West Babylon, N.Y. - For the second year in a row, Andrew Sischo (Guilderland, N.Y.) of Daemen College was named the East Coast Conference Player of the Year. Bridgeport's Bakary Camara (Harlem, N.Y.) claimed the Defensive Player of the Year honor, while Amari Lee (Newport News, Va.) of Roberts Wesleyan took home league's Rookie of the Year award.
Sischo followed up his Player of the Year campaign of 2018-19 with an even better year this season. The junior center was once again a double-double machine, leading Division II with 20 during the regular season while also upping his scoring average over four points to 24.2 points per game and his rebounds per game total to 11.4 per game. His scoring average was 10th in all of Division II and leads the ECC while his rebounds per game mark is third nationally. Sischo ranks ninth in Division II with a 64.1 shooting percentage, as well. In addition, Sischo has already set ECC single-season records for points (750) and field goals made (289) with an opportunity for those marks to climb with the Wildcats still alive in postseason play.
Camara earned the Defensive Player of the Year award after swiping 2.23 steals per game to rank 13th nationally and help Bridgeport lead the Division II team rankings in steals per game and turnovers forced per game. Camara added 14 blocks and ranked fifth in the ECC with 7.5 rebounds per game on the year.
A five-time ECC Rookie of the Week, Lee was the top rookie scorer in the ECC with a 13.8 point per game average. He also ranked among the lead leaders in assists per game (2nd - 4.3), assists (1st - 117), and free throws made (2nd - 121). Lee had the first triple-double in the ECC in nearly two calendar years as well, pulling off the feat against Bridgeport on January 10 with 17 points, 13 rebounds, and 10 assists.
The league's Coach of the Year honor went to Bridgeport's Mike Ruane. Bridgeport finished 23-3 and also earned the No. 1 seed and Regular Season Championship with a near-unblemished 15-1 mark in ECC play. The Purple Knights are also positioned to host for the NCAA East Region Championship for the first time, entering this weekend's conference championship ranked No. 1 in the NCAA regional rankings.
The ECC also announced its Men's Basketball All-Conference teams at Friday evening's awards banquet in Washington, D.C. Five student-athletes - Camara, Sischo, Osbel Caraballo (So., F, St. Thomas Aquinas), Nick Corbett (Sr., G, Molloy), and Bryan Griffin (Jr., F, Mercy) - repeat as First Team picks. Demetre Roberts (So., G, St. Thomas Aquinas) is the lone newcomer to the First Team.
All-Conference Second Team honorees are Hashem Abbas (Jr., F/C, Bridgeport), Elijah Bovell (Queens), Sekou Cisse (Sr., F, St. Thomas Aquinas), Breon Harris (Sr., G, Daemen), and D'Vonne Trumbo (Sr., G, Bridgeport).
Reggie Clark (Roberts Wesleyan), Jeffrey Hayden (New York Tech), Zachary Olukanni (Sr., G, Dist. Columbia), Jeff Redband (Sr., F, Daemen), and Joey Wallace (Sr., G, Daemen) round out the honorees as Third Team selections.
2019-2020 ECC Men’s Basketball All-Conference
First Team
Bakary Camara, Bridgeport
Osbel Caraballo, St. Thomas Aquinas
Nick Corbett, Molloy
Bryan Griffin, Mercy
Andrew Sischo, Daemen
Demetre Roberts, St. Thomas Aquinas
Second Team
Hashem Abbas, Bridgeport
Elijah Bovell, Queens
Sekou Cisse, St. Thomas Aquinas
Breon Harris, Daemen
D'Vonne Trumbo, Bridgeport
Third Team
Reggie Clark, Roberts Wesleyan
Jeffrey Hayden, New York Tech
Zachary Olukanni, Dist. Columbia
Jeff Redband, Daemen
Joey Wallace, Daemen
Player of the Year: Andrew Sischo, Daemen
Defensive Player of the Year: Bakary Camara, Bridgeport
Rookie of the Year: Amari Lee, Roberts Wesleyan
Coach of the Year: Mike Ruane, Bridgeport
