John Cooper smiled. What else could he do?

Miami University’s first-year men’s basketball coach found out Tuesday that the Mid-American Conference media picked his RedHawks to finish last in the six-team East Division this season.

“It certainly lets you know what we’re thought of,” said Cooper, whose squad collected the lowest number of voting points in the entire conference. “I hate going back to Tennessee State, but we were always picked down there too. I don’t care about it. That’s where it is, and the team understands that. You don’t complain. What are you going to do about it?”

Ohio is the East favorite and got 19 first-place votes, while runner-up Akron got five. The Bobcats were selected as the team to beat in the MAC tournament.

Toledo was picked to win the West Division, even though the Rockets are ineligible for any postseason play because of the NCAA’s new standards on academic achievement.

Miami finished 9-21 last season under veteran coach Charlie Coles, who retired after the MAC tournament loss to UT. The RedHawks return four starters and eight letterwinners.

“Teams aren’t made in the preseason,” Cooper said. “You’ve got to get better every day, then you’ve got to do it on the court. You’ve got to prove who you are and what you are.

“Does being picked last mean we pack it in now and say the heck with it? No. As a player, it ought to encourage you to buckle ‘em up a little bit tighter and get better. The goal is to have this program sitting back where I think it should be sitting and competing on a year-in, year-out basis to be champions.”

MU will host Maryville (Mo.) for its only exhibition game today at 7 p.m. The season opener is Nov. 9 at sixth-ranked North Carolina State.