Willard Named Coach of the Year, Men's All-Met Div. I Team Revealed
2017 MBWA Men's Division I Honors
FFI: Chuck Stogel, MBWA - 914-428-6111, chstogel@aol.com
Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association
www.MetBasketballWriters.org
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Willard Named Top Coach for All-Met Men’s Div. I Teams
84th Haggerty Award Winner to Be Announced on Wednesday; Ponds Gets Rookie of the Year
NEW YORK (April 24, 2017) –
Kevin Willard of Seton Hall has been selected the All-Met Division I men’s college basketball
Coach of the Year for a second consecutive season, it was announced Monday by the Met Basketball Writers Association.
Justin Robinson of Monmouth was named a repeat All-Met First Team selection, while Khadeen Carrington and Angel Delgado of Seton Hall were both elevated from the Second Team last season to the First Team this year.
The rest of the All-Met First Team: Jerome Frink, LIU; Shamorie Ponds, St. John’s; Jordan Washington, Iona.
The winner of the
Lt. Frank J. Haggerty Award as All-Met Men’s Player of the Year will be announced by the MBWA on Wednesday.
Named to the Second Team for 2016-17: Marcus LoVett, St. John’s; Justin Wright-Foreman, Hofstra; Desi Rodriguez, Seton Hall; Tyler Nelson, Fairfield; Quadir Welton, St. Peter’s; Corey Sanders, Rutgers.
The Third Team: Michael Carey, Wagner; Micah Seaborn, Monmouth; Lucas Woodhouse, Stony Brook; Luke Petrasek, Columbia; Quincy McKnight, Sacred Heart; Damon Lynn, NJIT
Ponds also was named the
All-Met Rookie of the Year.
The All-Met First and Second Team players, coach and rookie of the year was honored Wednesday at the 84th NIT/MBWA Haggerty Awards dinner at the Westchester Marriott, Tarrytown, NY.
In his seventh season at the helm (128-102), Willard guided the Pirates (21-12) to back-to-back 20-win seasons for the first time since coach P.J. Carlesimo’s SHU teams completed three 20-plus seasons in 1991-92-93. It was also the first time Seton Hall put together back-to-back Big East winning seasons since coach Louis Orr’s squads each went 10-6 in 2003 and 2004.
After finishing in a tie for third place in the competitive Big East regular season, Seton Hall advanced to the conference semifinals for the third time in the past four seasons, losing to Villanova, and then gained an at-large bid to the NCAA tournament for the second straight year. Along the way the Pirates posted four top 50 RPI victories.
A 6-1 guard from Brooklyn, NY, Ponds --- who was named to the NABC All-District second team --- led the Red Storm with 17.4 ppg (fifth in the Big East) and was fifth in the nation in scoring among all freshmen. He led the Big East in steals during the regular season and finished with 2.06 spg, second among all freshmen nationally and 22nd overall. He set a freshman school scoring record with 573 points (surpassing D’Angelo Harrison’s 544) while nailing 75 3-pointers and shooting 83% at the free throw line.
SUMMARY
First Team
Khadeen Carrington, Seton Hall, 6-4, jr, G, Brooklyn, NY
Angel Delgado, Seton Hall, 6-10, jr, F, Bajos De Haina, Dominican Republic
Jerome Frink, LIU-Brooklyn, 6-7, sr, F, Jersey City, NJ
Shamorie Ponds, St. John’s, 6-1, fr, G, Brooklyn, NY
Justin Robinson, Monmouth, 5-8, sr, G, Lake Katrine, NY
Jordan Washington, Iona, 6-8, sr, F, Jamaica, NY
Second Team
Marcus LoVett, St. John’s, 6-0, fr, G, Fort Wayne, IN
Tyler Nelson, Fairfield, 6-3, jr, G, Bradford, MA
Desi Rodriguez, Seton Hall, 6-6, jr, F, Bronx, NY
Corey Sanders, Rutgers, 6-2, so, G, Lakeland, FL
Quadir Welton, St. Peter’s, 6-8, sr, F/C, Philadelphia, PA
Justin Wright-Foreman, Hofstra, 6-0, so, G, Queens, NY
Third Team
Michael Carey, Wagner, 6-5, sr, G, Nassau, Bahamas
Damon Lynn, NJIT, 5-11, sr, G, Hillside, NJ
Quincy McKnight, Sacred Heart, 6-4, so, G, Bridgeport, CT
Luke Petrasek, Columbia, 6-10, sr, F, E. Northport, NY
Micah Seaborn, Monmouth, 6-5, so, G, Fort Worth, TX
Lucas Woodhouse, Stony Brook, 6-3, sr, G, Woodlawn, NY
Rookie of the Year: Shamorie Ponds, St. John’s
Peter A. Carlesimo Coach of the Year: Kevin Willard, Seton Hall