NEC MEN'S BASKETBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Charles Pride, Bryant
6’4”, 200 lbs.
Jr., G, Syracuse, NY/Liverpool (Putnam Science (CT))
In earning his first-ever NEC Player of the Week nod, Pride generated 21.5 points, 7.5 rebounds, 3.0 assists and 1.5 steals per game, and shot 54.8 percent from the field in Bryant’s split. He posted his league-leading third double-double of the season on Wednesday with 16 points and 10 boards to spark the Bulldogs to a 76-59 win over New Hampshire. Doing it all for an undermanned Bryant unit on Saturday, Pride led all scorers with a season-high 27 points in a 86-78 setback at Stony Brook. The Syracuse, NY product made 11-18 shots and added five rebounds, three assists, two steals and a block. He scored 18 of his points in the second stanza as Bryant whittled an 18-point first half deficit down to three with under a minute to play. Pride, who has posted four games of 20+ points on the season, ranks fourth in the NEC in scoring (14.4), third in rebounding (7.3) and fifth in steals (1.7).
NEC MEN'S BASKETBALL ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Jayden Brown, CCSU
6’8”, 215 lbs.
Fr., F, Providence, RI/Tilton School (CT)
Brown claimed his second NEC Rookie of the Week honor and the fourth such accolade in five weeks for the Blue Devils following his performance at Providence on Saturday. Playing in his hometown, he finished one off his career-high with nine points and added six rebounds, one assist, one steal and one block in 27 minutes. He also drained his first career three-pointer. Over the first six games of his career, Brown has averaged 6.8 ppg and 4.5 rpg, and converted at a 48.7 percent clip from the field. Teammates Andre Snoddy and Joe Ostrowsky previously earned Rookie honors for CCSU.
NEC PRIME PERFORMERS
Adham Eleeda (BRY, Gr, G)
Eleeda sank 10-17 shots (.588) from three-point territory on his way to averaging 15.0 ppg, 3.5 rpg and 1.5 spg in a Bryant split. He matched a pair of career-highs with 18 points and six made three-pointers as the Bulldogs pulled away for a 76-59 win over UNH last Wednesday. Eleeda sits fourth in the NEC with 2.55 made 3P per game.
Peter Kiss (BRY, Sr, G)
In his lone game of the week, Kiss posted a game-high 23 points and 10 rebounds in his first double-double effort of the season to spark Bryant to a 17-point home win over UNH. Kiss has contributed 19.4 ppg, 5.8 rpg and 3.5 spg this season.
Charles Pride (BRY, Jr, G)
Pride averaged 21.5 ppg on robust 54.8 percent shooting in a 1-1 week for the Bulldogs. The junior posted his third double-double of the season with 16 points and 10 rebounds in Wednesday’s victory over UNH and then led all scorers with a season-high 27 points at Stony Brook on Saturday. For the week, he also recorded 7.5 rpg, 3.0 apg and 1.5 spg. Pride is fourth in the NEC in scoring (14.4) and third in rebounding (7.3).
Brandon Rush (FDU, Jr, G)
Rush paced the Knights with 19 points on 7-15 shooting at La Salle last Tuesday. He leads FDU and ranks fifth in the NEC with 14.3 ppg on the season.
Isaac Kante (LIU, Gr, F)
Kante was near perfect at Fordham last Thursday, sinking 7-of-8 shots as part of a team-high 16-point night. He added seven rebounds and a block. Kante is second in the NEC with 8.1 rpg.
Jordan Minor (MC, Jr, F)
Competing against top flight competition that included games at #5 Gonzaga and Indiana, Minor produced 15.3 ppg, 5.0 rpg, 3.3 spg and 2.0 bpg in a busy three-game week for the Warriors. He paced Merrimack with 17 points and seven boards at The Kennel on Thursday, and notched a career-high six steals to go along with four blocks against Brown on Tuesday. Minor ranks in the NEC top-10 in scoring (14.3, sixth), rebounding (6.5, sixth), blocks (2.3, second), steals (1.9, fourth) & FG accuracy (.473, 12th).
Nana Opoku (MSM, R-Sr, F)
Opoku comes off the most productive and efficient two-game scoring stretch of his career, averaging 19.0 ppg on an astounding 90.0 percent mark from the field, where he hit 18-of-20. He added 7.5 rpg and 1.5 bpg. Opoku scored a season-high 21 points on 10-11 from the field at Santa Clara and came back with 17 points on 8-9 shooting in an OT loss to American. Opoku ranks fifth in the NEC in field goal accuracy at 59.8 percent.
Tyler Thomas (SHU, Jr, G)
Thomas exploded for a season-high 30 points at URI on Tuesday. He matched a career-best with seven triples in 14 attempts, and finished 10-18 from the field on the night. Thomas added a pair of blocks as well. The junior guard remained atop the NEC leaderboard in scoring at 20.4 ppg.
Michael Cubbage (SFBK, Gr, G)
Cubbage continued to stuff the stat sheet last week with 15.5 ppg, 8.5 rpg, 1.5 apg and 3.0 spg as the Terriers won their first two games of the season. He registered his first double-double as a Terrier with 15 points, 11 boards and a career-high six steals in Wednesday’s 71-60 triumph at Saint Peter’s. Cubbage is the NEC leader with 2.5 spg, and also ranks 13th in scoring (12.1) and 10th in rebounding (6.2).
Josh Cohen (SFU, R-So, F)
Cohen remained red-hot last week, hitting 10-of-12 shots on his way to a career-high 23-point night at American on Wednesday. He added eight rebounds and two assists in his second start of the year. Cohen is the NEC leader in field goal accuracy, hitting at a scorching 73.6 percent clip.
Ramiir Dixon-Conover (SFU, R-Sr, G)
Dixon-Conover netted 19 points on an economic 7-9 from the field in Wednesday’s tilt at American. The redshirt senior also chipped in with five rebounds, three assists and a steal. RDC ranks second in the circuit with 4.1 apg and third with 2.0 spg.
TOP STORYLINES FROM #NECMBB WEEK FIVE
TERRIERS ON THE BOARD
The signs were there, and last week St. Francis Brooklyn put it all together.
The Terriers went on the road and first knocked off a Saint Peter’s team picked to finish second in the MAAC by double digits with a 71-60 triumph on Wednesday, then went on to post a 75-61 victory at Delaware State three days later.
Faced with the loss of its top three scorers from a year ago, SFBK head coach Glenn Braica has slowly begun to piece together the puzzle. A 76-70 loss at St. John’s three weeks ago offered a glimpse of the team’s potential, and it all came together at the Yanitelli Center on Wednesday with the Terrier defense providing the spark.
The Terriers limited SPU to just one field goal over the final 6:18 and grounded the Peacock offense to the tune of 33.3 percent shooting from the field and an ice-cold 2-14 performance from distance. MAAC Preseason Player of the Year KC Ndefo was limited to just eight points on 2-6 shooting.
Graduate student guard Michael Cubbage (Sicklerville, NJ/Winslow Township (Marist)) posted his first double-double of the season with 15 points and 11 rebounds to go along with a career-high six assists. Junior guard Larry Moreno (Brooklyn, NY/Brooklyn High School for Law & Technology) broke out with a season-high 18 points, including 4-7 from three-point land.
Three days later, it was a dominant performance on the boards that helped sink DSU. The Terriers pulled down 20 offensive rebounds, leading to a 19-8 edge in second chance points.
Junior guard Rob Higgins (Middletown, NJ/Middletown North) had his best game of the season against the Hornets with 17 points, including a 3-5 mark from distance.
SFBK’s 1.24 PPP in the win over the Hornets was its best of the season and highest figure since recording 1.24 PPP in a win over Saint Francis U on January 25, 2020.
The Terriers have allowed less than 70 points in each of their last four contests with only DSU scoring at least 1.0 PPP.
NEAR PERFECTION FOR OPOKU
Talk about automatic.
Last week, Mount St. Mary’s redshirt senior center Nana Opoku (Woodbridge, VA/Potomac) flipped his can’t miss mode switch.
The Woodbridge, VA product made 18-of-20 shots from the floor over two games, a scorching 90 percent success rate.
He converted 10-11 on Tuesday at Santa Clara on his way to a season-high 21-point effort, then came home to score 17 points on 8-9 shooting in an overtime setback to American. Against the Eagles, Opoku scored nine consecutive points for the Mount in the latter stages of the second half, including dunks on three consecutive possessions.
For the week, he averaged 19.0 ppg and 7.5 rpg.
On the year, he is at 10.9 ppg, 5.5 rpg and ranks fifth in the NEC with 59.8 percent accuracy from the floor.
DEEP DIVE ON COHEN’S ELITE EFFICIENCY
We’ve focused on Saint Francis U’s Josh Cohen (Lincroft, NJ/CBA) in recent weeks for good reason.
After showing promise last season, the redshirt sophomore big has made huge strides in his game over the first five weeks of the 2021-22 campaign.
Aside from the obvious - his scoring has jumped from 5.7 to 13.1 ppg and rebounding from 4.6 to 6.9 rpg - it’s Cohen’s incredible efficiency that has attracted the most notice.
Let’s take a look at his shotmaking numbers:
- FG percentage up from 65.3 percent to a league-leading 73.6 percent
- FT percentage up from 61.1 percent to 79.4 percent
- Effective FG percentage up from 65.3 percent to a league-leading 75.5 percent
- True shooting percentage up from 65.2 percent to a league-leading 77.0 percent
Incredibly, Cohen has only missed 21 total shots this season when adding up field goal and free throw misfires, while making 66. He has converted at a 73.0 percent rate at the rim and 75.0 percent on other two-point shots.
The Lincroft, NJ native has made at least 60 percent of his attempts from the field in every game this season, including a 10-12 showing at American last Wednesday in which he scored a career-high 23 points. Over his last two outings, Cohen is 16-20 (.800) from the floor.
His offensive rating is an astounding 143.0, which ranks first nationally among players with at least a 20 percent usage rate.
Cohen is one made FG shy of landing in the NCAA and KenPom rankings for field goal percentage, effective FG percentage and true shooting percentage. He has converted 39 shots in eight games, just shy of the 5.0 field goals per game minimum.
Lastly, Cohen is averaging 25.9 points and 13.6 rebounds per 40 minutes of action. He is seeing 20.3 minutes of court time per outing on the year.
SCORING JUMPS
A host of NEC players have taken on greater offensive roles for their respective teams this season, a number of whom rank among league scoring leaders. The biggest scoring jump thus far in 2021-22 goes to Saint Francis U redshirt sophomore forward Josh Cohen (Lincroft, NJ/CBA), whose average has ballooned 7.4 points from 5.7 ppg to 13.1 ppg.
Below is a list of all the players who have boosted their scoring averages at least 3.5 ppg from last season.
Player Team 2020-21 PPG 2021-22 PPG Change
Josh Cohen SFU 5.7 13.1 +7.4
Larry Moreno SFBK 4.4 9.5 +5.1
Nico Galette SHU 3.8 8.5 +4.7
Devon Dunn FDU 7.6* 12.0 +4.4
Ronell Giles Jr. SFU 8.7 12.9 +4.2
Aaron Clarke SHU 13.3 17.0 +3.7
Kyndall Davis LIU 3.9 7.6 +3.7
Nigel Scantlebury CCSU 8.2 11.7 +3.5
* Did not play in 2020-21...stats from 2019-20
SFBK’S CUBBAGE: ART OF THE STEAL
Two years removed from the incredible feats of Merrimack defensive whiz Juvaris Hayes, another NEC player has asserted himself as a disruptive force.
St. Francis Brooklyn graduate student guard Michael Cubbage (Sicklerville, NJ/Winslow Township (Marist)) currently ranks 13th nationally in steals with 2.5 per game, due in part to a career-high six swipe game in the Terriers’ 71-60 conquest of Saint Peter’s last Wednesday.
Despite failing to produce a steal in Saturday’s win over Delaware State, Cubbage is averaging 3.5 steals over his last four outings and has posted at least two steals in seven-of-ten games on the season.
His 4.94 steal percentage also leads the NEC and ranks 23rd nationally.
Two years ago, Hayes ranked first in the nation in with 3.9 steals per game and a 6.50 steal percentage.
Cubbage’s well-rounded game has produced 12.1 ppg, and his 6.2 rpg is the 10th-best mark in the conference. He also ranks fourth in free throw accuracy at 80.6 percent.
The Sicklerville, NJ product is one of three players nationally this season averaging at least 12.0 ppg,. 6.0 rpg and 2.5 spg.
How rare is that stat line?
There have been only five players in the NEC over the last 30 years to finish a season hitting the 12.0 ppg/6.0 rpg/2.5 spg benchmark:
Mount’s Riley Inge: 17.0 ppg, 6.5 rpg and 2.7 spg in 1995-96
LIU’s Mike Campbell: 18.7 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 2.9 spg in 1996-97 and 19.7 ppg, 8.3 rpg and 2.8 spg in 1997-98
RMU’s Tony Lee: 15.9 ppg, 6.1 rpg and 2.8 spg in 2006-07 and 13.6 ppg, 6.6 rpg and 2.8 spg in 2007-08
CCSU’s Matt Hunter: 15.7 ppg, 7.7 rpg and 2.6 spg in 2012-13
NEC ANALYTICS ZONE WITH RYAN PETERS
Each week throughout the 2021-22 season, NEC Overtime! blogger and NEC on the Run podcast collaborator Ryan Peters (@pioneer_pride) will contribute a series of analytically based tidbits covering NEC hoops.
If you’re going by KenPom minimum win probability (MWP), St. Francis Brooklyn’s road upset over their across-the-Hudson-River-foe St. Peter’s was the 71st-biggest comeback in college basketball this season. The Terriers had a 5.7 percent chance to win when they were trailing 21-16 in the first half after the Peacocks completed a 16-0 run. By the MWP metric, it was the third-best comeback by a NEC team in 2021-22 thus far, with Sacred Heart’s opening victory at La Salle (6th) and Mount St. Mary’s defeat of Robert Morris (40th) serving as bigger “surprises.”
With KenPom’s offensive rating as the barometer, St. Francis Brooklyn’s Rob Higgins (Middletown, NJ/Middletown North) played the second best game of his career with his efficient 17-point performance (143 offensive rating) in Saturday’s victory over Delaware State. The energetic junior has thrived in year three as a facilitator for Glenn Braica, registering the 296th-best assist rate (22.3 percent) in DI and posting an assist-to-turnover ratio of 2.2 (22 assists to 10 turnovers).
More than one month into the season, most of the NEC’s top five players in possession rate likely aren’t surprising with Peter Kiss (New York, NY/Notre Dame Prep (Rutgers, Quinnipiac)) (33.7 percent), Jordan Minor (Kingston, MA/Brimmer & May) (32.4 percent), Brandon Rush (Warrensville, OH/Warrensville Heights) (30.9 percent) and Tyler Thomas (New Haven, CT/Amity Regional (Williston)) (30.2 percent) leading the charge. The fifth player, however, may surprise some with Merrimack sophomore Malik Edmead (Deer Park, NY/Deer Park) registering a 27.3 percent possession rate. While Edmead commands a lot of Joe Gallo’s offense, he’s doing it somewhat efficiently against DI competition with a 47.6 percent conversion rate from three, a 23.6 percent assist rate (249th nationally) and a 10.3 percent turnover rate (192nd).
Mount St. Mary’s veteran center Nana Opoku (Woodbridge, VA/Potomac) had solidified his position as one of the league’s best two-way players around the rim with an offensive surge in 2021-22. The senior leads the conference in the early going in dunks (12), has made 70.7 percent of his near-the-rim 2s, according to barttorvik.com, and possesses a 5.5 percent block rate. From the analytics site Hoop Explorer, Mount St. Mary’s is 10.4 points per 100 possessions (adjusted based on opponent) better on offense when Opoku is on the floor compared to when he’s on the bench.
Despite falling behind by nearly 30 points early in the second half vs. Providence, CCSU stepped up its defensive tenacity for the final 15 minutes by allowing a meager seven points and forcing six turnovers in the Friars’ last 25 possessions on Saturday. Overall, the team’s performance has improved in Sellers first five weeks with the analytics rate Haslametrics.com ranking the Blue Devils 29th nationally in its Momentum metric. That’s the measure of the program’s last six performances versus its overall season performance
ELEEDA’S ELECTRIC NIGHT & SHOOTING SUMMARY
Bryant’s Adham Eleeda (Toronto, Ontario/Toronto Basketball Academy (Northern Kentucky) was brought to Smithfield to be a knockdown three-point shooter, and last Wednesday, he did just that and then some.
Eleeda matched his career-highs with 18 points and six made three-pointers (on just eight attempts) as the Bulldogs pulled away for a 76-59 win over New Hampshire at the Chace Athletic Center.
His triple with 7:22 to play gave Bryant its first double digit lead of the game and was part of a 7-0 lead that stretched its advantage to 68-54 with 6:30 left on the clock.
Eleeda’s hot streak continued on Saturday when he drained 4-9 to make it 10-17 (.588) from long distance in a week he averaged 15.0 ppg.
With Eleeda leading the way, Bryant ranks first in the NEC and 28th in the country with 46.6 percent of its shots taken from three-point range.
The Toronto, Ontario native and floor spacer has fired up 77 of his 82 shots from downtown, a 93.9 percent rate that leads the NEC. Taking into account his two years playing at Northern Kentucky, 263 of his 278 career field goal attempts have been three-pointers, a 94.6 percent rate.
Eleeda is averaging 8.5 ppg and ranks fourth in the NEC with 2.55 triples per contest. His 36.4 accuracy from three-point territory is 14th on the circuit.
WAGNER’S MORALES NOMINATED FOR PRESTIGIOUS AWARD
The reigning NEC Player of the Year has been recognized plenty for his work on the court, but it’s his dedication off the hardwood that also attracted the attention of the NCAA Senior CLASS Award committee.
Last week, Wagner graduate student Alex Morales (Paterson, NJ/Mainland Regional (Prince George’s CC)) was named a top-30 candidate for the prestigious honor.
The Senior CLASS Award is presented annually to the most outstanding senior student-athlete in 10 NCAA DI sports. An acronym for “Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School,” the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete as nominees must have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character, and competition.
In the classroom, Morales earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Sociology from Wagner in 2021 and is currently pursuing a Master’s Degree in Media Management.
In the community, Morales joined the rest of the Seahawks’ men’s basketball program at various community service events in his three years on Grymes Hill, volunteering at Project Hospitality and the Richmond University Medical Center 5K Run/Walk.
This season, Morales is averaging 16.3 ppg, 6.5 rpg, 4.0 apg, 1.5 spg and is shooting 63.4 percent from the floor to rank in the NEC top-10 in each category.
The men’s and women’s Senior CLASS Award candidates will be narrowed to two fields of ten finalists later in the season, and those names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will then select one male candidate and one female candidate who best exemplifies excellence in the four C’s of community, classroom, character, and competition.
The Senior CLASS Award men’s basketball winners will be announced during the 2022 NCAA Men’s & Women’s Final Four this spring.
FOR STARTERS
LIU is the lone NEC team to roll out the same starting five for every game this season.
Going back to last season, LIU used an identical starting five in 15 of its 18 games, only deviating the opening lineup when there were player DNPs.
GRASSO’S ISLAND RETURN
When Bryant travelled to Stony Brook on Saturday, it marked a sort of homecoming for fourth year head coach Jared Grasso,
Grasso grew up in Syosset, NY and attended and played at St. Anthony’s in South Huntington, just 20 miles from Stony Brook’s campus.
Grasso began his coaching career as a graduate assistant at Hofstra back in 2002-03, a 20 minute drive from his childhood home.
STAT OF THE WEEK
Mount St. Mary’s committed just three turnovers in its 88-77 loss at Santa Clara last Tuesday. The three turnovers tied for the fewest in a game by a Mount team since it made the move to DI in 1988-89. The Mount last had three turnovers against St. Francis Brooklyn in an NEC quarterfinal game on March 2, 2016. The other two times came against CCSU (Feb. 7, 2015) and VMI (Dec. 29, 1989).
The three turnovers were also the fewest by an NEC team since both the Mount (vs. SFBK) and FDU (vs. SFU) both coughed the ball up three times on March 2, 2016 in NEC quarterfinal action.
SHARPSHOOTING FLASH
Saint Francis U has shot at least 50 percent from the field in each of its last four games to take over the NEC lead in field goal percentage at 46.0 percent.
Over the last four contests, the Red Flash have made 52.0 percent of their attempts, which includes a 56.9 percent mark from two-point range.
SFU ranks second in the NEC in offensive efficiency at 1.02 PPP.
THE WARRIOR WAY
Merrimack turned the ball over just 18 times in games at Gonzaga and Indiana last week, while at the same time forcing 34 turnovers via 22 steals.
The Warriors have posted a positive assist-to-turnover ratio in nine-of-12 games this season and have recorded double-digit steals on eight occasions.
MC ranks first in the conference in steals (10.2/game), turnover margin (5.67), fewest turnovers (11.3/game), steal percentage (14.9, sixth nationally) and defensive turnover percentage (25.0, 15th nationally).
SEAHAWK RANKINGS CHECK
Despite a loss at Penn State, Wagner remained in the top-50 in the NCAA NET rankings, checking in at No. 49 as of December 13.
At No. 136, the Seahawks also lead the NEC in KenPom ranking.
STAT STUFFERS
CCSU junior guard Tre Mitchell (Jr./Phoenix, AZ/La Joya Community (Phoenix College)) scored a season-high 15 points and junior guard Nigel Scantlebury (Rochester, NY/Greece Athena (Niagara County CC)) grabbed a career and game-high 10 rebounds to go with nine points, three assists and a steal at Providence on Saturday.
FDU freshman guard Oscar Berry (Melbourne, Australia/IMG Academy) earned his first career start at La Salle last Tuesday and finished with eight points, four rebounds and a steal in 27 minutes. He hit 3-6 from the field.
LIU sports three frontcourt players who rank among the top dozen scorers in the NEC. Redshirt senior Eral Penn (Brooklyn, NY/St. Francis Academy (MD)) is seventh with 14.3 ppg, followed by graduate students Ty Flowers (Waterbury, CT/Sacred Heart HS (UMass)) (13.6, eighth) and Isaac Kante (Brooklyn, NY/Paul Robeson (Hofstra)) (12.5, 12th).
LIU graduate student forward Isaac Kante (Brooklyn, NY/Paul Robeson (Hofstra)) has converted 13 of his last 18 shots from the field, a 72.2 percent conversion rate.
Mount St. Mary’s sophomore guard Elijah Elliott (Houston, TX/Jack Yates) dished for a career-high five assists in just five minutes at Santa Clara last Tuesday.
Mount St. Mary’s junior guard Jalen Benjamin (Raleigh, NC/Meadowcreek (GA) (UAB)) recorded eight assists without a turnover in 32 minutes at Santa Clara.
Sacred Heart junior guard Joey Reilly (Cromwell, CT/East Catholic (Holy Cross)) distributed seven assists and did not commit a turnover in a 34-minute stint at URI on Tuesday. He has posted a 2.55 A/TO ratio on the year.