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NEC Player of the Week: Jalen Cannon, SFBK
NEC Rookie of the Week: Marcquise Reed, RMU
Previous NEC Releases: December 22 | December 15 | December 8 | December 1 | November 24 | November 17
‘TIS THE (CONFERENCE BASKETBALL) SEASON
After seven weeks of going toe-to-toe with the other 31, the time has come for the internal battle. This one that will end on March 10 with the crowning of a new NEC men’s basketball champion.
And it all starts on Saturday with #NECTipoff.
This will be a particularly grueling opening stretch for NEC hoops teams. Due to New Year’s falling on a Thursday, the first week of games has been shifted to a Saturday/Monday format, meaning teams will be playing four games in eight games to begin the conference campaign.
As a refresher, here was the predicted order of finish revealed this past October at NEC Social Media Day in Brooklyn:
1. St. Francis Brooklyn (6)
2. Central Connecticut (3)
3. Robert Morris
4. Saint Francis U (1)
5. Mount St. Mary’s
6. Bryant
7. Wagner
8. LIU Brooklyn
9. Fairleigh Dickinson
10. Sacred Heart
Based on performances during non-conference season, could we be in for a shuffling of the deck when everything shakes out nine weeks for now? Look no further than Sacred Heart. The Pioneers were predicted to finish 10th in the poll, but have win six games in out-of-league play. Fairleigh Dickinson, tabbed ninth, recorded wins over Saint Joseph’s and Princeton, and LIU Brooklyn, the eighth pick, recently won four straight games after a slow start. And what about Saint Francis U? Chosen fourth by league head coaches, the Red Flash have had an impressive non-conference campaign, entering this week with a 6-4 record, including road wins over Duquesne and Rutgers.
In fact, the general feeling among NEC writers and fans heading into league play can be summed up in one tweet:
Nelson Castillo @NelCastBHJ
Man, NEC play is going to be so much fun this season. Parity is going to be at a optimum level.
No games will be a given.
If there is one thing that parity brings, it’s competitive games night-in and night-out and a tremendous amount of intrigue as teams battle not only for NEC Tournament spots, but the right to host games in the postseason.
But if history has any say in the matter, there will be one or more teams that eventually separate from the pack. The eventual NEC regular season champion has won at least 14 games in each of the last ten years. You have to go all the way back to the 2003-04 season to find a year in which parity truly reigned in the NEC. That season, Monmouth and St. Francis Brooklyn finished tied for first that year with 12-6 records and only four games separated the teams in first and eighth place.
Perhaps the marquee matchup on the opening weekend slate pits Robert Morris and Mount St. Mary’s at 4:00 pm on Saturday in Moon Township. The two teams met in the last NEC game of the 2014-15 season with the Mount winning, 88-71, to capture its fourth NEC Tournament crown. The Colonials also take on red-hot Saint Francis U next Monday in a Western PA rivalry game among predicted NEC contenders.
Opening Weekend NEC Slate
Sat., Jan. 3 FDU at CCSU, 3:30 pm
St. Francis Brooklyn at Sacred Heart, 3:30 pm
Wagner at Saint Francis U, 4 pm
Mount St. Mary’s at Robert Morris, 4 pm
Bryant at LIU Brooklyn, 4:30 pm
Mon., Jan. 5 Bryant at St. Francis Brooklyn, 4 pm
Robert Morris at Saint Francis U, 7 pm
Mount St. Mary’s at Wagner, 7 pm
FDU at LIU Brooklyn, 7:30 pm
CCSU at Sacred Heart, 7:30 pm
All ten games can be viewed at no charge on NEC Front Row or via the NEC on the Run app (also free) for iOS devices.
So the journey begins.
And in 66 days, after 90 regular season games and seven more in the NEC Tournament, one team will be the lone survivor.
NEC PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Jalen Cannon, St. Francis Brooklyn
6-6, 235 lbs.
Sr., F, Allentown, PA/William Allen
Cannon is back in the winner’s circle for the second time this season following his fourth straight double-double performance in last Tuesday’s 71-46 win at Monmouth. The Allentown, PA product finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds as the Terriers built a nine-point lead at the half and extended the advantage to as many as 28 points in the second stanza. Cannon became the program’s all-time leader with 342 made free throws after sinking 5-6 in the win. He now has an NEC-high seven double-doubles on the year (ninth nationally) and 34 in his career, tops among active NEC performers. Cannon has also lifted his career numbers to 1,327 points and 905 rebounds, also first among active league competitors. The 905 caroms rank him 12th in league history and leave him 18 shy of reaching the top-10. Cannon averages 14.3 points and leads the NEC with 9.4 rebounds per game.
NEC ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Marcquise Reed, Robert Morris
6-3, 180 lbs.
Fr., G, Landover, MD/Capitol Christian
Reed’s second NEC Rookie of the Week honor comes on the heels of a 20-point performance in RMU’s 84-81 win over Delaware last Monday. He hit 5-10 from the field and 2-5 from three-point territory, and also added three rebounds, two assists and two steals. Reed scored seven points in the first four minutes as the Colonials built an early eight point lead, then added five points in a 9-2 spurt midway through the second half that gave the Colonials a 65-49 edge. The Landover, MD native helped ice the game by hitting 5-6 from the line in the final two minutes. Reed currently ranks second on the Colonials and second among all NEC freshman with 12.5 ppg. Since being inserted into the starting lineup six games ago, he has averaged 13.8 ppg, 2.3 spg and shot 52.5 percent from the floor.
CANNON: DOUBLE-DOUBLE MACHINE
Not a week seems to go by without noting new superlatives from St. Francis Brooklyn senior forward and NEC Player of the Week Jalen Cannon (Allentown, PA/William Allen), who is one of the league’s hottest players heading into league play.
Cannon became the program’s all-time leader with 342 made free throws after sinking 5-6 in a convincing 71-46 road win at Monmouth last Tuesday.
That same game he finished with 16 points and 13 rebounds in his fourth straight double-double performance. Cannon now has an NEC-high seven double-doubles on the year, a figure that ranks him ninth nationally. The Allentown, PA native has posted 34 career double-doubles, tops among active NEC performers.
Cannon has lifted his career numbers to 1,327 points and 905 rebounds, also first among active league competitors. The 905 caroms rank him 12th in league history and leave him 18 shy of reaching the top-10.
Cannon can become just the second player in NEC annals to finish with 1,500 points and 1,000 rebounds, joining Quinnipiac’s Justin Rutty (1,521/1,032 from 2007-11). He also has a good chance to finish as the NEC’s career rebound leader, a mark currently held by Rutty. Cannon, who leads the conference with 9.4 rpg, would need to average 6.7 rebounds over the next 19 regular season games to unseat Rutty, who set the record in 2011.
NEC Career Rebounding Leaders
10. Ted Taylor MAR 923 1981-85
11. Greg Foster FDU 916 1982-84
12. Jalen Cannon SFBK 905 2011-14
13. Durell Vinson WC 893 2003-08
14. Julian Boyd LIU 843 2008-13
15. Ken Horton CCSU 842 2007-12
16. Alan Tomidy MAR 838 1991-96
17. Freddie Burton LIU 836 1986-89
18. Nigel Wyatte WC 834 2000-04
19. Largest Agbejemisin WC 829 1983-87
20. Rik Smits MAR 811 1984-88
GAETANO MOVIN’ ON UP
In an era that has featured some of the top distributors in league history, Sacred Heart senior Phil Gaetano (Wallingford, CT/Sheehan (Choate Rosemary)) now enjoys a lofty status in NEC annals.
With 12 helpers last week, he passed former Mount St. Mary’s great Jeremy Goode for third place on the NEC’s career assist list. Only LIU Brooklyn’s Jason Brickman (1,009) and Marist’s Drafton Davis (804) have dished for more assists than Gaetano, who enters play this week with 614 dimes.
Gaetano leads the NEC and ranks 24th nationally with 5.8 apg this season.
NEC Career Assist Leaders
1. Jason Brickman LIU 1,009 2010-14
2. Drafton Davis MAR 804 1984-88
3. Phil Gaetano SHU 614 2011-14
4. Jeremy Goode MSM 603 2006-10
5. Deon Hames RID 598 1992-96
6. Napoleon Lightning SFU 589 1981-85
7. Courtney Pritchard WC 563 2000-04
8. Andre Van Drost WC 560 1982-87
9. Forest Grant RMU 555 1981-84
10. Velton Jones RMU 551 2009-13
SFBK’S JONES CHART CLIMBING
As St. Francis Brooklyn senior forward Jalen Cannon (Allentown, PA/William Allen) continues his assault on the NEC recordbook, he has some company.
Senior guard Brent Jones (Brooklyn, NY/Bedford Academy) needs just 13 assists to become only the second Terrier in history to score 500 points and hand out 500 assists. He is also 47 assists away from becoming the Terriers’ all-time leader in the category, a record currently held by Greg Nunn, who played from 1997-01.
With 487 dimes, the cat-quick Jones is now 25th on the NEC career assist list and just nine away from reaching the top-20.
NEC Career Assist Leaders
19. Antawn Dobie LIU 497 1999-03
20. Billy Kurisko WC 496 1987-91
21. James Hett MU 492 2007-11
22. John Giraldo MU 492 1992-96
23. Jamal Ragland SFU 488 1997-01
24. Derric Thomas MU 488 1985-88
25. Brent Jones SFBK 487 2011-14
STAT OF THE WEEK
Robert Morris junior guard Rodney Pryor (Evanston, IL/Notre Dame Prep (Cloud County CC)) is averaging 23.0 ppg in RMU’s four victories while shooting a scintillating 83.8 percent (31-37) from the floor, including 88.9 percent (16-18) from beyond the arc, and 82.4 percent (14-17) at the free-throw line.
CATCHING UP WITH SHU’S BROOME
Sacred Heart freshman guard Cane Broome (East Hartford, CT/East Hartford) shows no signs of slowing down in his star-studded freshman season.
After winning his second NEC Rookie of the Week honor last Monday, Broome was also tabbed ECAC New England Rookie of the Week. It marked his second ECAC honor of the season, having also earned ECAC Player of the Week accolades on December 9.
Over the holidays, Broome stuffed the stat sheet once again, averaging 17.5 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 3.0 apg, 1.5 spg and 1.0 bpg in two games for the Pioneers. He led the Pioneers with 12 points in a setback at Rutgers last Tuesday, then had perhaps his most complete performance of the season on Sunday in a three-point loss at Brown. Broome finished with 23 points - two off his career-high - on 9-15 shooting, including 3-5 from outside the arc. The three trifectas, including one with 52 seconds remaining to tie the game, marked a new season-high. He added five rebounds, four assists, three steals and a pair of blocks.
Broome currently leads all NEC freshman and ranks fourth in the NEC with 15.1 ppg. He’s also sixth in the league in field goal percentage (.511), free throw percentage (.773) and steals (1.6), 12th in assists (2.6) and 20th in rebounding (4.3).
TERRIER BOARD WORK
Winner of three of its last four games, St. Francis Brooklyn seems to have found the formula for success, and it all starts on the glass.
Over the last four contests, the Terriers have won the battle of the boards by a resounding 16.8 rpg. SFBK has posted an NEC-best 7.2 rebound margin on the year and has recorded 20 or more offensive rebounds in three games (Georgetown, Liberty and Delaware State). The Terriers have also been sensational on the offensive glass, with 190 rebounds compared to 105 for their opposition.
RMU NEWCOMERS HEATING UP
Over the last four games, the Robert Morris guard duo of freshman Marcquise Reed (Landover, MD/Capitol Christian) and junior newcomer Rodney Pryor (Evanston, IL/Notre Dame Prep (Cloud County CC)) have combined to average 31.0 ppg while shooting a scorching 59.2 percent from the field.
Reed, the NEC Rookie of the Week for the second time this season, has averaged 16.5 ppg over that span and shot 57.1 percent from the floor. He dropped 20 points in RMU’s 84-81 win over Delaware last Monday.
Pryor has supplied 14.5 points over the last four games while converting 61.8 percent of his shot attempts and 53.3 percent from beyond the arc. Pryor made 7-8 from the field and finished with 19 points in the win over the Blue Hens.
PIONEER POINTS
A win over Yale on Tuesday would be the seventh of the season for Sacred Heart. The Pioneers last won seven games before the turn of the new year in the 2011-12 season. A victory would also clinch a winning month for the first time since Sacred Heart posted a 6-3 record in January of 2013.
ON THE NATIONAL LEADERBOARD
Below are a list of NEC players who rank in the top-25 nationally in various statistical categories.
Category Name Team Stats Ranking
Scoring Dyami Starks BRY 19.8 20th
Rebounds Jalen Cannon SFBK 9.4 24th
Assists Phil Gaetano SHU 5.8 24th
Steals Brent Jones SFBK 2.58 13th
FT% Mustafaa Jones FDU .900 22nd
3PFG/Game Dyami Starks BRY 4.13 3rd
A/TO Ratio Greg Brown SFU 3.89 8th
Double-Doubles Jalen Cannon SFBK 7 9th
HERE & THERE
CCSU sophomore guard Matt Mobley (Worcester, MA/Worcester Academy) averaged 15.5 ppg and 3.0 rpg in two outings last week. He finished with 22 points in a loss to Brown last Monday, his sixth 20+ point game of the year. Mobley ranks second in the NEC with 18.0 ppg. He is also fifth in made three-pointers (2.1/game) and seventh in free throw percentage (.772).
CCSU senior guard Greg Andrade (Windsor, CT/Windsor) scored a career-high 13 points on 4-5 shooting in Sunday’s loss at UConn.
FDU senior guard Mustafaa Jones (Philadelphia, PA/Neumann-Goretti) led the Knights with 18 points in a 69-60 loss at Saint Peter’s last Tuesday. He sank 5-10 shots from the field and 3-6 from long distance, but FDU could not hold off the Peacocks, who scored the last 11 points of the game. Jones is the NEC’s fifth-leading scorer with 15.0 ppg. The sharpshooter leads the circuit in free throw percentage (.900), and ranks second in made three-pointers (2.9/game) and sixth in three-point accuracy (.408).
FDU freshman guard Darian Anderson (Washington, D.C./St. John’s College) scored 14 points, and added five rebounds and three assists at Saint Peter’s last Tuesday. He made 6-12 from the field. Anderson has raised his season scoring average to 10.3 ppg, third on the Knights and fourth among NEC freshman.
LIU Brooklyn freshman guard Elvar Fridriksson (Njardvik, Iceland/Njardvik) matched his career high with 19 points, including 16 in the first half, in last Monday’s 73-72 overtime win at New Hampshire. Fridriksson’s countrymate and fellow frosh Martin Hermannsson (Reykjavik, Iceland/Reykjavik) took over in the second half and overtime with 12 of his 15, including the game-winning basket with six seconds to go in the extra session.
LIU Brooklyn redshirt freshman Nura Zanna (Kaduna, Nigeria/Coral Springs Christian (FL)) was one of the bright spots in a loss to Hofstra on Sunday, tallying 14 points and nine rebounds in 29 minutes of action. He averaged 10.0 ppg and 7.0 rpg for the week.
Mount St. Mary’s freshman guard Junior Robinson (Mebane, NC/Eastern Alamance) finished with 12 points, five assists and a pair of steals in the Mount’s 69-68 win over Binghamton last Monday. Robinson ranks fifth in the NEC with 4.0 apg and also averages 7.2 ppg.
Wagner was led by a trio of freshman - forward Japhet Kadji (Douala, Cameroon/Gulliver Prep (FL) (IMG Academy)), along with guards JoJo Cooper (Wilmington, DE/Concord) and Romone Saunders (Temple Hills, MD/Potomac (Mt. Zion Prep)) - who notched eight points apiece in a loss at Cincinnati last Tuesday.
NEC NUGGETS
Bryant senior guard Dyami Starks has made 216 career 3PFG and is 23 shy of entering the NEC career top-20 in less than three seasons of play.
CCSU sophomore guard Matt Mobley has made 61 free throws this season, 20 more than any other NEC player.
Over LIU Brooklyn’s first 11 games, 1,184 minutes (52.6 percent of team’s total) have been played by freshmen.
LIU Brooklyn’s four-game non-conference win streak was the longest for the program since winning five straight from Nov. 28-Dec. 16, 2012.
Mount St. Mary’s is 22-6 at home under Jamion Christian.
45.1 percent of the Mount St. Mary’s shots this season have been three-point attempts, the 15th-highest mark in the nation.
After shooting 55.6 percent in a win over Delaware, Robert Morris is now 25-4 under Andrew Toole when converting 50 percent from the field.
Sacred Heart is 5-1 when it has a higher FG percentage than its opponent, but 1-5 in games where its percentage is lower. The Pioneers are also 5-0 when leading at halftime this season and 1-6 when it trails.
St. Francis Brooklyn senior forward Jalen Cannon is pulling down 4.0 offensive rebounds per game. The last NEC player to average at least 4.0 boards on the offensive glass for an entire season was NEC career rebound king Justin Rutty of Quinnpiac (4.0 in 2010-11).
Saint Francis U is shooting for its first four-game win streak since it won five in a row in January, 2011 and its first season with seven non-conference wins since 1997-98.
QUOTABLE
“We talked about just improving day-to-day since the beginning of the year and I think that we’ve been doing that. We had a really brutal schedule to start. I think over that stretch we started figuring out things, figuring out rotations and with that our guys started to feel a bit more confortable especially offensively and I think our defense has been pretty good.” - LIU Brooklyn head coach Jack Perri on his team’s non-conference season
“Very thankful we were able to pull this one out. I thought we started the game very well, and we had a really good stretch of basketball when we were able to build the 16-point lead. Then because of our excitement, I guess we took our foot off the gas. That’s what we have to take away from this game and learn from on how to put games away the right way.” - RMU head coach Andrew Toole following an 84-81 win over Delaware
“He had been our No. 1 recruiting priority, so we really loved him. One of the reasons why I think he did choose Sacred Heart is I think he appreciated how much we loved him. We literally did not miss one of his games. I thought being on the all-rookie team and maybe being rookie of the year [in the Northeast Conference] was realistic and I still do. I knew he would get an opportunity because there was a need at that position. So I knew he would be good, but I don’t know if you could predict this good. His numbers are off the charts.” - Sacred Heart head coach Anthony Latina on freshman guard Cane Broome
“We’ve had a couple of good days since we came back. I think our guys are in good spirits, and they know that our challenge is to play well for 40 full minutes. We’ve been OK for stretches of games. Now it’s time to put a whole one together.” - Wagner head coach Bashir Mason looking ahead to Monday’s game against Rider
TWEET DECK
Nelson Castillo @NelCastBHJ
St. Francis Brooklyn easily with their best win of the season in a rout of Monmouth on the road. Impressive W. The kind of win they needed.
Ron Ratner @NECHoopsRon
Quality win for #NECMBB preseason favorite @SFBKTerriers at Monmouth, 71-46. 16/13 for Jalen Cannon...7th double-double of year (7th in DI).|
Nelson Castillo @NelCastBHJ
That was a good road win for this LIU team. UNH blew out LIU in Brooklyn 3 weeks ago and LIU got their revenge although close.
Ryan Peters @pioneer_pride
I’m fairly confident I won’t be able to memorize the spelling of “Fridriksson” until mid February.
Kevin McNamara @KevinMcNamara33
Sacred Heart has excellent frosh PG in Cane Broome of Hartford. Tied w Brown with 1 minute left
Not Jerry Tipton @NotJerryTipton
Robert Morris, Vandy, Baylor, South Carolina & Alabama all have higher winning percentages vs. Calipari at Kentucky than Louisville does.
Ron Ratner @NECHoopsRon
Last 5 yrs have been pretty cool watching @JayBrick15 & Phil Gaetano zipping passes all over the court. Old school PGs. A rarity. #NECMBB