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Influxer/NEC Player of the Week: Trent Mosquera, Le Moyne
Influxer/NEC Rookie of the Week: David Jevtic, FDU

Previous NEC Releases: January 21 | January 12 | January 6 | December 30 | December 23 | December 15 | December 8 | December 1 | November 24 | November 17 | November 10 | Preseason Poll Release
 
INFLUXER/NEC MEN'S BASKETBALL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Trent Mosquera, Le Moyne
Guard, Redshirt Junior, 6-5, 210 lbs., Boston, MA/Belmont Hill School
Last Week’s Stats: 20.5 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 3.0 apg, 1.0 bpg, 50.0 FG%, 53.3 3FG%
Mosquera’s standout play helped lead Le Moyne to two pivotal wins last week which led to a spot in the NEC standings that ranks half-a-game behind first-place LIU. The redshirt junior was electric against Wagner and FDU, averaging 20.5 points on 50.0 percent shooting from the floor (14-of-28) and an impressive 53.5 percent clip (8-of-15) from three-point territory. In addition to Mosquera’s elite scoring, the Bostonian combined for 11 boards, six assists and two blocks in that stretch. On Friday, Mosquera, who was one of two Dolphins to put up 20 points, propelled his team to victory against the Seahawks after he registered the go-ahead tip-in with 40.9 seconds left to play. Finishing with 23 points, he added 18 more points to his weekly total after going 4-of-7 from behind the arc in an 87-74 wire-to-wire win against the Knights in Hackensack. With those two wins, Le Moyne extended its current win streak to four, which is the longest active rally among all current NEC squads. Mosquera is averaging 19.0 points per game during that stretch, while on the season, he is putting up 14.4 points per game to rank ninth in the circuit. This is his first career Influxer/NEC Player of the Week award.

INFLUXER/NEC MEN'S BASKETBALL ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
David Jevtic, FDU
Guard, Freshman, 6-8, 195 lbs., Belgrade, Serbia/KK Kolubara Lazarevac 2003
Last Week’s Stats: 9.5 ppg, 7.0 rpg, 3.0 apg, 55.6 FG%, 57.1 3FG%
Entering the week with three NEC Player of the Week nods, Jevtic improved upon his already league-leading total after he helped lead FDU to a split record against NEC competitors this past week. The Serbia native approached near double-double territory for the Knights in that stretch after he averaged 9.5 points and 7.0 rebounds per contest. In addition, the rookie scored at an efficient clip after he combined to go 55.6 percent from the field (5-of-9) and 88.9 percent from the charity stripe (8-of-9). After going 2-of-3 from the floor with a triple for five points in FDU’s 76-66 win at Central Connecticut on Friday, Jevtic put together one of his finest outings to date in a Knights’ uniform against Le Moyne on Monday. Converting on 3-of-6 field goal attempts, the 6-foot-8 guard put up career highs with 14 points and grabbed 10 rebounds for his first double-double as a collegian. In addition, Jevtic added a pair of assists against the Dolphins to close out the week with six total dimes. On the season, he is averaging 7.0 points and 3.2 rebounds per game.


NEC PRIME PERFORMERS
 
Eric Parnell, FDU (G, Sr)
Parnell shot the lights out at Central Connecticut on Friday when he drained 7-of-12 triples and 9-of-15 shots overall to finish with a career-high 29 points in the 76-66 road win. Adding 14 points in Monday’s defeat to Le Moyne, the veteran guard averaged 21.5 points in FDU’s split week.
 
Trent Mosquera, LEM (G, R-Jr)
Mosquera was electric in Le Moyne’s two wins over Wagner and FDU last week. Averaging 20.5 points on 50.0 percent shooting from the field (14-of-28) and a 53.3 percent clip from three (8-of-15) while adding 5.5 boards, 3.0 assists and 1.0 block in that stretch, the redshirt junior guard capped a 23-point outing against the Seahawks by delivering the go-ahead bucket on a tip-in with 40.9 seconds left to play.
 
Tennessee Rainwater, LEM (G/F, Jr)
Rainwater enjoyed a career day in a win over Wagner on Friday after he registered 25 points and 10 points off the bench for his first double-double of the season. On the week, the combo guard/forward averaged 16.5 points, 8.0 boards and 2.0 steals to lead the Dolphins to a 2-0 record in a stretch that also included a road win at FDU on Monday.
 
Jamal Fuller, LIU (G/F, Gr)
Fuller pushed his 20-point game total to eight on Friday after he dropped 20 on Stonehill behind 7-of-13 shooting from the field and a 4-of-8 clip from long range. The combo guard/forward came up clutch in crunch time in the 66-63 win, delivering a key three-pointer and the go-ahead bucket with 1:20 remaining before sealing the win with a pair of free throws with 15 seconds to go.
 
Greg Gordon, LIU (G, Sr)
Gordon notched his sixth 20-point contest of the year on Friday when he matched fellow teammate Jamal Fuller’s game-high 20 points at Stonehill. Knocking down 8-of-15 shots from the field, the senior guard added six rebounds and two blocks in the three-point win.
 
Bernie Blunt III, MU (G, Gr)
Blunt was a mainstay in each of Mercyhurst’s two wins against Mercyhurst and Chicago State last week. Netting 15 points in Friday’s 61-57 triumph over the Chargers on Friday, the graduate guard followed that effort with a 19-point performance in Sunday’s 61-59 victory against the Cougars.
 
Najimi George, NHVN (G, So)
George was solid in New Haven’s lone game last week, a hard-fought 61-57 defeat to Mercyhurst that snapped the Chargers’ three-game winning streak. The sophomore guard nabbed four rebounds and tallied 17 points for his fourth-straight double-figure scoring game.
 
Chris Moncrief, SFU (G, Sr)
Moncrief had a hot hand in Saint Francis’ 81-60 victory over visiting Chicago State on Friday. Shooting 77.8 percent from the floor after draining 7-of-9 shots, the senior guard racked up 18 points in the win.
 
Skylar Wicks, SFU (F, R-Sr)
Wicks compiled his first double-double in NEC play — and his third of the season — in Saint Francis’ dominant 81-60 home win over Chicago State on Friday after he recorded 20 points and 11 rebounds. Turning in a 50.0 percent effort from the floor (7-of-14), including a 4-of-8 clip from distance, the redshirt senior forward accounted for half of his team’s scoring in a 12-2 run that pushed the Red Flash advantage into double figures for good.


#NECMBB BY THE NUMBERS

4 - Le Moyne has rattled off four-straight wins — the program’s best rally since joining the NEC — to move into second place in the league standings.

50 - Mercyhurst’s Qadir Martin became the first player in the circuit to reject 50 shots this season and with 50 on the year, he ranks 12th in the nation.

4 - FDU rookie guard David Jevtic pushed his Influxer/NEC Rookie of the Week total to a league-leading four this week.


#NECMBB FAST BREAK

CENTRAL CONNECTICUT: Sophomore guard Darin Smith, Jr. is the lone NEC player this season to net double figures in every game he has appeared in (19 games).

CHICAGO STATE: Chicago State committed a season-low six miscues in Friday’s two-point defeat to Mercyhurst, the second-fewest by an NEC squad.

FDU: Eric Parnell’s 29-point outing vs. Central Connecticut on Friday marks the most points netted by a Knight in a game this year.

LE MOYNE: Le Moyne is combining to shoot 50.0 percent from the field during its current four-game win streak.

LIU: Malachi Davis and Jamal Fuller have teamed up to score 20 points or more in the same game four times this year. 

MERCYHURST: Winners of each of its past three, Mercyhurst is one victory shy of matching the program’s best win streak since joining the NEC.

NEW HAVEN: Najimi George has put up double figures in scoring in each of New Haven’s past four outings.

SAINT FRANCIS: Saint Francis’ 21-point win over Chicago State marked the program’s biggest NEC win since the 2019-20 campaign.

STONEHILL: With Monday’s win over Central Connecticut, Stonehill has been victorious in three of its past five contests.

WAGNER: Each of Wagner’s past six defeats have been decided by single digits.


#NECMBB NEWS & NOTES

DOLPHIN WATCHING
LIU has had a stranglehold on the top spot of the NEC since the conference campaign tipped off on Jan. 2, but the Sharks now have some company in the upper echelon of the standings thanks to the hot play of a fellow sea dweller from Upstate New York.

Le Moyne has created a bottlenose — or bottleneck — at the top of the standings after the past two weeks of conference play. After splitting their first four league games, the Dolphins have rattled off four-straight victories — their longest win streak since joining the NEC and the Division I rankings for the 2023-24 season — to leap within half a game of the Sharks, who are clinging to the top spot with a 6-1 record.

The first — and only — NEC squad to take down LIU this season by way of an 83-77 final on Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Le Moyne has also dismantled Chicago State (72-57), Wagner (69-67) and FDU (87-74) during their current rally for a 9.0 average margin of victory in that stretch. 

With the four wins against conference competitors, Le Moyne has already matched last season’s total (4-12). 

The Dolphins have an opportunity to make another significant jump in the rankings this week, as their Thursday-night matchup pits them up against LIU once again. The contest is slated for a 7:00 p.m. tipoff from the Steinberg Wellness Center in Brooklyn.

A win would put Le Moyne on top of the league standings for the first time in program history.

MORE MOSQUERA, MORE WINS
It’s safe to say that there is a correlation between the elevated play of Le Moyne redshirt junior Trent Mosquera (Boston, MA/Belmont Hill School) and the Dolphins’ current four-game win streak.  

After averaging 10.0 points through the Dolphins’ first four league games — a stretch that saw them go 2-2 — Mosquera has nearly doubled that average over the past four games. During that stretch, all of which were wins, the Bostonian is netting 19.0 points per contest and has gone 50.0 percent or better from the field in three of those games. 

RAINWATER MADE IT RAIN
Le Moyne junior Tennessee Rainwater (Davenport, WA/Davenport (Utah Tech)) delivered a monstrous performance off the bench on Friday to help lead Le Moyne to a narrow 69-67 win over visiting Wagner.  

He compiled his first double-double in a Dolphins’ uniform after netting a game- and career-high 25 points to go along with 10 boards, also a career-best mark. 

Rainwater’s effort made him just one of five players in the nation to come off the bench to score at least 25 points and grab 10 rebounds. In addition, the last NEC player to match that performance off the pine was Sacred Heart’s Nico Galette, who netted 27 points and pulled down 11 boards in a 90-84 defeat to New Hampshire on Nov. 30, 2023.

DOLPHINS FROM DEEP
The three-point line was a key factor in Le Moyne’s 87-74 win at FDU on Monday evening.

Draining 9-of-14 attempts in the first half alone for an efficient 64.3 clip, the Dolphins racked up a season-best 13 makes on 61.9 percent shooting in the triumph.

With that performance, Le Moyne became the first team in the NEC this season to make at least 13 triples on at least 60.0 percent shooting. 

The last squad to turn this trick was Mercyhurst, which made 13 treys on a 60.0 percent clip in an 87-74 win over Chicago State (Feb. 27, 2025).

A LE MOYNE SIX PACK
It was a total team effort by Le Moyne on Monday as the Dolphins came out of the Garden State with a wire-to-wire, 87-74 win at FDU.

A red-hot Trent Mosquera (Boston, MA/Belmont Hill School) led the way in the victory with a game-high 18 points in an outing that saw six Dolphins contribute double-digits to the squad’s highest scoring affair against a Division I opponent this season. 

That well-balanced offensive outing made Le Moyne the first team in league play — and just the second NEC squad this season — to land six players in double figures. 

FLASH FACT
In games against NEC foes that senior guard Chris Moncrief (Turtle Creek, PA/The Kiski School (Evansville)) has put up 10-or-more points, Saint Francis is a perfect 4-0.

Coming off a season-high 18-point effort behind 7-of-9 shooting from the field in Friday’s win over Chicago State, Moncrief is averaging 15.5 points per game in the Red Flash’s four league victories, more than four points more than his 11.1 point-per-game average through seven NEC outings. 

ANOTHER FLASH FACT
After a string of single-possession victories against conference squads ­— six-straight that dated back to the start of the 2025 NEC Championship to be exact — Saint Francis dismantled Chicago State by an 81-60 final on Friday.

That 21-point margin-of-victory marked the Red Flash’s largest in more than three years, when Saint Francis defeated Hartford, 77-53, in Loretto. In addition, it was Saint Francis’ biggest win against an NEC foe since an 87-61 victory — a 26-point spread — over Bryant nearly six years ago in an NEC Tournament quarterfinal victory on March 4, 2020.

THREES FOR MELO SANCHEZ
Central Connecticut senior Melo Sanchez (San Diego, CA/Veritas Prep (Arkansas)) has been putting on a show from long range. Since starting the season with 20 triples in 48 attempts for a 41.7 percent clip against non-league foes, he has been shooting the three-ball at an even more efficient clip as of late.

Making at least half of his three-point attempts in six of his eight NEC contests, Sanchez has gone 52.8 percent from behind the arc in that stretch with makes in 19 of his 36 attempts. 

SEVEN THREES
The threes were falling for FDU senior Eric Parnell (Melbourne, FL/Holy Trinity Episcopal Academy (Hofstra)) at Central Connecticut on Friday. The guard knocked down seven triples — two more than his previous career-best mark — in 12 attempts for a 58.3 percent clip to guide the Knights to a 76-66 win over the Blue Devils.

The seven three-pointers tied Stonehill’s Hermann Koffi for the most in a game by an NEC player this season (at DePaul; Nov. 7, 2025).

Parnell leads the NEC and is 43rd in the nation with 2.95 three-point field goals per game.

THE BBIII EFFECT
Mercyhurst graduate guard Bernie Blunt III (Morgantown, PA/Peddie School (Edinboro)) has been a scoring machine for the Lakers this season.

Netting 16.3 points per game behind five 20-plus-point scoring games to rank third in the circuit, the Keystone State product has put up 15-points or more in seven of the Lakers’ eight wins against Division I opponents this season.

In addition, during Mercyhurst’s current three-game rally, which features victories over Central Connecticut, New Haven and Chicago State, Blunt has netted 18.0 points per game.
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RARE AIR: DARIN SMITH, JR.’S SCORING LEAP
How rare is it for a player to boost his scoring average by more than 13 points from season to season?

This year, Central Connecticut sophomore guard Darin Smith, Jr. (Springfield, MA/Springfield Central/Vermont Academy) has taken his scoring to another level, raising his average by 13.2 points from 6.8 ppg in 2024-25 to a league-leading 20.2 ppg this season. Smith not only tops the NEC but also ranks 29th nationally, and ninth among all Division I underclassmen. 

To put this in perspective, only four other players in NEC history have improved their scoring averages by more than 13.2 points from one season to the next. The all-time record belongs to St. Francis Brooklyn’s Ray Minlead, who jumped from 8.8 ppg in 1997-98 to a conference-best 24.5 ppg in 1998-99, a remarkable 15.5 point leap.

Across the NEC’s 45-year history, just 33 players have achieved a double-digit scoring increase from season to season.

NEC Players with a 14+ Point Scoring Increase from Season to Season 
Ray Minlend (SFBK), 8.8 ppg (1997-98), 24.3 ppg (1998-99), +15.5
Sidney Sanders Jr. (FDU), 4.6 ppg (2012-13), 19.1 ppg (2013-14), +14.5
Sean Baptiste (FDU), 4.6 ppg (2006-07), 18.5 ppg (2007-08), +13.9
Tyler Thomas (SHU), 5.6 ppg (2019-20), 19.1 ppg (2020-21), +13.5
Darin Smith, Jr. (CCSU),6.8 ppg (2024-25), 20.2 ppg (2025-26), +13.2

8SOPHOMORE SENSATIONS
We’ve all heard of Diaper Dandies, but the NEC has been run by sophomores as of late.

Central Connecticut forward Darin Smith, Jr. (Springfield, MA/Springfield Central/Vermont Academy) currently paces the conference in scoring as a sophomore with 20.3 points per game.

Last season’s scoring leader was also a sophomore, as FDU’s Terrence Brown led the way with 20.8 ppg.

The trend of sophomore sensations began in the 2023-24 campaign thanks to Merrimack’s Jordan Derkack, who led the circuit with 17.0 ppg.

A LEAGUE OF HIS OWN
Saint Francis redshirt senior Skylar Wicks (Jersey City, NJ/Surge Christian Academy (Missouri State)) is the only player in the NEC — and just one of three players nationally — to average at least 17.5 points, 7.0 rebounds, 2.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game.

Entering the week averaging 17.5 points (2nd in NEC), 7.3 boards (4th), 2.6 dimes (10th) and 1.6 steals per contest (5th), he is in elite company with Duke’s Cameron Boozer (23.2 ppg, 9.9 rpg, 4.1 apg, 1.8 spg) and North Carolina’s Caleb Wilson (19.7 ppg, 10.6 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.6 spg).

Just eight NEC players have crafted a stat line similar to that of Wicks, with Wagner great Alex Morales being the last to do so in 2021-22 when he averaged 17.6 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.8 assists and 1.8 steals per night.

In addition, Wicks’ scoring average of 17.5 points is the highest by a Red Flash baller since Josh Cohen put up 21.8 per night in 2022-23.

RODGER THAT
Central Connecticut senior Jay Rodgers (Pickerington, OH/Cochise College (University of New Orleans)) is the only player in the nation to have multiple double-doubles of at least 13 points and 13 assists this season. He accomplished the feat against LIU (14 points, 14 assists) on Jan. 2 and Saint Francis (13 points, 13 assists) on Jan. 17.

20/20 VISION
LIU has had two players score 20-or-more points in the same game a league-leading seven times with the duo of Malachi Davis (Scarborough, Ontario/Central Tech (Arizona State)) and graduate guard/forward Jamal Fuller (Toronto, Ontario/Central Technical/Academy of Art) teaming up to score 20 points in the same game four of those times. 

HOW CAN RODGERS ASSIST?
Senior Jay Rodgers (Pickerington, OH/Cochise College (University of New Orleans)) has been dropping dimes all year like they are going out of style.

The 6-foot-6 guard and Buckeye State product is handing out assists at a 7.3-per-game clip, an average that leads all NEC players and is currently the fourth-best among all NCAA Division I players.

Rodgers’ assist average is one that has not been seen in the league in quite some time. The last player to dish out five-or-more helpers per contest was Mount St. Mary’s’ Damian Chong Qui, who dished for 5.4 assists per contest in 2020-21. 

In addition, the Blue Devils’ guard is handing out the most dimes per game in more than a decade, when LIU’s Jason Brickman turned in a nation-leading 10.0 assist-per-game average in 2013-14.

DOUBLE-DIGIT DIMES
As previously mentioned, Central Connecticut senior guard Jay Rodgers (Pickerington, OH/Cochise College (University of New Orleans)) has had a knack for assisting on buckets this season.

Passing for 13 assists at Saint Francis earlier this month (Jan. 17), he became just the fifth player in NCAA Division I this season to hand out 13-or-more dimes in multiple games this season. The list also includes Purdue’s Braden Smith, Michigan’s Elliot Cadeau, Michigan State’s Jeremy Fears Jr. and Portland’s Joel Foxwell.

Rodgers added 13 points to his assist total against the Red Flash for his league-leading third points-assists double-double. He is one of 19 players nationally that have at least three double-doubles built on points and helpers. 

Finally, with four games of 10-or-more assists, Rodgers is tied for eighth nationally. Smith from Purdue currently leads the nation in the category after dishing for double digits in 10 contests this season. In the NEC rankings, the Buckeye State native owns the most double-digit assist games since 2019-20, when Sacred Heart’s Cameron Parker turned the trick four times against Division I competitors.

SMITH’S SCORING STREAK
Central Connecticut redshirt sophomore and the NEC’s leading scorer Darin Smith, Jr. (Springfield, MA/Springfield Central/Vermont Academy) owns the conference’s current longest double-figure scoring rally. 

Smith is the lone player to have netted twin figures in every game he has played in this season, having turned the trick in each of the Blue Devils’ 19 contests this year. 

THE THREE MUSKETEERS
LIU’s offense packs a potent punch with the trio of redshirt senior Malachi Davis (Scarborough, Ontario/Central Tech (Arizona State)), graduate guard/forward Jamal Fuller (Toronto, Ontario/Central Technical/Academy of Art) and senior guard Greg Gordon (Chicago, IL/Lincoln Park (UAB)).

All three players are ranked inside the league’s top-six in scoring, led by Fuller, who is fourth with 16.1 ppg.  Davis (15.5 ppg) checks in at fifth and Gordon (15.0) is sixth.

LIU is the lone squad to have three scorers ranked inside the NEC’s top-six, and the Sharks are the first since 2011-12 to do so. Central Connecticut was the last squad to have three top-six scorers in Ken Horton (2nd), Kyle Vinales (3rd) and Robby Ptacek (5th).

In addition, LIU is the only team in the nation have three scorers that are ranked inside their respective conference’s top-six.


2025-26 NEC MEN'S BASKETBALL WEEKLY AWARD WINNERS

PLAYER OF THE WEEK
Nov. 10: Greg Gordon (LIU)
Nov. 17: Darin Smith, Jr. (Central Connecticut) & Malachi Davis (LIU) 
Nov. 24: Jay Rodgers (Central Connecticut)
Dec. 1: Darin Smith, Jr. (Central Connecticut) & Nick Jones (Wagner)
Dec. 8: Malachi Davis (LIU)
Dec. 15: Greg Gordon (LIU)
Dec. 23: Qadir Martin (Mercyhurst)
Dec. 30: Shilo Jackson (Le Moyne)
Jan. 6: Jamal Fuller (LIU)
Jan. 12: Darin Smith, Jr. (Central Connecticut)
Jan. 21: Darin Smith, Jr. (Central Connecticut)
Jan. 27: Trent Mosquera (Le Moyne)
Feb. 3: 

ROOKIE OF THE WEEK
Nov. 10: David Jevtic (FDU)
Nov. 17: Elijah Parker (Central Connecticut)
Nov. 24: Tristan Burth (New Haven)
Dec. 1: Ashton Reynolds (Central Connecticut)
Dec. 8: Paris Papadatos (Saint Francis)
Dec. 15: Roddy Jones (Central Connecticut)
Dec. 23: Ashton Reynolds (Central Connecticut)
Dec. 30: David Jevtic (FDU)
Jan. 6: Aidan Losiewicz (New Haven)
Jan. 12: David Jevtic (FDU)
Jan. 21: Teshaun Steele (New Haven)
Jan. 27: David Jevtic (FDU)
Feb. 3: