NEC MEN'S BASKETBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Keith Braxton, Saint Francis U
6’4”, 208 lbs.
So., G, Glassboro, NJ/The Lawrenceville School
The 2016-17 NEC Rookie of the Year has taken his game next level as a sophomore, with last week’s performance being a prime example. Braxton averaged 18.0 points, 13.5 rebounds and 6.5 assists, while shooting 56.5 percent from the field and 83.3 percent from the charity stripe in two SFU wins. After finishing with 16 points, 11 rebounds and five assists in the Red Flash’s 113-77 win over Bethany on Monday, the Glassboro, NJ turned in a signature performance in SFU’s non-conference finale against Lehigh on Friday. Braxton tallied 20 points, 16 rebounds and eight assists for his third straight double-double and league-leading sixth of the year as the Flash pulled away for an 84-70 victory. In doing so, he became just the sixth player nationally since 2010 to post at least 20/16/8 in a game. Braxton ranks among NEC leaders in scoring (17.1, 5th), rebounding (9.1, second), assists (3.1, 15th), field goal percentage (.504, 10th) and free throw percentage (.804, 8th).
NEC MEN'S BASKETBALL ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Alex Watson, Sacred Heart
6’3”, 170 lbs.
Fr., G, Marietta, GA/Allen Pope
Watson comes off the best game of his young career with a personal-best 15 points to go along with three rebounds, two assists and two steals in 25 minutes off the bench at Providence on Friday. He made all five of his shots from the field - including 3-3 from long range - and both his free throws. Watson hit two straight three-pointers to spark a late SHU rally that saw the Pioneers slice a 21-point deficit to eight with under two minutes to play. The Marietta, GA product is averaging 4.7 ppg in a reserve role for the Pios.
NEC PRIME PERFORMERS
Tyler Kohl (CCSU, Jr, G/F)
Kohl averaged a double-double with 14.5 ppg and 11.0 rpg, to go along with 3.0 apg in a pair of CCSU victories to close out non-conference play. He finished with 18 points, 14 rebounds and six assists in a terrific all-around effort in Wednesday’s 84-57 win over Maine.
Raiquan Clark (LIU, Jr, G/F)
Clark scored 21 of his 23 points in the second half to help spark the Blackbirds to a 74-66 victory at Binghamton in their final non-conference test of the season. He reached the 23-point mark on just six shots from the field - all makes - and went 11-14 from the line.
Joel Hernandez (LIU, Sr, G)
Hernandez netted game-highs with 25 points, eight rebounds and four assists in LIU Brooklyn’s 74-66 road win over Binghamton on Friday. He hit 10-16 shots from the floor, including 3-4 from three-point range.
Junior Robinson (MSM, Sr, G)
Robinson wrapped non-league play averaging 18.0 points, 3.0 rebounds, 6.5 assists and 2.5 steals in wins over American and Coppin State. He recorded game-highs with 23 points and eight assists as the Mount extended its win streak to three with a 66-53 victory over Coppin on Friday. Robinson paces the NEC and ranks 16th nationally with 22.3 ppg.
Chris Wray (MSM, Sr, F)
Wray shot 71.4 percent and averaged a double-double last week to help lead the Mount to triumphs over American and Coppin State. He averaged 10.0 ppg, 11.5 rpg, 2.0 bpg and 1.5 spg. In the win over American on Monday, he finished with 12 points, 12 boards, two rejections and three steals.
Rasheem Dunn (SFBK, So, G)
Dunn established a new career-high with 25 points and matched a personal-best with 10 boards in his second career double-double effort at Saint Peter’s on Saturday. He hit 5-10 shots from long range.
Andre Wolford (SFU, Jr, G)
Wolford contributed 21.5 ppg in two SFU wins last week, making 13-24 from three-point range. He tied a school record with nine trifectas in a career-high 27-point outing as the Flash downed Lehigh, 84-70, on Friday. Wolford is shooting an NEC-best 54.3 percent from outside the arc on the year.
PERFORMANCES OF NOTE
Brandon Carroll (BRY, Fr, F)
Carroll scored a career and team-high 16 points in Saturday’s game at Dartmouth. The freshman shot 5-10 from the field and added a personal-best four steals.
Mustafa Jones (CCSU, So, F)
Jones drained 11-14 shots from the field en-route to a career-high 24-point performance as CCSU went on the road to down UMass Lowell, 76-73, on Saturday. He added six boards in the victory.
Blake Francis (WC, So, G)
Francis poured in a game-high 24 points and tallied five steals at Dayton on Saturday. He scored 21 of those points in the second half, including 15 in a seven-minute stretch to spark a 26-10 run that saw the Seahawks trim a 22-point Flyer lead down to six with 3:18 to play.
TOP STORYLINES FROM WEEK SEVEN OF #NECMBB
Here’s all you need to know from the seventh week of the 2017-18 hoops season...
PRESS RESET, #NECTIPOFF HAS ARRIVED
After nearly two months of mingling with the other 31, we’ve brought the party back in-house to celebrate the new year.
The celebration of NEC hoops will last no less than 68 days until the crowning of the 37th NEC men’s basketball champion on March 6th.
And it all begins on Friday with #NECTipoff.
As a refresher, here was the predicted order of finish revealed this past October at NEC Social Media Day in Brooklyn:
1. Saint Francis U (9)
2. Fairleigh Dickinson (1)
3. Wagner
4. Mount St. Mary’s
5. Sacred Heart
6. LIU Brooklyn
7. Robert Morris
8. Bryant
9. Central Connecticut
10. St. Francis Brooklyn
Based on previous predictions of NEC head coaches, these rankings may need to be taken with a grain of salt.
Conducted annually, NEC coaches have only managed to correctly forecast the eventual league champion two times in the last 18 years. Over the last 30 years, the coaches have proven inaccurate on 26 occasions or 87 percent of the time.
Last season, eventual NEC champion Mount St. Mary’s was predicted to finish fourth, while runner-up Saint Francis U was tabbed ninth in the preseason rankings. A year earlier, Fairleigh Dickinson won it all after landing in the ninth spot in the poll.
With so many newcomers and underclassmen already making significant contributions leaguewide, could another topsy-turvy year be in store?
It sure does seem that way.
Saint Francis U was the unanimous preseason pick, but the Red Flash must face with life without junior guard Isaiah Blackmon (Charlotte, NC/West Charlotte), a preseason All-NEC selection who went down with a knee injury after playing just three games.
Meanwhile teams like Robert Morris (picked seventh) and Central Connecticut (picked ninth) are coming off promising non-conference campaigns and could emerge as title contenders.
But while the talk among pundits has centered around the extreme parity within the conference, 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 12 of the last 13 years. Only in 2015-16 was the magic number less than 14 with Wagner claiming the top spot with 13 wins. Prior to that, 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, St. Francis Brooklyn and Monmouth finished tied for first with 12-6 records and only four games separated the teams in first and eighth place.
If there’s one thing that parity brings, it’s competitive games night-in and night-out and a high level of intrigue as teams battle not only for the regular season crown, but also for one of the eight NEC Tournament spots and the right to host games in the postseason.
Perhaps the most intriguing game on #NECTipoff weekend pits defending champion Mount St. Mary’s and perennial contender Wagner in Staten Island on opening night. The Seahawks finished 7-4 in non-league tests, while the Mount picked up steam in December with the return of a healthy Chris Wray (Shelby, NC/Fishburne Military School (VA)).
As alluded to earlier, two of the NEC surprise teams meet up on New Year’s Eve as Robert Morris visits Central Connecticut in another game of interest.
Opening Weekend NEC Slate
Fri., Dec. 29 Robert Morris at Bryant, 3 pm
St. Francis Brooklyn at Sacred Heart, 3:30 pm
Fairleigh Dickinson at LIU Brooklyn, 4:30 pm
Mount St. Mary’s at Wagner, 7 pm
Saint Francis U at CCSU, 7:30 pm
Sun., Dec. 31 Wagner at St. Francis Brooklyn, 1 pm
Mount St. Mary’s at LIU Brooklyn, 2 pm
Fairleigh Dickinson at Sacred Heart, 2:30 pm
Saint Francis U at Bryant, 3 pm
Robert Morris at CCSU, 3:30 pm
All ten games this week can be viewed at no charge on NEC Front Row or via the NEC on the Run app (also free) for iOS devices.
So as the New Year approaches, we reboot.
Let the journey begin.
NEWCOMERS, UNDERCLASSMEN RISE TO THE TOP
A quick glance at the NEC scoring leaderboard shows the impact that underclassmen have made this season.
Of the top-12 scorers, six are freshman or sophomores. Likewise, of the top-25 scorers, just nine are seniors.
DID YOU KNOW?
NEC underclassmen have accounted for 46.0 percent of games started this year around the league. Newcomers to the league have started 30.4 percent of games played.
KOHL LOOKS TO JOIN NEC ELITE
Heading into league play, Central Connecticut junior guard/forward Tyler Kohl (Allentown, PA/Mineral Area College) has just about done it all for the Blue Devils.
Kohl leads CCSU in scoring (14.3), rebounding (8.4), assists (4.0) and steals (1.3), which puts him in rarefied air in NEC annals.
The last NEC player to lead his team in all four categories was RMU’s Jeremy Chappell, who averaged 16.7 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 3.2 apg and 2.5 spg back in 2008-09 en-route to NEC Player of the Year honors.
Only five other NEC players have turned the trick over the last 20 years and all were named to the All-Conference first team at year’s end with Monmouth’s Rahsaan Johnson voted the NEC Player of the Year back in 2000-01.
NEC Players Who Led Team In Scoring, Rebounding, Assists & Steals (1997-Present)
2008-09: RMU’s Jeremy Chappell (6.7 ppg, 6.3 rpg, 3.2 apg and 2.5 spg)
2007-08: Quinnipiac’s DeMario Anderson (21.7 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 3.3 apg and 1.5 apg)
2001-02: UMBC’s Peter Mulligan (16.0 ppg, 7.8 rpg, 3.1 apg and 1.8 spg)
2000-01: Monmouth’s Rahsaan Johnson (19.1 ppg, 6.1 rpg, 5.7 apg, 2.1 spg)
1998-99: Quinnipiac’s Nate Pondexter (14.4 ppg, 8.6 rpg, 5.3 apg and 2.0 spg)
1998-99: RMU’s Gene Nabors (16.9 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 4.6 apg and 3.0 spg)
BRAXTON & KOHL JOIN NATIONAL ELITE WITH IMPRESSIVE OUTINGS
A pair of NEC players celebrated the holidays with memorable individual performances.
Saint Francis U’s Keith Braxton (Glassboro, NJ/The Lawrenceville School) became just the sixth DI player since 2010 to finish a game with at least 20 points, 16 rebounds and eight assists in a terrific all-around effort as the Flash downed Lehigh, 84-70, on Thursday.
Likewise, CCSU junior swingman Tyler Kohl (Allentown, PA/Mineral Area College) became the sixth player nationally this season - joining Braxton - to tally at least 18 points, 14 rebounds and six assists in a game in the Blue Devils’ 84-57 win over Maine on Wednesday.
FLASH-BACK
Unanimous preseason NEC favorite Saint Francis U appears to have hit its stride heading into conference play.
Riding a three-game win streak, the Red Flash wrapped non-conference play with a 6-5 mark. It marked just the third time over the last 14 seasons SFU finished over .500 and the first time since 2014-15.
Three of SFU’s five losses were to teams ranked in the AP Top 25 (Saint Mary’s, Louisville and Duke).
MOUNT NON-CONFERENCE WRAPUP
Mount St. Mary’s finished its non-conference slate with six wins, which matched the 1989-90 team for the most non-league wins by a Mount team since the school elevated to NCAA Division I in 1988-89. The Mount went 6-6 in non-conference play in 1989-90.
Likewise, last week’s road wins over American and Coppin State gave the defending NEC champs back-to-back non-conference road victories for the first time since knocking off Bucknell and Binghamton in 2012.
CCSU REVERSES COURSE
Talk about a turnaround.
With seven wins in non-conference play, CCSU surpassed its entire win total from last season, while also matching its best non-conference win tally since 2010-11.
With an 84-57 win at home over Maine on Wednesday, CCSU has also opened the year 3-0 at Detrick Gymnasium for the first time since 2011-12.
CCSU has now shot 50 percent or better from the field five times this season, already better than the three times the Blue Devils hit the 50 percent mark in 2016-17.
WOLFORD’S RAPID RIDSE
If you needed a top “took the ball and ran with it” candidate in the NEC this season, Saint Francis U junior guard Andre Wolford (Willowick, OH/Saint Ignatius) has to be at or near the top of the list.
Wolford, who played just 13 minutes as a freshman in 2015-16 and averaged 4.7 minutes in 10 minutes a game off the bench as a sophomore a year ago, has risen to the occasion since Preseason All-NEC selection Isaiah Blackmon (Charlotte, NC/West Charlotte) went down with an injury after the third game of the season.
Wolford netted just three total points over the first three games of the year, but since that time has remarkably averaged 17.8 ppg to boost his season mark to 13.3 ppg, the third-best figure on the Red Flash.
The key takeaway from Wolford’s rise is his shooting efficiency from long distance. The Willowick, OH native leads the NEC and ranks fifth nationally in three-point percentage at 54.3 percent. He also paces the circuit and has moved up to 20th in the nation in made three-pointers with 3.45 per game.
Wolford has hit at least three three-pointers in each of his last eight games, highlighted by a career-high nine trifectas in SFU’s 84-70 win over Lehigh last Thursday. The nine triples mark the most by an NEC player this season and ranks fifth nationally on the single-game list. He scored a career-high 27 points in the victory.
For players who average at least 10.0 ppg, Wolford ranks third in the nation in true shooting percentage (.793) and seventh in effective field goal percentage (.771).
For his career, Wolford has now drained 47.1 percent of his attempts from downtown.
WRAY’S DEFENSIVE IMPACT
Chris Wray’s (Shelby, NC/Fishburne Military School (VA)) return to the Mount St. Mary’s lineup made an immediate impact on the defensive end for the Mountaineers.
With the senior forward back on the court, the Mount is averaging 9.0 steals and 4.2 blocks per game. In the eight games that Wray missed due to injury, the Mount averaged just 4.8 steals while posting 3.0 blocks per game.
Similarly, the Mountaineer defense has picked it up, allowing just 58.7 ppg and 37.6 percent shooting during the team’s current three-game win streak. The Mount is averaging just 9.0 turnovers per game over the past four contests and has posted a +5.0 turnover margin over that span.
JOJO DID YOU KNOW?
Wagner senior guard JoJo Cooper (Wilmington, DE/Concord) currently leads the NEC in three different individual categories - assists (5.7), steals (2.5) and assist-to-turnover ratio (2.1).
CLARK’S EFFICIENT NIGHT
When LIU Brooklyn junior swingman Raiquan Clark (New Haven, CT/Hillhouse) scored 23 points in LIU Brooklyn’s 74-66 win at Binghamton on Friday, he did so in the most efficient way possible.
Clark took just six shots and made them all to go along with an 11-14 performance from the charity stripe. The New Haven, CT native became one of three players this season to score at least 23 points on six or fewer shot attempts, joining Bucknell’s Zach Thomas (25 on six shots vs. Siena) and Arizona’s Allonzo Trier (25 on six shots vs. Alabama).
Clark is fourth in the NEC with 18.8 ppg. He also ranks fifth in field goal percentage (.573) and eighth in rebounding (6.5).
BOSKO LOOKING TO JOIN ELITE SHOOTING CLUB
With non-conference play in the books, Bryant senior swingman Bosko Kostur (Melbourne, Australia/Hallam Senior College) is within striking distance of the elite 50-40-90 club.
The calling card of NBA all-stars like Dirk Nowitski and Kevin Durant, the club includes players that shoot 50 percent from the field, 40 percent from three-point territory and 90 percent from the line.
Through 12 games this season, Kostur has hit at a 51.1 percent clip from the floor, 48.9 percent from downtown and 89.5 percent from the line. There are only three players nationally this season that have achieved 50/40/90 status on the year.
NEAR PERFECT WEEK FOR CCSU’S BUTE
CCSU junior forward Deion Bute (Phillipsburg, St. Maarten/Tallahassee CC) averaged 13.0 ppg last week on 11-12 (.917) from the field and 4-5 (.800) at the line. He went 6-6 from the floor vs. Maine and then 5-6 at UMass Lowell in two wins for the Blue Devils. Bute’s field goal accuracy stands at 63.5 percent, second in the NEC.
THOMAS LEADS PROLIFIC RMU FRESHMAN CLASS
With three-time NEC Rookie of the Week Koby Thomas (Philadelphia, PA/Imhotep Charter) leading the way with 13.9 ppg, Robert Morris freshman have now accounted for 51.7 percent of the Colonials’ scoring this season. Thomas paced the Colonials with his fifth 20-point scoring effort of the year last Friday, recording 20 points and eight rebounds against Canisius.
NEC in NCAA STATS (Top-25)
Name School Category Rank Value
Junior Robinson MSM PPG 16th 22.3/gm
Andre Wolford SFU 3P 20th 3.45/gm
Andre Wolford SFU 3PFG% 5th .543
Junior Robinson MSM FT% 10th .942
Joseph Lopez SHU Off. Reb. 12th 3.69/gm
Keith Braxton SFU Def. Reb. 14th 7.64/gm
Keith Braxton SHU Doub-Doub 20th 6
JoJo Cooper WC Steals 18th 2.45/gm
Team Category Rank Value
Fairleigh Dickinson Steals 17th 9.1/gm
Wagner Off. Reb. 14th 13.82/gm
Robert Morris TOs Forced 10th 18.69/gm