Northeast Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year

NEC Men's Basketball
Player of the Year
Awarded forthe most outstanding basketball player in the Northeast Conference
CountryUnited States
History
First award1983
Most recentJordan Derkack, Merrimack

The Northeast Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year is an annual award given to the Northeast Conference's (NEC) most outstanding player. The award was first given following the 1982–83 season, when the league was known as the ECAC Metro Conference.[a]

The most well-recognized NEC Player of the Year is Marist's Rik Smits, who won the award in both 1987 and 1988. Smits went on to have a successful National Basketball Association (NBA) career for 12 seasons (1988–2000), all with the Indiana Pacers.[1] In 1998, Smits was named an Eastern Conference All-Star.[1] In 2021–22, Alex Morales of Wagner became just the fourth NEC player to be named player of the year for two consecutive seasons, and the first since Charles Jones of Long Island University in 1997 and 1998.

LIU has the most winners with eight, all of whom represented Long Island University's Brooklyn campus before the school merged the athletic programs of its Brooklyn and Post campuses in July 2019. Robert Morris, which left the NEC for the Horizon League in 2020, is in second with six. All charter members of the Northeast Conference that are still members have had at least one winner.

Key

† Co-Players of the Year
* Awarded a national player of the year award:
UPI College Basketball Player of the Year (1954–55 to 1995–96)
Naismith College Player of the Year (1968–69 to present)
John R. Wooden Award (1976–77 to present)
Player (X) Denotes the number of times the player has been awarded the NEC Player of the Year award at that point

Winners

Rik Smits, Marist, 1987 and 1988
Desi Wilson, Fairleigh Dickinson, 1990
Chad Timberlake, Fairleigh Dickinson, 1990
Javier Mojica, Central Connecticut, 2007
Jeremy Chappell, Robert Morris, 2009
Ken Horton, Central Connecticut, 2011
Karvel Anderson, Robert Morris, 2014
Jalen Cannon, St. Francis Brooklyn, 2015
Jerome Frink, Long Island, 2017
Junior Robinson (white), Mount St. Mary's, 2018
Isaiah Blackmon, Saint Francis (PA), 2020
Jordan Minor, Merrimack, 2023
Season Player School Position Class Reference
1982–83 Steve Smith Marist SG Senior [2]
1983–84† Chipper Harris Robert Morris SG Senior [3]
Robert Jackson St. Francis (NY) F Senior [3]
Carey Scurry Long Island PF Junior [3]
1984–85 Carey Scurry (2) Long Island PF Senior [4]
1985–86 Terrance Bailey Wagner SG Junior [5]
1986–87 Rik Smits Marist C Junior [6]
1987–88 Rik Smits (2) Marist C Senior [6]
1988–89 Vaughn Luton Robert Morris G Senior [7]
1989–90 Desi Wilson Fairleigh Dickinson F Junior [8]
1990–91 Mike Iuzzolino Saint Francis (PA) PG Senior [9]
1991–92 Myron Walker Robert Morris SG Sophomore [10]
1992–93 Darrick Suber Rider SG Senior [11]
1993–94 Izett Buchanan Marist SF Senior [12]
1994–95 Joe Griffin Long Island PF Senior [13]
1995–96 Chris McGuthrie Mount St. Mary's PG Senior [14]
1996–97 Charles Jones Long Island PG / SG Junior [15]
1997–98 Charles Jones (2) Long Island PG / SG Senior [15]
1998–99 Ray Minlend St. Francis (NY) PG Senior [16]
1999–00 Rick Mickens Central Connecticut SG Senior [17]
2000–01 Rahsaan Johnson Monmouth PG Junior [18]
2001–02 Corsley Edwards Central Connecticut F Senior [19]
2002–03 Jermaine Hall Wagner SF Senior [15]
2003–04 Ron Robinson Central Connecticut F Senior [20]
2004–05 Blake Hamilton Monmouth PF Senior [21]
2005–06 Chad Timberlake Fairleigh Dickinson SG Senior [22]
2006–07 Javier Mojica Central Connecticut SG / PG Senior [23]
2007–08 Tony Lee Robert Morris PG Senior [24]
2008–09 Jeremy Chappell Robert Morris SG Senior [25]
2009–10 Justin Rutty Quinnipiac PF Junior [26]
2010–11 Ken Horton Central Connecticut SF Junior [27]
2011–12 Julian Boyd Long Island PF Junior [28]
2012–13 Jamal Olasewere Long Island PF Senior [29]
2013–14 Karvel Anderson Robert Morris SG Senior [30]
2014–15 Jalen Cannon St. Francis Brooklyn PF Senior [31]
2015–16 Cane Broome Sacred Heart SG Sophomore [32]
2016–17 Jerome Frink Long Island SF Senior [33]
2017–18 Junior Robinson Mount St. Mary's PG Senior [34]
2018–19 Keith Braxton Saint Francis (PA) PG Junior [35]
2019–20 Isaiah Blackmon Saint Francis (PA) PG Senior [36]
2020–21 Alex Morales Wagner SG Senior [15]
2021–22 Alex Morales (2) Wagner SG Graduate [15]
2022–23 Josh Cohen Saint Francis (PA) PF Junior [37]
Jordan Minor Merrimack PF Senior [37]
2023–24 Jordan Derkack Merrimack G Sophomore [38]

Winners by school

School (year joined) Winners Years
LIU (1981)[b] 8 1984†, 1985, 1995, 1997, 1998, 2012, 2013, 2017
Robert Morris (1981)[c] 6 1984†, 1989, 1992, 2008, 2009, 2014
Central Connecticut (1997) 5 2000, 2002, 2004, 2007, 2011
Marist (1981)[d] 4 1983, 1987, 1988, 1994
Saint Francis (PA) (1981) 4 1991, 2019, 2020, 2023†
Wagner (1981) 4 1986, 2003, 2021, 2022
St. Francis Brooklyn (1981)[e] 3 1984†, 1999, 2015
Fairleigh Dickinson (1981) 2 1990, 2006
Merrimack (2019)[f] 2 2023†, 2024
Monmouth (1985)[g] 2 2001, 2005
Mount St. Mary's (1989)[h] 2 1996, 2018
Quinnipiac (1998)[g] 1 2010
Rider (1992)[i] 1 1993
Sacred Heart (1999)[f] 1 2016
Bryant (2008)[j] 0 —
Chicago State (2024) 0 —
Le Moyne (2023) 0 —
Loyola (MD) (1981)[k] 0 —
Mercyhurst (2024) 0 —
Siena (1981)[l] 0 —
Stonehill (2022) 0 —
UMBC (1998)[m] 0 —

Footnotes

  1. ^ The Northeast Conference was founded in 1981 as the ECAC Metro Conference, but member schools changed the name beginning with the 1989–90 school year.
  2. ^ From 1981 to 2019, Long Island University was represented in the Northeast Conference by its Brooklyn campus, known for athletic purposes as "Long Island" through the 2012–13 season and "LIU Brooklyn" from 2013–14 forward. After the 2018–19 season, LIU merged the athletic programs of its Brooklyn and Post campuses into a single program, now competing as the LIU Sharks, that inherited the NCAA Division I and Northeast Conference memberships of the Brooklyn campus.
  3. ^ Robert Morris University was a charter member in 1981, but left in 2020 to join the Horizon League.
  4. ^ Marist College was a charter member in 1981, but left in 1997 to join the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC).
  5. ^ St. Francis College discontinued its athletic program after the 2022–23 season.
  6. ^ a b Merrimack College and Sacred Heart University left in 2024 for the MAAC.
  7. ^ a b Monmouth University and Quinnipiac University left in 2013 for the MAAC. Monmouth has since moved to the Coastal Athletic Association, while Quinnipiac remains in the MAAC.
  8. ^ Mount St. Mary's University left in 2022 for the MAAC.
  9. ^ Rider University, which had spent five seasons in the NEC, left in 1997 to join the MAAC.
  10. ^ Bryant University left in 2022 for the America East Conference.
  11. ^ Loyola University Maryland (then Loyola College in Maryland), also a charter member, left in 1989 to join the MAAC, and is now in the Patriot League.
  12. ^ Siena College, also a charter member, left in 1984 to join the MAAC.
  13. ^ The University of Maryland, Baltimore County (UMBC) left in 2003 to join the America East Conference.

In addition, one charter member, Towson University (then Towson State University), left after the conference's first season of 1981–82, before the player of the year award was created. The Tigers left for the East Coast Conference, and are now in the Coastal Athletic Association.

References

  1. ^ a b "Rik Smits Bio". National Basketball Association. Retrieved 14 April 2010.
  2. ^ Cassata, Donna (March 9, 1983). "Smith ECAC Metro Player of the Year". Poughkeepsie Journal. Poughkeepsie, New York. p. 21. Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ a b c Straetz, Bob (March 8, 1984). "ECAC Metro tourney wide open". Poughkeepsie Journal. Poughkeepsie, New York. p. 25. Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ Furjanic, Matt (March 17, 1985). "17–12 finish was beyond expectations". Poughkeepsie Journal. Poughkeepsie, New York. p. 6C. Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
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  6. ^ a b "College basketball". The Baltimore Sun. Baltimore, Maryland. March 10, 1988. p. 49. Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Rosen, Karen (March 17, 1989). "Arizona Routs Robert Morris". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. Atlanta, Georgia. p. 108. Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Leonard, Tim (March 9, 1990). "He Can Play: Glen Cove's gift to FDU weighs future in 2 sports". Newsday. Suffolk County, New York. p. 172. Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Rivera, Steve (March 14, 1991). "Izzy ready? UA foe asks". Tucson Citizen. Tucson, Arizona. p. 33. Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ Halvonik, Steve (March 17, 1992). "Prince of the city". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. p. 7. Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
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  13. ^ Brown, Scott (March 1, 1995). "'March Madness' takes center stage". The Gettysburg Times. Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. p. 8. Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ Blubaugh, Bob (March 14, 1996). "Illinois State routs MSM". Carroll County Times. Westminster, Maryland. p. 9. Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ a b c d e "Alex Morales Repeats As NEC Player of Year, Earns Defensive Player Of The Year Honors As Five Seahawks Earn Postseason Recognition". WagnerAthletics.com. Staten Island, New York. March 1, 2022. Retrieved January 8, 2024. Morales joins LIU's Carey Scurry (1983–84 and 1984–85), Marist's Rik Smits (1986–87 and 1987–88) and LIU's Charles Jones (1996–97 and 1997–98) as the only players to win NEC Player of the Year twice while becoming the first Wagner player ever to achieve the feat. Last season, Morales became Wagner's third-ever player to win the award, joining NEC Hall of Famers Terrance Bailey (1985–86) and Jermaine Hall (2002–03).
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  27. ^ Boyer, Zac (March 2, 2011). "Horton NEC Player Of Year". Hartford Courant. Hartford, Connecticut. p. C01. Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  28. ^ Brennan, Sean (March 8, 2012). "LIU wins for Dance encore". Daily News. New York, New York. p. 73. Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  29. ^ Kussoy, Howie (March 6, 2013). "LIU's Olasewere is NEC Player of Year". New York Post. New York, New York. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
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  35. ^ Carino, Jerry (March 13, 2019). "FDU wins NEC title; earns bid to NCAAs". The Record. Hackensack, New Jersey. p. S2. Retrieved January 8, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  36. ^ Rucosky, John (March 4, 2020). "St. Francis senior Blackmon named NEC player of the year". The Tribune-Democrat. Johnstown, Pennsylvania. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  37. ^ a b "Two Of A Kind: SFU's Josh Cohen & Merrimack's Jordan Minor Share #NECMBB Player of the Year Honors". Northeast Conference. Somerset, New Jersey. February 28, 2023. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  38. ^ Carino, Jerry (April 18, 2024). "Rutgers adds Derkack, a native of Woodbridge". The Daily Journal. Vineland, New Jersey. p. B2. Retrieved June 24, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.