Ray Floriani is the RTC correspondent for the MAAC and NEC conferences.

Reader’s Take

Opening Tip

A week to go. Barring upsets, LIU Brooklyn appears set for the top seed. They own a one-game lead over Wagner but swept the Seahawks in their two meetings. In the postseason tournament, don’t count out Danny  Hurley’s club. Nor Robert Morris or St. Francis (NY). Yes, one more week before the fun really starts.

Standings

Team, NEC record, overall record:

Notables

NEC Co-Players of the Week:

• Jamal Olasewere, LIU, 6’7″, Jr., F– Averaged 26.5 points and 11 rebounds. Posted his eighth double-double of the season with a 21-point, 11-rebound outing in the win over St. Francis (NY) at Madison Square Garden.

Jamal Olasewere (ball) Had An Outstanding Week (AP)

• Shane Gibson, Sacred Heart, 6’2″, Jr., G – Averaged 32 points while shooting a blistering 63% from the field. Gibson hit 30 points in the first meeting with Bryant which also allowed him to break the single season scoring record (542 points) for Sacred Heart since they moved to Division I.

NEC Rookie of the-Week:

Ousmane Drame, Quinnipiac, 6’9″, Fr., F – Averaged a solid nine points, eight rebounds and two blocks in a 2-0 week for the Bobcats. Drame has averaged 10.4 rebounds over the last six games and is seventh in the NEC (7.3 RPG) in that category.

Team Recaps

1. LIU Brooklyn – Swept rival and Brooklyn neighbor St. Francis (NY).  Blackbirds have won five straight and 14 of the last 15 in the series. Julian Boyd had double-doubles in both games. Jamal Olasewere was named MVP of the Battle of Brooklyn for his career high 32 points. Blackbirds are second in the nation with 28.2 free throw attempts per game.
2. Wagner – Continued the winning ways by sweeping Mount St. Mary’s. Seahawks hit the 20-win mark for the sixth time in the school’s 91-year basketball history. Wagner also clinched a playoff berth and guaranteed a first round home game. Jonathon Williams led Wagner with a 16.5 points per game and shot 72% shooting from the floor. Senior Tyler Murray also contributed a 12.5 PPG week. Read the rest of this entry »

Ray Floriani is the RTC correspondent for the MAAC and NEC conferences.

Reader’s Take

Opening Tip

The general consensus is that LIU Brooklyn and Wagner are the top two teams in the conference. With less than a month remaining in the regular season, however, there are five programs with a legitimate shot at the top. Keep an eye on LIU vs. St. Francis (NY) at Madison Square Garden on Wednesday. It is a St. Francis “home” game and it gives the Terriers another opportunity to achieve a statement victory.

Standings

Team, MAAC record, overall record:

NEC Player of the Week:

Shane Gibson, Sacred Heart, 6’2″, Jr., G – Averaged 30.5 points per game last week to increase his NEC scoring average to 21.6 points per game. Gibson shot 51% from the field and added 5.0 rebounds and 2.5 steals for the Pioneers in their two games. Gibson ranks fourth nationally in scoring and is averaging 26.1 points in NEC action.

Sacred Heart's Shane Gibson Is Making A Great Case For Player of the Year (AP)

NEC Rookie of the Week:

Ousmane Drame, Quinnipiac, 6’9″, Fr., F – Averaged 8.5 points, and12 rebounds for the week. Drame posted career-highs with 13 points and 15 rebounds in a comeback overtime win over Mount St. Mary’s.

Team Overviews

1. LIU Brooklyn – On the conference’s “Western” swing, the Blackbirds lost at Robert Morris and defeated St. Francis (PA). Before that loss to Robert Morris, LIU had won 18 (21 including the tournament) straight NEC games dating back to last season. Julian Boyd scored 25 points and  added 12 rebounds against the Colonials. Jamal Olasewere enjoyed his seventh double-double of the season with a 26-point, 10-rebound outing at St. Francis. Jason Brickman added 12 assists. Read the rest of this entry »

Ray Floriani is the RTC correspondent for the MAAC and NEC conferences.

Reader’s Take

Looking Back

There is still over half a conference season to play. But, on Saturday on Staten Island, a very important and interesting matchup is on tap: Long Island Brooklyn versus Wagner. The two met in Brooklyn in December with the Blackbirds earning a narrow 78-73 victory. Since then, Jim Ferry’s club has captured nine of 11 and is unblemished in NEC play. Meanwhile, Wagner has won nine of its last 10. Included are victories at Pitt and the championship of the Cable Car Classic. The only setback for Danny Hurley’s group was a one-point loss to a good Lehigh team in early December. Yes, an enticing meeting and somehow we get the feeling it just might not be  the last between these teams this season.

NEC Co-Players of the Week

• Julian Boyd, LIU, 6’7″, Jr., F: Boyd hit his 1,000^th career point and led the way with 21 points average per game as the Blackbirds swept their two NEC games to move into sole possession of first place. Boyd highlighted the week, scoring 28 points adding eight rebounds in the win over Monmouth.
• Shane Gibson, Sacred Heart, 6’2″, Jr., G: The NEC’s leading scorer, Gibson averaged 27.5 points per game for the week. In a win at St. Francis (PA), Gibson scored 26 points but showed his versatility with five steals and five rebounds. Gibson also had seven 3’s and 29 points against Robert Morris.

Julian Boyd Will Be A Key Player In LIU's Big Tilt Against Wagner

NEC Rookie-of-the-Week

Jalen Cannon, St. Francis (NY), 6’6″, Fr., F: Averaged 11.5 points and 12 rebounds as the Terriers swept their NEC opposition. St. Francis has won four of five since Cannon was inserted into the starting lineup.

Standings

Team, MAAC record, overall record:

Power Rankings

1. LIU Brooklyn – Earned a sweep over FDU and Monmouth. Blackbirds have won 16 consecutive conference games dating back to last season and have captured 22 of their last 23 in the NEC. Julian Boyd had an outstanding week earning Co-Player of the Week honors. C.J. Garner, a junior guard, set career highs with nine rebounds against FDU and eight assists versus Monmouth. Read the rest of this entry »

Ray Floriani is the RTC correspondent for the MAAC and NEC conferences.

Looking Back

• Quick Recap: Relatively quiet time lately with exams finishing up. As we look towards the new year, the expected contenders: Robert Morris, Central Connecticut and LIU, are on top … with a surprise. St. Francis (PA), which played eight home games to date, had both their NEC games in friendly confines and the Red Flash won both contests to join the aforementioned trio on top of the conference standings. Wagner and Quinnipiac, certain to be factors, lead the next group. All of this will begin to get sorted out in earnest when 2012 arrives and conference play heats up.
• Player of the Week: Ben Mockford, St. Francis (NY), So., guard – Knocked down seven 3-pointers in the Terriers’s win at Howard. Deadly from beyond the arc, Mockford paces the NEC with 3.3 treys per game.
• Newcomer of the Week: Kyle Vinales, Central Connecticut, Fr.  guard – Vinales captured his fifth award in six weeks. Scored a game-high 27 points in 37 minutes in a loss at Northwestern. The 6’1″ Vinales has scored at least 24 points on six occasions to date.

Robert Morris's Andrew Toole Has His Team On Top Of The NEC Standings

Read the rest of this entry »

Ray Floriani of College Chalktalk is the RTC correspondent for the Northeast Conference.

LYNDHURST, NJ – Action was a bit on the light side with exam week. The following week will see the end of non-conference action as conference play heats up in earnest following New Year‘s Day.

Standings

The regularly scheduled tempo free breakdown, with gratitude to Basketball State.

Turnover rate is the amount of turnovers divided by total possessions. A mark of 20% or higher is excessive. Stands to reason as a 20% TO rate team is watching one fifth, or more, of their possessions wasted. Expect these numbers to get better for two reasons. One, some of the out of conference opposition was tougher and in most cases away from home. Secondly, as the season progresses offenses improve and (should) run more efficiently.

NEC Notes

• Mount St. Mary’s lead guard Jeremy Goode moved into 11^th place on the NEC’s all-time assist ranking. Goode has 509 career assists and counting. Drafton Davis who played for Marist in the late 80s is the all time leader with 804. Goode incidentally is one of the candidates for the Bob Cousy Award given to the nation’s top point guard.
• Quinnipiac senior guard James Feldeine is approaching 1,000 points. Feldeine has 951 points and could hit the select circle by mid-January.
• Sacred Heart senior guard Ryan Litke is also approaching 1,000 points. Litke has 904 but is a dangerous three-point shooter who can rack up points in a hurry.
• Speaking of Sacred Heart, senior forward Corey Hassan’s middle name should be versatile. Hassan is second in conference rebounding with 8.7 boards per game, and he is also the NEC leader with 4.2 three pointers a game, a figure that places him second nationally. Since 2000, only four NEC players have finished in the conference top ten in rebounding and three point field goals.
• The December 30^th meeting with Vermont will be Mount St. Mary‘s first home game in 35 days.
• Devin Sweetney has scored in double figures the last 30 games he has appeared in. The St.Francis( PA) senior forward has the longest streak among NEC active players. Immediately trailing Sweetney is Monmouth’s Travis Taylor with 14 and Sacred Heart’s Corey Hassan with a dozen.
• The December 23^rd loss to Iona left FDU 1-12. Despite the start, FDU interim coach Greg Vetrone is still hopeful. “We had a tough early schedule with a number of road games and injuries. Now the schedule favors us as our next three conference games are home. I really think we are getting better. One of the things we have to do however is cut down on turnovers.” A definite point (see the tempo free chart above).

Player of the Week.   Jaytornah Wisseh (G), LIU -Enjoyed a complete performance finishing with 23 points, 7 rebounds and 7 assists. Down the stretch he was the Blackbirds’ ‘go to’ guy and it was Wisseh’s fifth 20+ point performance on the season.

Rookie of the Week.  Umar Shannon (G), St. Francis (PA) – Averaged a team best 15.0 PPG on the week. Shannon connected on 50% of his field goal attempts and hit 4-5 from three point range. Tallied a team high 16 points against Akron.

Team Breakdowns

• Bryant – Dropped a 72-46 decision at Boston College last week. Bryant is currently 0-11. Senior captain Cecil Gresham led the way against BC with 18 points. Gresham’s performance was especially pleasing since he marked the return to the lineup after missing three of the last four games.
• Central Connecticut State. – Lone game of the week, a loss at Northwestern. Blue Devils lead in scoring defense (60.6 PPG). In addition, CCSU and St. Francis (PA) are the only conference teams shooting better than 70% from the charity stripe.
• FDU – Dropped games to in state rival St. Peter’s 83-68 and Iona 82-60. It was only the third game for FDU this season. Mike Scott paced the Knights with 21 points. The junior guard wasn’t limited to point production as he handed out five assists. FDU missed 19 free throws against St. Peter’s and 12 in the Iona contest.
• LIU – Came up short in their only game to Manhattan, 71-61. The loss was the first at home for the Blackbirds in five outings. Senior Jaytorah Wisseh posted a double-double, earning Player of the Week accolades.
• Monmouth– In-state losses to Princeton and Rider for the Hawks. In his first start of the season sophomore guard Will Campbell tied his career high with 27 points in the loss to Rider. Sophomore forward Travis Taylor has posted double figure scoring in each of Monmouth’s dozen games this season. Taylor his 15 of 19 (79%) in the two games last week. Taylor is not just a scorer as he averages 8 rebounds per game, good for fourth in the NEC.
• Mount St. Mary’s – The only game was a 66-48 setback at Pitt. The Mount has lost five straight after a 3-2 start. They did get good news with the return of two players and the addition of a third. Senior forward Will Holland is back after missing seven games with a knee injury. Redshirt freshman forward Jacolby Wells sat out the first semester due to academics and freshman forward Raven Barber was approved by the NCAA Eligibility Center and joined the team.
• Quinnipiac – Bobcats have three players averaging double figures. Senior guard James Feldeine (19.7 PPG), junior forward Justin Rutty (16.8) and sophomore guard James Johnson (10.7). An inside force, Rutty also paces the NEC with 9.8 rebounds a game.
• Robert Morris – Defeated Cleveland State then had a 13-game home win streak snapped with a loss to Appalachian State. The Colonials seem to get contributions from different individuals every night out. Against Cleveland State, junior guard Gary Wallace came off the bench to score 14 points. The bench, in fact, had more points (45) than the starters (33) against Cleveland State. Icy 26% shooting from the floor doomed Mike Rice’s club against Appalachian State.
• Sacred Heart – Pioneers are one of two NEC teams averaging better than 70 points (74.8) per game. Credit field goal percentage of 45% as largely responsible. Senior forward Corey Hassan leads the NEC in scoring (23 PPG) and has been lethal beyond the arc hitting four treys a game.
• St. Francis (NY) – Guarded optimism. Brian Nash has a few backcourt performers earning conference distinction. Junior Ricky Cadell is seventh (15.1 PPG) in NEC scoring while classmate Akeem Bennett is eighth (14.2 PPG). Sophomore Justin Newton ranks eighth in the conference handing out three assists per game.
• St. Francis (PA) – Dropped games to Youngstown State and Akron. Red Flash were without standout Devin Sweetney who sat out for ‘personal reasons.’  Junior forward Cedric Latimer picked up the slack averaging 14.5 points and 5.5 rebounds. Freshman guard Umar Shannon earned Rookie of the Week honors. Contributions also came from the backcourt as freshman guard Anthony Ervia had 9 points and 6 boards against Youngstown and junior guard Serena Orandi has a season high 12 points in that same meeting with Youngstown,
• Wagner – Dropped competitive outings to BYU and Nevada in the Las Vegas Classic. Junior guard Chris Martin and senior center Michael Orock played well. Mike Deane is getting contributions from freshman guard Ryan Conrad and classmate Josh Thompson. Conrad had a team high 14 points against BYU while the 6’4 Thompson is averaging 7.5 points, 5.6 rebounds.

On the Schedule

December 29

• St. Francis (NY) at Fairfield

December 30

• Brown at Sacred Heart
• Wagner at Princeton
• Vermont at Mount St.Mary’s

January 2

• Bryant at Cornell
• Ohio at Robert Morris
• Central Connecticut State vs. Holy Cross (at Mohegan Sun)
• Sacred Heart at FDU
• Hartford at St. Francis (PA)
• Quinnipiac at Monmouth
• Mount St. Mary’s at Siena