1. Robert Morris
2. Mount St. Mary’s
3. St. Francis (NY)
4. St. Francis (PA)
5. LIU Brooklyn
6. Wagner
7. Bryant
8. Sacred Heart
9. Fairleigh Dickinson
10. Central Connecticut
The NEC is a pretty wide open conference – Robert Morris was looking like they had a loaded backcourt that they could ride to a second straight NCAA berth, but then rising sophomore stud Marcquise Reed shockingly transferred to Clemson. He was an outstanding newcomer last year as a freshman and had the look of an all-conference player for the next 3 years. Without him, Robert Morris still has a player of the year candidate in Rodney Pryor, but the battle at the top should be much more even.
St. Francis had the league’s best defense a year ago, but they lose several crucial pieces. They are likely to still be a contender with Amdy Fall’s incredible shot-blocking, but they’ll need the new members of the backcourt to step up. Mount St Mary’s has some very intriguing pieces back, including 5’5 dynamo “Junior” Robinson. He, BK Ashe, and Gregory Graves are a fearsome trio. St. Francis (PA) similarly has a solid top threesome with point guard Malik Harmon, wing Greg Brown, and forward Ronnie Drinnon, but the rebounding outside of Drinnon is a major concern. Bryant finished third in the conference and brings back point guard Shane McLaughlin and post Dan Garvin, but the inexperience of the role players gives me some pause there.
But in the end, I’m riding with Pryor and Robert Morris again. Pryor is a flat-out scorer (and hit 43% on nearly 200 attempts), forward Elijah Minnie and freshman Isaiah Still are great complements, and Robert Morris’s ability to force turnovers (26th in the country) behind Kavon Stewart’s ball pressure will make a major difference in a turnover-prone league.
All Conference:
POY: Rodney Pryor, Robert Morris
Coach of the Year: Jamion Christian, Mount St. Mary’s
Newcomer of the Year: Jerome Frink, LIU Brooklyn
First team
G – Rodney Pryor, Senior, Robert Morris
G – Cane Broome, Sophomore, Sacred Heart
F – Gregory Graves, Senior, Mount St. Mary’s
F – Dan Garvin, Junior, Bryant
F – Mike Aaman, Senior, Wagner
Second team
G – Martin Hermannsson, Sophomore, LIU-Brooklyn
G – Tyreek Jewell, Senior, St. Francis (NY)
G – BK Ashe, Junior, Mount St. Mary’s
F – Elijah Minnie, Sophomore, Robert Morris
F – Amdy Fall, St Francis (NY)
Third team
G – Lamont “Junior” Robinson, Sophomore, Mount St. Mary’s
G – Kavon Stewart, Junior, Robert Morris
G – Malik Harmon, Junior, St. Francis (PA)
F – Ronnie Drinnon, Senior, St. Francis (PA)
F – Brandon Peel, Senior, Central Connecticut
1. Robert Morris
C – Elijah Minnie, 6’8, Sophomore
PF – Billy Giles, 6’7, Junior
G – Rodney Pryor, 6’5, Senior
SG – Isaiah Still, 6’6, Freshman
PG – Kavon Stewart, 6’0, Junior
Reserves: Aaron Tate, 6’5, Sr.; Stephan Bennett, 6’9, Sr.; Matty McConnell, 6’2, Fr.; Andre Frederick, 6’8, So.; Joe Hugly, 6’5, Fr.
Postseason Prediction:
2. Mount St. Mary’s
C – Taylor Danaher, 7’0, Senior
PF – Gregory Graves, 6’7, Senior
SF – Will Miller, 6’6, Junior
SG – BK Ashe, 6’0, Junior
PG – Lamont “Junior” Robinson, 5’5, Sophomore
Reserves: Andy Smeathers, 6’8, Sr.; Khalid Nwandu, 6’3, Jr.; Troy Henderson, 6’9, R-Fr.; Charles Glover, 6’1, So.; Elijah Long, 6’0, Fr.
Postseason Prediction:
3. St. Francis (NY)
C – Amdy Fall, 6’7, Senior
PF – Chris Hooper, 6’6, Senior
SF – Keon Williams, 6’4, R-Freshman
SG – Tyreek Jewell, 6’1, Senior
PG – Glenn Sanabria, 5’11, Sophomore
Reserves: Antonio Jenifer, 6’7, Sr.; Yunus Hopkinson, 5’10, Jr.; Gunnar Olafson, 6’3, So.; Jon Doss, 6’4, R-Jr.; Jagos Lasic, 6’8, So.; Marlon Alcindor, 6’4, Fr.; Dagur Jonsson, 6’1, Fr.
Postseason Prediction:
4. St. Francis (PA)
C – Ronnie Drinnon, 6’7, Senior
PF – Basil Thompson, 6’6, Sophomore
SF – Ben Millaud-Menuier, 6’3, Senior
SG – Greg Brown, 6’2, Senior
PG – Malik Harmon, 5’11, Junior
Reserves: Scott Meredith, 6’0, Fr.; Patrick Wrencher, 6’6, Jr.; Jamaal King, 5’8, Fr.; Ifeanyi Umezurike, 6’11, Fr.; Andre Wolford, 6’2, Fr.
Postseason Prediction:
5. LIU Brooklyn
C – Nura Zanna, 6’7, Sophomore
PF – Jerome Frink, 6’7, R-Junior
SF – Joel Hernandez, 6’3, Junior
SG – Martin Hermannsson, 6’3, Sophomore
PG – Aakim Saintil 6’0, Junior
Reserves: Iverson Fleming, 6’1, Jr.; Trevin Woods, 6’6, So.; Trevon Woods, 6’6, So.; Glenn Feidanga, 6’8, Jr.; Kwe Askew, 6’7, Fr.; Raul Frias, 6’1, Fr.
Postseason Prediction:
6. Wagner
C – Mike Aaman, 6’8, Senior
PF – Romone Saunders, 6’3, Sophomore
SF – Dwaun Anderson, 6’4, R-Senior
SG – Corey Henson, 6’3, Sophomore
PG – JoJo Cooper, 6’1, Sophomore
Reserves: Greg Senat, 6’8, Jr.; Michael Carey, 6’5, Jr.; Japhet Kadji, 6’7, So.; Marquis Salmon, 6’7, R-So.; Henry Brooks, 6’8, Sr. Aaren Edmead, 5’10, So.
Postseason Prediction:
7. Bryant
C – Dan Garvin, 6’6, Junior
PF – Bosko Kostur, 6’7, Sophomore
SF – Curtis Oakley, 6’4, Senior
SG – Hunter Ware, 6’2, Sophomore
PG – Shane McLaughlin, 6’1, Senior
Reserves: Andrew Scocca, 6’8, Jr.; Zach Chionuma, 6’5, R-Sr.; Angus Riley, 6’8, So.; Marcel Pettway, 6’6, Fr.; Nisre Zouzoua, 6’3, Fr.
Postseason Prediction:
8. Sacred Heart
C – Tevin Falzon, 6’7, Senior
PF – Jordan Allen, 6’6, R-Senior
SF – Quincy McKnight, 6’3, Freshman
SG – Chris Robinson, 6’3, Sophomore
PG – Cane Broome, 6’0, Sophomore
Reserves: Matej Buovac, 6’7, R-Jr.; Filip Nowicki, 6’10, So.; Cole Walton, 6’11, R-Jr.; Travis Berry, 6’4, Jr.; Jermaine Ukaegbu, 6’5, Fr.
Postseason Prediction:
9. Fairleigh Dickinson
C – Myles Mann, 6’6, R-Junior
PF – Tyrone O’Garro, 6’6, R-Junior
SF – Earl Potts, 6’6, Sophomore
SG – Marques Townes, 6’4, Sophomore
PG – Darian Anderson, 6’1, Sophomore
Reserves: Mike Holloway, 6’7, Fr.; DaRon Curry, 6’0, Fr.; Stephan Jiggetts, 6’1, So.; Dondre Rhoden, 6’6, Fr.; Darnell Edge, 6’1, Fr.; Malik Miller, 6’9, Fr.
Postseason Prediction:
10. Central Connecticut
C – Brandon Peel, 6’7, Senior
PF – Mustafa Jones, 6’7, Sophomore
SF – Sharkaris Laney, 6’4, Sophomore
SG – Khalen Cumberlander, 6’3, Junior
PG – Kevin Seymour, 6’0, Sophomore
Reserves: Eric Bowles, 5’11, Fr.; JJ Cratit, 6’3, Jr.; Tidell Pierre, 6’7, Jr.; Jahlil Nails, 6’5, Fr.; Evan Phoenix, 6’9, Fr.; Austin Neh’s, 6’3, Fr.
Postseason Prediction: