Happy New Year!

PDF Release
NEC Player of the Week: Jalen Gibbs, MSM
NEC Rookie of the Week: Jordan Minor, MC 
Previous NEC Releases: December 23 | December 16 | December 9  | December 2 | November 25 | November 18 | November 11 | Preseason Poll Release

NEC MEN'S BASKETBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Jalen Gibbs, Mount St. Mary’s
6’3”, 185 lbs.
Jr., G, Indian Head, MD/North Point (Drake)
Gibbs erupted for a season-high 27 points in the Mount’s 79-55 win over Coppin State last Friday to close out non-league play. He hit 10-21 from the floor, matched a career-high with six three-pointers, and added six rebounds and three assists. Gibbs scored 14 in the second half, including two straight triples to balloon a seven-point lead to 13 with 13:05 to play. The Indian Head, MD native enters NEC competition as the Mount leader in scoring (13.0) and trifectas (20).

NEC MEN'S BASKETBALL ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Jordan Minor, Merrimack
6’8”, 220 lbs.
Fr., F, Kingston, MA/Brimmer and May
Minor’s second NEC Rookie of the Week selection follows a 10-point outing in a narrow 69-67 setback to Boston University on Sunday. He shot 4-7 from the floor in a 17-minute stint off the bench, and chipped in with a pair of rebounds and an assist. Minor, who hails from Kingston, MA, averages 7.2 ppg, shoots a team-high 52.4 percent from the field and is the Warriors’ second-leading rebounder at 4.8 per outing.

NEC PRIME PERFORMERS

Adam Grant (BRY, Sr, G)
Grant lit up another major conference opponent with a game-high 25 points at #13 Maryland on Sunday. He hit 7-14 shots from distance. Grant ranks second in the NEC in scoring at 19.0 ppg and tops the circuit with 3.5 three-pointers per outing.

Ikenna Ndugba (BRY, R-Jr, G)
Ndugba postedOK a season-high 18 points and matched his season-best with six dimes against #13 Maryland on Sunday. He shot 8-14 from the field and added three rebounds and a pair of steals.

Ian Krishnan (CCSU, So, G)
Krishnan, a 2018-19 NEC All-Rookie pick, made an immediate impact in his first game of the season. He hit 5-10 from three-point range and 8-14 overall on his way to a game-high 23 points in CCSU’s win over Connecticut College on Sunday.

Ty Flowers (LIU, R-Jr, F)
Flowers racked up a season-high 25 points on near perfect 11-13 shooting in LIU’s win over Centenary on Saturday. He hit 3-5 from downtown, and contributed six rebounds, six assists and a pair of steals. Flowers is third in the NEC with 9.2 rpg.

Vado Morse (MSM, So, G)
Morse broke out of a shooting slump, hitting 5-8 from outside the arc while dropping a season-high 22 points in Friday’s 79-55 win over Coppin St. He added six rebounds, three assists and a steal.

Jalen Gibbs (MSM, Jr, G)
Gibbs netted a game-high and season-best 27 points to help spark the Mount to a 24-point win over Coppin State on Friday. He matched a personal-best with six shots from downtown, and also pitched in with six rebounds and three assists. Gibbs leads the Mountaineers with 13.0 ppg.

Cameron Parker (SHU, So, G)
Parker stuffed the stat sheet with 16 points, eight rebounds and seven assists in a one-point setback to Lafayette on Sunday. The sophomore leads the NEC and ranks third nationally with 8.7 apg.

Curtis Cobb (WC, Gr, G)
Cobb scored a game-high 19 points to go along with four rebounds and three assists vs. Fairfield on Saturday. He hit three shots from long range. Cobb is third in the league with 3.33 3P per game and ranks fourth in 3P accuracy at 41.1 percent. He’s also the NEC’s third-leading scorer at 17.6 ppg.

PRESS RESET, #NECNEWYEAR IS HERE

After 55 days battling the other 31, the #NECNewYear has arrived, a celebration of NEC hoops that will last 69 days until the crowning of the 39th NEC men’s basketball champion on March 10th.
 
It all starts this Thursday.
 
But first let’s rewind back two months to NEC Social Media Day and see how the league’s head coaches projected the final standings: 
 
1. LIU (5)
2. Sacred Heart (3)
3. Saint Francis U (1)
4. Fairleigh Dickinson (2)
5. Robert Morris
6. Bryant
7. Mount St. Mary’s
8. St. Francis Brooklyn
9. Wagner
10. Central Connecticut
11. Merrimack
 
While these rankings make for great discussion and debate, there has been little correlation over the years between the preseason poll and year-end outcome.
 
Conducted annually, NEC coaches have only managed to correctly forecast the eventual league champion two times in the last 20 years. Over the last 32 years, the coaches have proven inaccurate on 28 occasions or 88 percent of the time.
 
A year ago, preseason favorite Saint Francis U finished as the NEC regular season co-champion, but lost in the title game to Fairleigh Dickinson, the runner-up in the poll. It was a near miss by the coaches, but in actuality, it was the closest they have come to an accurate forecast since correctly choosing LIU to win it all in 2013.
 
Two years ago, eventual NEC champion LIU Brooklyn was predicted to finish sixth. A year earlier, Mount St. Mary’s won it all after landing fourth in the poll. Fairleigh Dickinson took home the trophy in 2016 while being picked ninth in the ten-team league, a year after Robert Morris was crowned champion after a third place selection. In 2014, the Mount captured the title despite being picked sixth in the preseason.
 
With the coaches’ picks in mind, let’s take a look at what went down the last two months. A number of NEC teams are coming off strong non-conference seasons, giving a glimpse as to those who may shape up as NEC contenders.
 
Picked sixth, Bryant racked up an NEC-best eight non-league wins, which also matched the most in the program’s DI history. As part of the 8-5 slate, the deep Bulldogs squad closed with four wins in their last five games, with the lone loss coming at #13 Maryland this past Sunday in a competitive contest. Bryant won four true road games, went 4-1 at home, suffered a pair of setbacks by just two points - one of which came vs. Rutgers - and dropped another in OT. 
 
“I’m happy with where we are but not remotely satisfied,” said Bryant head coach Jared Grasso after Sunday’s game at Maryland. “We go into league play now and we’re 0-0. If we don’t show up Thursday and Saturday for our first two league games, the strides we’ve made will mean nothing. We’re trending in the right direction – I like my group, I like their toughness, I like their character, I like how hard they play.”
 
Sacred Heart and Saint Francis U both ended non-league play with seven wins apiece.
 
The Pioneers, who were slotted second by NEC head coaches, had won five-of-six until suffering a last-second, 67-66 loss to Lafayette on Sunday. Like Bryant, SHU also won four games on the road. The high-scoring Pios won six of their games by double digit margins and posted a +21.3 margin over their seven non-conference victories. 
 
Both Bryant and Sacred Heart will be looking to capture their first-ever NEC crown.
 
The Red Flash head into NEC play as the league’s hottest team, having won five straight to close its out-of-conference schedule, with wins at Saint Joseph’s and UMBC, and at home vs. William & Mary. The seven non-league victories are the most for the program since 1997-98, and the five-game non-conference win streak is the longest for SFU during its 39-year run in the NEC. The Red Flash are the NEC’s highest rated team according to both the NET (133) and KenPom (176) rankings. With reigning NEC Player of the Year Keith Braxton (Glassboro, NJ/Delsea (Lawrenceville School)) leading the way, the Red Flash will look to improve on their predicted #3 finish and claim the program’s first NEC title since 1991.
 
“It has been a long time since we’ve won seven-games before league play and it is something we should be proud of,” said SFU head coach Rob Krimmel. “At the same time, everyone is now 0-0. We will hit the reset button and get ready for our conference opener at Bryant on January 2.”
 
While Merrimack is ineligible for the NEC Tournament during its DI transition, the Warriors have certainly outperformed expectations, winning six non-league games after being voted 11th in the preseason rankings. Most notably, Merrimack downed Northwestern, 71-61, in just the program’s second DI game back on November 8.
 
Preseason favorite LIU has shown glimpses of its potential throughout November and December, highlighted by a win over a red-hot Delaware team on December 20.
 
And how about St. Francis Brooklyn and Robert Morris as NEC contenders? The Terriers wrapped non-conference play with three straight wins while Robert Morris knocked off FGCU and Central Michigan to pick up two solid December victories during the latter portion of its typically challenging non-conference slate.
 
A young Mount St. Mary’s squad performed admirably against high-major competition, holding second half leads at Georgetown and Washington. Likewise, a Wagner team comprised almost entirely of newcomers may have its best basketball ahead of it with a series of impact newcomers leading the way. Ditto for CCSU, a team with seven freshmen that will benefit from the return of 2018-19 All-NEC Rookie sharpshooter Ian Krishnan (Boyds, MD/Proctor Academy (NH)).
 
Then there’s the case of battle-tested defending champion Fairleigh Dickinson, which struggled during non-conference play, but with a healthy Xzavier Malone-Key (Philadelphia, PA/Plymouth Whitemarsh) back in the lineup to team up with junior guard Jahlil Jenkins (Ranson, WV/Virginia Academy), the Knights may be a headache for teams come March.
 
With all the uncertainty, the chatter surrounding the NEC’s parity will only intensify now with the start of conference play. KenPom has pegged Sacred Heart as the eventual regular season champion with 13 wins, followed closely behind by Bryant and Saint Francis U with 12 apiece. In total, ten teams are projected to win at least seven league games.
 
But if history has any say in the matter, there will be one or more teams that eventually separate from the pack. The NEC regular season champion has won at least 14 games in 13 of the last 15 years. Only in 2015-16 (Wagner, 13 wins) and 2018-19 (FDU and SFU, 12 wins) was the magic number less than 14. 
 
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.
 
The most intriguing game on #NECNewYear weekend may be the league’s lid lifter when Saint Francis U visits Bryant in a matchup of two red-hot teams. The matinee tips off at 4:00 pm on Thursday.
 
The NEC’s first national TV game takes place on Saturday at 2 pm when LIU visits Mount St. Mary’s. Dave Popkin (PxP), Joe DeSantis (color) and John Schmeelk (sideline) are on the call. That evening, the NEC returns to its regional TV roots as Wagner plays host to Sacred Heart in a game to air on SNY. Paul Dottino (PxP) and Dave Calloway (color) are in the booth.
 
Opening Weekend NEC Slate
Thur.., Jan. 2               Saint Francis U at Bryant, 4 pm
                                    Wagner at Mount St. Mary’s, 7 pm
                                    Robert Morris at CCSU, 7 pm
                                    FDU at St. Francis Brooklyn, 7 pm
                                    Merrimack at Sacred Heart, 7 pm
Sat., Jan. 4                  FDU at Bryant, 1 pm
                                    LIU at Mount St. Mary’s, 2 pm (CBSSN)
                                    Saint Francis U at CCSU, 3:30 pm
                                    Robert Morris at Merrimack, 4 pm
                                    Sacred Heart at Wagner, 7 pm (SNY)
 
All games aside from the LIU-Mount game on CBSSN week can be viewed free of charge on NEC Front Row or via the NEC on the Run series of streaming and mobile apps.
 
So, as the New Year approaches, we reboot.
 
Let the journey to madness begin. 
 
BRYANT’S GRANT SHINES UNDER BRIGHT LIGHTS 
 
It shouldn’t come as a surprise when Bryant senior Adam Grant (Franklin, VA/Norfolk Collegiate School) puts up big numbers against elite competition.
 
His 25-point performance at #13 Maryland on Sunday simply padded his resume against major conference opponents going back to his freshman season.
 
at Notre Dame (11/12/16) - 13p, 3r, 4a, 4-6 FG, 3-5 3PFG
at Gonzaga (11/18/16) - 17p, 3r, 2a, 6-12 FG, 4-7 3PFG
at Northwestern (11/25/16) - 19p, 3r, 4a, 6-10 FG, 3-6 3PFG
at Georgia (11/10/17) - 24p, 4r, 8-18 FG, 3-7 3PFG
at NC State (11/14/17) - 24p, 4r, 6a, 9-16 FG, 5-8 3P
at Iowa (12/29/18) - 23p, 2r, 1a, 9-20 FG, 5-12 3P
at Rutgers (11/7/19) - 23p, 6r, 6a, 5-11 3P
at Maryland (12/29/19) - 25p, 7-14 3P
 
Grant, a preseason All-NEC selection, has averaged 21.0 ppg and hit 35-70 (.500) from outside the arc over these eight games.
 
HAYES SETS ASSISTS MARK
 
The accolades continue to pile up for Merrimack senior guard Juvaris Hayes (Paterson, NJ/St. Anthony).
 
On Sunday, the Paterson, NJ native became the school’s all-time assist leader with 826 helpers. He eclipsed Merrimack Hall of Famer Darren Duncan, who racked up 825 from 2006-10.
 
Hayes leads all active DI players in assists and steals (376), and ranks 13th in points (1,743) and 33rd in rebounds (661).
 
QUICK HITTERS
 
With seven three-pointers at Maryland on Sunday, Bryant senior guard Adam Grant’s (Franklin, VA/Norfolk Collegiate School) moved up two spots to 17th on the NEC’s all-time three-pointer list with 249 triples. He needs just 21 more to move into the top-10.
 
Fairleigh Dickinson junior guard Jahlil Jenkins (Ranson, WV/Virginia Academy) needs nine points to reach 1,000 for his career.
 
The NEC won 20 true road games over the course of the non-conference season, second to only the Southern Conference’s 25 wins. 
 
Saint Francis U senior guard Keith Braxton (Glassboro, NJ/Delsea (Lawrenceville School)) is fifth on the NEC’s career rebounding list, and with 991, needs just nine more to become the fifth player in league history to reach 1,000 boards. 
 
Mount St. Mary’s hit a season-high 14 three-pointers in Friday’s 79-55 win over Coppin State. NEC Player of the Week Jalen Gibbs (Indian Head, MD/North Point) hit six, while sophomore guard Vado Morse (Suitland, MD/Bullis School) drained five. 
 
LIU’s 125 points in its win over Centenary on Saturday was its most in a game since 2003, when the Sharks lost to St. Francis Brooklyn in the highest scoring game in NEC history, a 142-140 double overtime thriller. The Sharks also dished for a program record 39 assists and made 20 three-pointers, the most since hitting 21 against Robert Morris on February 3, 1997.
 
LIU sophomore guard Devin Nicholson (Staten Island, NY/St. Joseph by the Sea) not only recorded his first career field goal, but went 6-9 from three-point territory to finish with 18 points in a 13-minute stint off the bench vs. Centenary on Saturday.

NEC in NCAA STATS (Top-25)
 
Name                    School         Category       Rank       Value
Hall Elisias            BRY            Blocks         12th       3.0
Adam Grant              BRY            3PFG           11th       3.46
Patrick Harding         BRY            Reb.           25th       9.9
Raiquan Clark           LIU            PPG            25th       20.6
Ty Flowers              LIU            Def. Reb.      19th       7.46
Juvaris Hayes           MC             Steals         5th        3.08
Josh Williams           RMU            3PFG           13th       3.38
E.J. Anosike            SHU            Reb.           15th       10.7
E.J. Anosike            SHU            Off. Reb.      14th       3.85
Cameron Parker          SHU            Assists        3rd        8.7
Jare’l Spellman         SHU            Blocks         21st       2.62
Curtis Cobb             WC             3PFG           15th       3.33
 
Team                    Category        Rank          Value
LIU                     3PFG            9th           10.6
Merrimack               TO Margin       11th          5.77
Merrimack               Steals          9th           10.08
Sacred Heart            FT%             5th           .800
Sacred Heart            Rebounding      13th          42.0
Sacred Heart            Def. Reb.       23rd          29.38
Saint Francis U         FT%             22nd          .773