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TOP OF THE CHARTS! BRICKMAN SETS NEC ASSISTS MARK
 
“His 805 career assists currently stands atop the NEC leaderboard and, quite frankly, it’s a record that’ll never be broken. It’s like Joe DiMaggio’s 56-game hitting streak and Ted Williams’ .406 average in 1941. Barring an injury, Brickman will always be regarded as the NEC’s all-time assist leader. It’s only fitting for one of the most accomplished players in league history.” - Ryan Peters on Big Apple Buckets blog
 
It was a record 25 years in the making.
 
Long considered one of the best, if not the best point guard in NEC history, Marist’s Drafton Davis hung on to the league’s career assist record for a quarter century.  And for the first 20 or so years, there were no challengers for his crown.  His 804 assists were 201 more than the next player on the list, Mount St. Mary’s legend Jeremy Goode, who graduated in 2010 with 603 dimes.
 
As Goode moved on to the professional ranks, in stepped LIU Brooklyn’s Jason Brickman (San Antonio, TX/Clark).  The soft-spoken native of San Antonio began to turn some heads in his very first collegiate game on November 12, 2010, coming off the bench to dish for seven assists in just 15 minutes of play.
 
Fast forward 37 months to December 12, 2013 when a new king was crowned.
 
Last Thursday in a wild 96-93 win over NJIT, Brickman surpassed Davis on a second half feed to junior swingman Troy Joseph (Toronto, Ontario/Pickering), and ended with six assists on the evening and 808 for his career.
 
Of course, social media was there to congratulate the Choice Hotels/NEC Player of the Week, as Brickman heard from fans, media, coaches, teammates and former teammates.
 
Jim Ferry @CoachJimFerry
Congratulations to Jason Brickman in becoming the all time leader in assist in the NEC - NCAA record is next. Great kid n great pt G. Proud
 
Noreen Morris @NECcommish
Congrats to @LIUAthletics Jason Brickman, he just broke the @NECsports MBB assist record! It took 25 years for someone to surpass 805!
 
Vin Parise @VinParise
LIU’s Jason Brickman becomes the all-time NEC assists leader last night. The NEC has been around for 33 years.
 
Ryan Peters @pioneer_pride
There isn’t a better mid-major point guard in the nation than Jason Brickman in my opinion. It’ll be a close finish to 1,000 career assists.
 
Jeffrey Mead @meadjeff
Congrats to @JayBrick15 on setting the #NECMBB assists record. I was there for the 1st and will be watching for 1,000. Well deserved. #LIU
 
Mally Balboa. @MallyTheKid (Jamal Olasewere)
Shout out my brother @JayBrick15 for breaking the NEC assists record!
 
Ralph S. Ventre @NECralph
#NECMBB fan or not, you have to respect what Jason Brickman has accomplished for @LIUBasketball. 808 assists. No. 1 in conference history.
 
Julian Boyd @J_BOYD42
Congrats ta the best PG in the nation @JayBrick15 on breakin the NEC assist record 2nite. I’ll b back 4 u soon. #LoveMyPointGaurd
Charles Bridge @cbridge25
Not a better PG in the country. Congrats to @JayBrick15 on becoming the All-Time leader in assists in the NEC!
 
Nelson Castillo @NelCastBHJ
Congrats to @JayBrick15 for being the new #NECMBB career assist king! It’s likely there won’t be another LIU PG like him in my lifetime.
 
David Harten @David_Harten
If there’s one thing you will do while following me, it’s respect Jason Brickman.
 
Ron Ratner @NECHoopsRon
We have a new #NECMBB assist king! Congrats @LIUBasketball’s Jason Brickman. You’ve dazzled us for 4 years, now you are #1. 805 & counting!
 
Ray Curren @travelingraytmm
Took 26 minutes and change, but Jason Brickman finally official NEC all-time assists leader. Congrats and well deserved. #TMMX
 
And the NEC Overtime! blog was there as well, waxing philosophically on the art-form Brickman has turned passing into over the course of his career.
 
          What Pablo Picasso was to painting, Jason Brickman is to passing.
 
          Since arriving in Downtown Brooklyn as a freshman in 2010, the Texas-born Brickman has distributed the basketball as if it were an art form.
 
          On Thursday night in Newark, Brickman finally secured “legendary” status.
 
          He officially became the most-prolific passer in the 33-year history of the NEC.
 
          His pretty passing has not only made him a NEC record holder, but it has helped the Blackbirds become the only back-to-back-to-back champion in conference history.
 
          Considering everything he and the Blackbirds have accomplished over three-plus season, one can view the point guard’s career as a masterpiece of sorts.
 
          Brickman has produced a body of work that, when closely examined, should appear as amazing to a basketball fan as Garçon à la pipe does to (an art) connoisseur.
 
So what else has Brickman accomplished?
 
- His 290 assists during the 2012-13 campaign stand as an NEC single-season record
 
- He has 953 career points and could finish his amazing career with 1,000 points and 1,000 assists.
 
- Only three players in NCAA history - Duke’s Bobby Hurley (1,076), NC State’s Chris Corchiani (1,038) and UNC’s Ed Cota (1,030) - have reached 1,000 career assists, a figure  Brickman is on pace to reach.
 
- The Texan led the NCAA with 8.5 apg in 2012-13 and is top-ranked once again in 2013-14 with 9.9 per outing.
 
- Brickman could become only the third player in NCAA history to finish a season averaging 10+ points and 10+ assists per game, joining Southern U’s Avery Johnson and Baylor’s Nelson Haggerty.
 
- He has accounted for 27 games of 10+ assists during his career.
 
- The two-time all-NEC honoree is a three-time member of the NEC All-Tournament Team
 
- He garnered 2010-11 NIT/Met Writers Basketball Association Rookie of the Year honors and followed up with first team All-Met selection in 2012-13.
 
All in all, a pretty impressive career for a player who still has three plus months to add to his legacy.
 
THE GOOD, THE BETTER & THE BEST: REFLECTING ON SIX WEEKS OF NEC HOOPS
With student-athletes in the midst of finals, it was a light week of NEC hoops with two teams idle and just 13 games on the docket.  As such, it seems like the perfect time to reflect on the first six weeks of a season that has had more than its fare share of highlights.

Signature Ws
There’s nothing like a quality non-conference win to energize a team’s fanbase, and there have been a number of notable takedowns thus far in the 2013-14 campaign. 
 
St. Francis Brooklyn started the ball rolling on day one of the season with a 66-62 overtime win at Miami.  The victory over the defending ACC champs wasn’t the first for the NEC over a major conference schools.  Fairleigh Dickinson knocked off Rutgers (73-72) and Seton Hall (58-54) in back-to-back outings, marking the first win by an NEC school over an AAC team and first over a Big East opponent since Wagner beat Pitt back in 2011. 
 
Other big wins include Mount St. Mary’s over Patriot League power Bucknell, Robert Morris over local rival and A10 foe Duquesne, and Sacred Heart over Fordham.
 
NEC teams have also gone down to the wire with a number of major conference teams this year as LIU fell to Indiana (73-72), unbeaten Syracuse edged St. Francis Brooklyn (56-50) and Boston College beat Sacred Heart (75-67) in overtime.
 
Best Of The Best
The first six weeks have included some Superman-like individual efforts.  We’ve seen it all.  Career nights?  Check.  Clutch performances? Check.  Ridiculous shooting exhibitions?  Check. 
 
Let’s start with the NEC’s leading scorer, Bryant junior guard Dyami Starks (Duluth, MN/Duluth East), who opened his year by dropping 35 at Gonzaga, 35 at Dartmouth and 30 at home against Vermont in successive games.
 
Last year, Robert Morris shooting guard Karvel Anderson (Elkhart, IN/Elkhart Memorial (Glen Oaks CC)) put together an 8-8 shooting performance from three-point range in an 84-76 win over Ohio U.  This year, he came pretty close to duplicating that feat, hitting 8-10 long range shots in an 88-81 conquest of Texas Arlington on November 21.
 
LIU Brooklyn senior guard Jason Brickman (San Antonio, TX/Clark) has already put together five games of 10+ assists, but the most important dime by far came against Norfolk State on December 1 when he found junior guard Gerrell Martin (Bronx, NY/Wings Academy) for a fast break layup as time expired for the win.  The assist was his 14th of the game, one of two games he dished for 14 helpers this season.
 
Saint Francis U junior forward Earl Brown (Philadelphia, PA/Imhotep Charter) snared a NEC single-game season-high 19 boards in a 72-62 win at Cornell on December 7.  For Brown, it was the sixth-highest single-game rebound total in the nation this season.  Last January, he pulled down a career-best 25 against CCSU.
 
FDU senior guard Sidney Sanders, Jr. (Charleston, SC/Burke (Polk CC)) was a one-man wrecking crew in the Knights’ signature wins over Rutgers and Seton Hall.  He finished with 22 points and 10 assists for his first career double-double against the Scarlet Knights, assisting on two key buckets in the final 30 seconds.  Sanders would put on a command performance against Seton Hall with a near triple-double of 23 points, nine rebounds and nine assists.
 
How about Wagner’s Mr. Clutch, Kenneth Ortiz (Newark, NJ/Science Park (Southern Mississippi))?  With the Seahawks trailing by two with under three minutes remaining at Penn on December 7, Ortiz scored on three straight possessions, pulled down a key defensive rebound, then dove for a steal with three seconds left to send the game to OT.  His two free throws in OT iced the game for Wagner.
 
Turnaround Time
Who has made “the leap” this season? That honor goes to St. Francis Brooklyn, owners of a four-game improvement over this point last season.  The Terriers were 2-7 one year ago today, and have improved to 6-5 in 2013-14.

Freshman of Impact
With every passing week, the contributions from the NEC freshman class continue to grow.  Here are ten who have made an impact on their clubs, with many more who could be added to list as their minutes grow in the coming weeks.
 
Dan Garvin (BRY): 5.9 ppg. 5.3 rpg, 1.3 bpg
Khalen Cumberlander (CCSU): 6.5 ppg, 49.1 3PFG%
Matt MacDonald (FDU): 8.1 ppg, 21 3PFG
Will Miller (MSM): 6.5 ppg, 19 3PFG
Kavon Stewart (RMU): 4.8 ppg, 2.8 apg, 53.8 FG%
Jeremiah Worthem (RMU): 8.7 ppg, 4.6 rpg
De’von Barnett (SHU): 8.7 ppg, 3.0 rpg, 63.2 FG%
Sheldon Hagigal (SFBK): 8.1 ppg, 1.0 spg
Wayne Martin (SFBK): 9.4 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 1.0 bpg, 52.5 3PFG%
Malik Harmon (SFU): 11.0 ppg, 3.4 apg
 
FDU’s Sanders, Jr. Heads Up NEC’s Most Improved
Which player has made the biggest offensive jump over the first six weeks of the 2013-14 season? That honor goes to FDU senior guard Sidney Sanders, Jr. (Charleston, SC/Burke (Polk CC)). Sanders averaged 4.6 ppg last year in his first year with the Knights, but has developed into an indispensable player for first year head coach Greg Herenda.  The Charleston, SC native has lifted his average by 14.1 points to 18.7 ppg, making him the second-leading scorer in the NEC, just ahead of Mount senior guard Julian Norfleet (Virginia Beach, VA/Landstown), who has boosted his scoring average by 7.8 ppg to 18.6 ppg this season.
 
LIU Brooklyn and Sacred Heart each sport three players who rank among the NEC’s most improved scorers, led by the Pioneers’ Evan Kelley (Norwalk, CT/Norwalk) (+7.5 ppg) and the Blackbirds’ Gerrell Martin (Bronx, NY/Wings Academy) (+7.4 ppg).
 
Below are the top individual scoring improvements (at least 3.0 ppg) from the 2012-13 to the 2013-14 season.
 
                            2012-13             2013-14
Player                      Scoring             Scoring              Increase
Sidney Sanders, Jr., FDU      4.6                 18.7                +14.1
Julian Norfleet, MSM          10.8                18.6                +7.8
Evan Kelley, SHU              7.3*                14.8                +7.5
Gerrell Martin, LIU           3.7                 11.1                +7.4
Chris Evans, SHU              8.1*                14.2                +6.1
Karvel Anderson, RMU          12.5                18.5                +6.0
Mustafaa Jones, FDU           5.3                 9.5                 +4.2
Dyami Starks, BRY             17.7                21.6                +3.9
EJ Reed, LIU                  7.7                 11.4                +3.7
Phil Gaetano, SHU             4.8                 8.3                 +3.5
Troy Joseph, LIU              3.2                 6.4                 +3.2
 
* Did not play in 2012-13.  Stats are from 2011-12 season.
 
ON THE NATIONAL LEADERBOARD
Below are a list of NEC players who rank in the top-20 nationally in various statistical categories.
 
Category            Name                   Team         Stats          Ranking
Scoring             Dyami Starks           BRY          21.6 ppg       18th
Assists             Jason Brickman         LIU          9.9 apg        1st
3PFG/Game           Karvel Anderson        RMU          3.64/game      12th
 
COLONIALS > DUKES, YEAR FOUR
With ‘Burgh bragging rights at stake on Saturday, it was once again the Colonials who proved to have the most bite in its annual intra-city rivalry with the Dukes.  Robert Morris knocked off Duquesne for the fourth straight year, this time a 67-63 victory that saw the Colonials hit 11 three-pointers, including five from senior guard Karvel Anderson (Elkhart, IN/Elkhart Memorial (Glen Oaks CC)).  Freshman forward Jeremiah Worthem (Philadelphia, PA/Math, Civics & Sciences) supplied 15 points, four rebounds and a pair of assists.
 
If four straight wins for RMU over a well regarded non-conference opponent sounds familiar, it is because the Colonials did the same against Ohio U, taking four straight from the Bobcats from 2010-13.
 
RMU’S SHOOTING STAR
Not only is the long range shot of Robert Morris senior guard Karvel Anderson (Elkhart, IN/Elkhart Memorial (Glen Oaks CC)) aesthetically pleasing to look at, but it is also deadly accurate.  He has hit 10-16 from outside the arc over the last two games, including 5-10 on Saturday in a 67-63 win at Duquesne.
 
Anderson leads the NEC and ranks in the top-10 nationally in made three-pointers with 3.64 per game.  He is also third in the conference in three-point accuracy, making 47.6 percent of his attempts.  Over his two years at RMU, the Elkhart, IN native has hit 122 trifectas at a 45.0 percent clip. 
 
BRYANT’S FRANCIS CONTINUES CHART CLIMB
Bryant senior forward Alex Francis (Harlem, NY/Holderness Prep) continues to rocket up the NEC career scoring and rebounding lists and enters play this week with 1,681 points, tops among active players in the conference and 31st all-time.  Francis is all 19th on the league’s all-time rebounding list last week and has pulled down 803 in his career.  He is one of six players in NEC history to reach 1,600 points and 800 boards in his career.  The New York City product has a chance to become the first player in conference annals to finish with 2,000 points and 1,000 rebounds.  Francis currently ranks in the NEC top-10 in scoring (15.9, sixth), rebounding (6.3, fourth), field goal percentage (.564, 1st) and blocks (1.1, tenth).
 
VINALES, FRANCIS, STARKS STAR IN STELLAR NUMBERS GAME
In the “stellar games” category, CCSU junior guard Kyle Vinales (Detroit, MI/Phelps School) is at the top of the list.  Vinales has racked up 32 games of 20+ points over the course of his career, three more than Bryant senior forward Alex Francis (Harlem, NY/Holderness Prep (NH)).  Vinales has also tallied eight games of 30+ points, also a league-leading mark among active players.  This season, Bryant junior guard Dyami Starks (Duluth, MN/Duluth East) has hit the 30-point mark on three occasions and the 20-point plateau six times, both NEC-highs.
 
NEC Active Leaders: 20 Point Games
Kyle Vinales, CCSU           32
Alex Francis, BRY            28
Julian Boyd, LIU             20
Dyami Starks, BRY            18
Latif Rivers, WC             16
Julian Norfleet, MSM         13
Karvel Anderson, RMU         10
Jalen Cannon, SFBK           9
Louis Montes, SHU            9
Ben Mockford, SFBK           7
Rashad Whack, MSM            7
 
NEC Active Leaders: 30 Point Games
Kyle Vinales, CCSU           8
Dyami Starks, BRY            3
Alex Francis, BRY            2
 
NEC NOTABLES
 
• Bryant junior guard and NEC leading scorer Dyami Starks (Duluth, MN/Duluth East) averaged 17.0 ppg last week for the Bulldogs, who fell in a closely contested game to Notre Dame and at #3 Ohio State, before knocking off Navy, 90-80, in overtime.  Starks scored a game-high 23 points against the Midshipmen to follow up performances of 12 points against the Fighting Irish and 16 against the Buckeyes. He also averaged 4.3 rpg and hit ten three-pointers.
 
• Bryant freshman forward Dan Garvin (Bethel, CT/Bethel) contributed 8.7 ppg and 9.7 rpg last week.  He earned the first start of his career Saturday in a 90-80 overtime win over Navy, setting a new career mark on the glass with 14 rebounds.  He finished with 12 points to collect his second career double-double.
 
• CCSU junior forward Faronte Drakeford (Wilmington, NC/Pinecrest (Cape Fear CC)) averaged 18.5 ppg, 4.0 rpg, 2.5 apg and 1.0 spg, while shooting 60.7 percent from the field in a 1-1 week for the Blue Devils. He opened the week hitting 7-11 from the floor and finished with 14 points, five rebounds and three assists in a 73-59 win over Hartford on Tuesday.  He followed with a career-high 23 points on 10-17 shooting to go along with three rebounds, two assists and two steals in a 72-67 road loss to Hofstra.
 
• Fairleigh Dickinson senior forward Mathias Seilund (Dragoer, Denmark/Falkonergaardens Gymnasium) came off the bench to score a career-high 19 points on 8-11 shooting from the field, including 3-4 from distance, grabbed a team-high five rebounds and recorded three blocks and two steals at #23 Iowa last Monday.
 
• Sacred Heart junior guard Chris Evans (Stamford, CT/Stamford) finished with 16 points, seven rebounds and two steals in a setback to Harford on Saturday.

NEC NUMBERS

Bryant’s Corey Maynard finished with 22 points, six rebounds and five assists in a 90-80 OT win over Navy on Saturday.
 
Of the NEC’s top-10 scorers, nine are guards.  Bryant’s Alex Francis is the lone frontcourt player to crack the list.
 
Bryant’s Alex Francis has racked up 91 double-digit scoring games in his career.
 
With 1,328 career points, CCSU’s Kyle Vinales moved past Ron Robinson and Shemik Thompson into 15th place in school history.  Next up is Bill Wendt (1,333).
 
CCSU held a 49-18 advantage in the paint in its 73-59 win over Hartford on Tuesday.
 
FDU senior guard Sidney Sanders, Jr. is averaging 22.4 points over his last five games and has scored in double-figures in all 12 contests this season.
 
LIU Brooklyn shot 50.0 percent from three-point range in a 96-93 win over NJIT on Thursday, and has made 34 three-point shots and shot at a 47.9 percent clip from long range in its three wins this year.
 
Robert Morris is 27-4 (.871) in four seasons under head coach Andrew Toole - including 4-1 in 2013-14 - when converting at least 10 three-pointers in a contest after shooting 47.8 percent (11-23) from deep in Saturday’s 67-63 win at Duquesne.
 
Sacred Heart junior forward Louis Montes is just six points away from reaching 1,000 points for his career.
 
Sacred Heart junior guard Phil Gaetano dished for his 400th career assist on Sunday against Hartford.  His 405 assists rank him 42nd all-time in NEC history.
 
St. Francis Brooklyn held Canisius to just 13 points in the last 15 minutes of a 67-51 win on Saturday.  The Golden Griffins were held 23 points below their season average.
 
Wagner had a 12-game winning streak against schools from New Jersey snapped in a loss at Rider on Saturday.’
 
Wagner senior guard Latif Rivers moved into 18th place on the school’s career scoring list with 1,290 points.
 
QUOTABLE
 
“From Arizona to Iowa and in between, our team has played some great teams, and tonight was obviously no exception. “Iowa is tremendously long, skilled and very-well coached. Our guys were a step slow to everything tonight, but we continued to battle. Mathias (Seilund) broke out and had an excellent game. I am happy for him. Now we need to do well in exams and finally get some rest. The basketball marathon took us just under 6,000 miles, and I know that this journey will help us in conference play.  All of these experiences just make us better—playing in these environments, playing teams with size and skill, and teams that are coached so well. Our league is very underrated, but when we get to our league we’ll be able to see the basket, get a rebound, and do some of the things you take for granted. When you play up a few conferences, it’s difficult. These games are very important to us. This Iowa game is going to help us beat somebody in our league, so I think it’s very beneficial to play quality teams.” - FDU head coach Greg Herenda after playing at #23 Iowa last Monday
 
”Thank God for Iverson Fleming.  He was tremendous.  He was confident.  He attacked the basket.  He hit threes.  He got his feet set and he was ready.  I was really happy for him because we need him to gain some confidence so I can go with another guy.  He really works hard in practice, is a great teammate.  He is always very energetic and enthusiastic in practice.  He is a fun kid to root for.” - Jack Perri on freshman Iverson Fleming stepping up in LIU’s win at NJIT.
 
“Overall, it was able to keep the game at our speed rather than their speed...Great team effort. Our guys made play after play when they needed to be made.” - RMU head coach Andrew Toole on his team’s fourth straight win over Duquesne this past Saturday
 
“You never know what you’re about until somebody hits you.  Now we got hit twice in a row and that makes you questions thing a little bit and these guys bounced right back today.” - St. Francis Brooklyn head coach Glenn Braica following a 67-51 win over Canisius on Saturday
 
“Our guys came out flat.  But the bottom line was we didn’t defend against a very good team, and when you dig a hole like that sometimes guys have a tendency to start looking for a 10-point shot out there somewhere, and that just makes things worse.” - Wagner head coach Bashir Mason following Saturday’s loss at Rider
 
TWEET DECK
 
Ryan Peters @pioneer_pride 10 Dec
The #NECMBB season will be as unpredictably as we originally thought. It will be WHAT WE THOUGHT IT WAS!
 
Sean Dixon @SeanNDixon
This why @marchmadness is awesome. Uncovering hidden gems like Dyami Starks from @BryantAthletics. Can shoot! Check it out on @ESPNAusNZ
 
RMU Colonial Crazies @rmucrazies
Some things don’t change. RMU defeats Duquesne 67-63. We’re the #BigBrother here
 
Tony Romanello @tonyromanello
Karvel baby!!
 
Greg Thompson @gregthompson27
Sheldon Hagigal having another good game for @SFBKTerriers - his emergence as a legit third scoring option is huge for this team. #BKsports
 
Phil Kasiecki @PhilKasiecki
Dan Garvin may be the best freshman in the Northeast Conference, and we’re only seeing a hint of what he can eventually be.
 
Chris DiSano @CDiSano44
Grind it out day for Bryant in outlasting Navy in a 90-80 overtime game. Maynard & O’Shea playmakers down the stretch. Bulldogs now 7-5.