Central Islip, N.Y. – The men's basketball coaches in the East Coast Conference have selected John Petrucelli (Hicksville, N.Y.) as the 2013-14 East Coast Conference Player of the Year. St. Thomas Aquinas guard Chaz Watler (Brooklyn, N.Y.) takes home the ECC Rookie of the Year honor, while Daemen junior forward Gerald Beverly (Rochester, N.Y.) has been named the ECC Defensive Player of the Year.
Petrucelli, a four-time All-Conference recipient, takes home the conference's top honor is his senior season. In 28 games, Petrucelli has poured in a conference leading 23.7 points per game on 47.5 percent shooting. His scoring prowess, which also currently ranks seventh in all of Division II, led to him eclipsing the Molloy program record for points earlier this season. Petrucelli does much more than score for the Lions, stuffing the stat sheet in numerous categories. He ranks in the top ten in the conference in nine different categories including minutes per game (36.1), rebounds (208), and steals (103). His steals total and steals per game number (3.68) are tops in all of Division II.
Watler put together an impressive freshman campaign for St. Thomas Aquinas. The guard led all first-year players, and ranked 12th in the ECC, in scoring with 13.8 points per game. A six-time ECC Rookie of the Week, Watler posted eight 20 point games and 17 double digit scoring performances on the season.
Beverly was a force to be reckoned with in the paint for conference-newcomer, Daemen. A double-double machine (he finished fourth in the conference with 18.3 points per game), Beverly led the conference with 10.1 rebounds per game and 262 rebounds, 167 of which were of the defensive variety. He also led the conference with 104 blocks and 4.0 blocks per game. His 11 block output against Mercy on January 6th tied for a ECC high on the season.
Head Coach Steve Hayn from Dowling has been tabbed Coach of the Year by his peers. Hayn led the Golden Lions to their first 20 win season (22-6) since the 1997-98 campaign. Under Hayn's leadership, Dowling also posted a 16-4 mark in conference play, to take the top seed and home court advantage throughout, in the upcoming ECC Men's Basketball Championship.
The ECC also announced its Men's Basketball All-Conference teams. St. Thomas Aquinas has the most selections between the three teams with three. Bridgeport, Daemen, Dowling, LIU Post, and Molloy all have two apiece. The All-Conference First Team includes: Vaughn Allen (Sr., F, LIU Post), Gerald Beverly (Jr., F, Daemen), Darien Davis (Jr., G, Dowling), John Petrucelli (Sr., F, Molloy), Casey Sheehan (Sr., G, Daemen), and JoJo Swift (Sr., G, Bridgeport).
The ECC All-Conference Second Team members are: Justin Alexander (Sr., F, Dowling), Omar Kellman (Sr., F, St. Thomas Aquinas), Lenjo Kilo (Jr., F, District of Columbia), Markus Moore (Sr., F, NYIT), and P.J. Torres (Jr., G, LIU Post).
The ECC Honorable Mention Team is comprised of Sean Berry (Sr., C, Bridgeport), Marcus Henderson (Jr., G, St. Thomas Aquinas), Matt McLeod (Jr., G, Molloy), Isaac Medeiros (Jr., F, Roberts Wesleyan), and Chaz Watler (Fr., G, St. Thomas Aquinas).
2013-2014 ECC Men's Basketball All-Conference
First Team
Vaughn Allen, LIU Post (Sr., F, Mount Vernon, N.Y.)
Gerald Beverly, Daemen (Jr., F, Rochester, N.Y.)
Darien Davis, Dowling (Jr., G, Middle Island, N.Y.)
John Petrucelli, Molloy (Sr., F, Hicksville, N.Y.)
Casey Sheehan, Daemen (Sr., G, Rochester, N.Y.)
JoJo Swift, Bridgeport (Sr., G, Brooklyn, N.Y.)
Second Team
Justin Alexander, Dowling (Sr., F, Staten Island, N.Y.)
Omar Kellman, St. Thomas Aquinas (Sr., F, Bronx, N.Y.)
Lenjo Kilo, Dist. Columbia (Jr., F, Silver Spring, Md.)
Markus Moore, NYIT (Sr., F, Palo Alto, Calif.)
P.J. Torres, LIU Post (Jr., G, New Rochelle, N.Y.)
Honorable Mention Team
Sean Berry, Bridgeport (Sr., C, Irvington, N.J.)
Marcus Henderson, St. Thomas Aquinas (Jr., G, Newburgh, N.Y.)
Matt McLeod, Molloy (Jr., G, Greenlawn, N.Y.)
Issac Medeiros, Roberts Wesleyan (Jr., F, Johnston, R.I.)
Chaz Watler, St. Thomas Aquinas (Fr., G, Brooklyn, N.Y.)
Player of the Year: John Petrucelli, Molloy (Sr., F, Hicksville, N.Y.)
Rookie of the Year: Chaz Watler, St. Thomas Aquinas (Fr., G, Brooklyn, N.Y.)
Defensive Player of the Year: Gerald Beverly, Daemen (Jr., F, Rochester, N.Y.)
Coach of the Year: Steve Hayn, Dowling
