RICHARDSON, TEXAS – West Texas A&M Men's Basketball was picked to finish seventh in the Lone Star Conference (LSC) Preseason Poll as announced by the league office Monday afternoon. Junior guard Jailyn Sledge was named the Player to Watch for the Buffaloes.
 
The LSC Preseason Poll is voted on by LSC head coaches, sports information directors and media members. West Texas A&M accumulated 596 points to slot in at seventh. Reigning LSC Regular Season and Tournament Champion DBU took the top spot with 841 points and 35 first place votes.
 
2026-27 Preseason Poll
1          DBU (841 points, 35 first place votes)
2          Eastern New Mexico (751 points, six first place votes)
3          Lubbock Christian (735 points, two first place votes)
4          St. Edward's (670 points, one first place vote)
5          Western New Mexico (657 points, four first place votes)
6          St. Mary's (615 points)
7          West Texas A&M (596 points, one first place vote)
8          Angelo State (499 points, one first place vote)
9          Texas A&M-Kingsville (439 points)
10        UT Tyler (399 points, one first place vote)
11        Oklahoma Christian (333 points)
12        UT Dallas (316 points)
13        UT Permian Basin (294 points)
14        Midwestern State (260 points)
15        Texas A&M International (200 points)
16        Cameron (125 points)
17        Sul Ross State (73 points)
 
The 2025-26 season saw West Texas A&M produce a 20-11 record with a 12-8 mark in the LSC as they finished seventh in the standings. WT reached the LSC Tournament where their season would end with an 84-73 loss to No. 11 Eastern New Mexico.
 
Head Coach Tom Brown enters his 13th with the Buffaloes ahead of the 2026-27 season. Brown has guided WT to the NCAA Tournament in nine of the past 10 seasons while making the LSC Tournament every season. He reached the 300-win milestone at West Texas A&M last season after defeating Cameron and became the fastest coach in program history to do so.
 
Junior guard Jailyn Sledge was named the Player to Watch for the Buffaloes. After making the LSC All-Freshman Team in 2025, Sledge produced another solid season in the Maroon & White last season. He averaged 7.8 points and team-highs of 5.9 rebounds and 2.5 stocks. The Amarillo, Texas product shot 47.5% from the field to go with two double-doubles. Sledge enters his junior campaign ranked 15th all-time in steals (95) and 11th in blocks (61) at WT and is on pace to crack into the top-five in both categories.
 
Four other Buffs return from the 2025-26 squad including junior TJ Brown, senior James Parlow Jr., sophomore Zach Brown, and senior Kemper Jones. TJ made his knack on the defensive end as he appeared in 29 games. Parlow Jr. played in 26 games and averaged 10.0 points while shooting 50.3% from the field to go with 2.9 rebounds, 2.0 assists, and 1.4 steals. Zach led the team in three-pointers made with 66 on a 40.0% clip. He scored 9.6 points per game as he would be named to the LSC All-Freshman Team. Jones appeared in 26 games as he averaged 7.2 points and 3.3 rebounds.
 
2026-27 will feature nine new players for West Texas A&M with three transfers and six freshman. For the transfers, local Amarillo product KJ Thomas returns home after spending the previous two seasons at Texas El Paso. Thomas made 24 starts this past year with the Miners and averaged 5.8 points, 3.0 assists, 2.4 rebounds, and 1.2 steals. The two other transfers are junior Max George and sophomore Ryder Cheesman who come from Baylor and Missouri State.
 
The six freshmen for the Buffs include Kaden Hooker, Sean Jimmy-Ducksworth, Joel Robinson, Ben Walton, Austin Prosser, and Logan Gibson.
 
WT is set to open their season on October 30 as they take on Lincoln Memorial in the Midwest Tip-Off Challenge on October 30.
 
For all the latest on West Texas A&M Men's Basketball, stay tuned to gobuffsgo.com and follow the team on Twitter, Instagram and Facebook.