we have a long history with. We will see what happens this year," said Holmquist.

Another item to note: Coach Holmquist enters the season just three victories shy of 950 all-time coaching victories.

Check out the Eagles' full schedule here. Take a look at the year's new roster here. Read up on the PacWest here.