METRO MEDIA DAY PRESEASON POLL:
- Fairfield
- Merrimack
- Siena
- Iona
- Marist
- Quinnipiac
- Saint Peter’s
- Mount Saint Mary’s
- Sacred Heart
- Manhattan
- Canisius
- Niagara
- Rider
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-METRO 1ST TEAM:
-Abdou Khadre Kebe – JR – Mount Saint Mary’s
-Keith McKnight – SO – Quinnipiac
-Bryce Eaton – Jr – Saint Peter’s
-Declan Wucherpfennig – SO – Fairfield (Preseason Player of the Year)
-Kosy Akametu – SR – Iona
-Jadin Collins-Roberts – SR – Marist
-Denver Anglin – SR – Merrimack
MEDIA DAY PRESEASON ALL-METRO 2ND TEAM:
-Brednon Coyle – SR – Siena
-Todd Brogna – SR – Merrimack
-Pace Prosser – JR – Siena
-JoJo Wallace – JR – Sacred Heart
-Tony Williams – SO – Fairfield
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COMMENTS FROM DAVID:
-Fairfield is the media’s pick to win the league this year and I can see why. After a so-so start to league play last year, they won seven of their last ten, which included a run to the conference tournament semifinals. Declan Wucherpfennig is believed to be the best player in the conference after a standout freshman year where he averaged over 12ppg and 8rpg. Tony Williams is another player that saw key minutes as a freshman a year ago. Qadir Martin was a strong scorer and rebounder at Mercyhurst last year and he helps make up what should be a strong frontcourt.
-Merrimack was last year’s first place team and expectations are again high despite having just one starter back. They are adding some strong players from the portal. AJ Lesburt averaged double digits at Brown last year and Denver Anglin was a strong player for Iona. I don’t think the Warriors will be quite as strong this year as they were a year ago, but they should still be good.
-Siena won the conference tournament last year and then gave Duke a hell of a game in the Round of 64. This year, like a lot of teams are having to do this year (and ever year) Siena has had to rebuild their roster with just one returning starter. Pace Prosser transfers in after being a standout player in D2 where he averaged over 18ppg and was good from the outside. Tan Yildizouglu averaged double figures at VMI last year, so the Saints do have some pieces to work with.
Iona finished right at .500 in league play last year and seem to be heading back toward the middle of the league this year. They do have some guys coming in from bigger conference programs who saw limited minutes, and Kevon Vanderhorst was a strong player for Drexel last year, so the Gaels do have some potential.
-Marist has just one starter back, but Jack Graham is transferring in from New Hampshire who is a good outside shooter. Some of the guys who saw limited minutes a year ago will have to step up if Marist is going to contend for the top of the league.
-Quinnipiac lost all five starters from a season ago and Tom Pecora, who is a good coach, is having to start almost completely over. They do have a couple of guys transferring in that played in key roles at D2 schools, but they don’t just have much in the way of experience. It could end up being a long season for the Bobcats.
-I’m a little surprised Saint Peter’s is being picked as low as 7th. I actually like this team. I think they can finish much better than that. In fact, I think they can win the league. Three starters are back from a team that finished 2nd last year with Cryce Eaton and Elija Perkins making up a pretty solid backcourt. Ken Walker is a D2 transfer who averaged over 2oppg and was a good outside shooter. Bryson Wilson also joins the roster, who was a strong player for Binghamton last year. I look at this team and I think they have a lot of pieces. I think they’re going to do much better than where the preseason polls have them.
-Mount Saint Mary’s was a modest 11-9 in league play last year and has just one starter back. Redd Thompson, who was a double-digit scorer at Longwood last year, transfers in, and Miquel Llompart was a standout player in D2 a year ago, but others will have to step up in order for Mount Saint Mary’s to finish near the top.
-Sacred Heart appeared to have a talented roster last year, but finished 9th in league play, which was nowhere near what their expectations were. With just one starter back they are having to start over. They do have a couple guys in Jaden Slaughter and Friffin Barrouk who can hit from the outside and they’ve gone into the portal and gotten some D2 standouts as well as some guys that played smaller roles at bigger programs.
-Manhattan won just 12 games total last year and their entire starting lineup is gone. The days of them being one of the flagship teams in this league now seem like they were a long time ago. Anthony Pacciarelli averaged an amazing 26ppg in D2 last year, and he’ll be joined by several other transfers, including Ben Tweedy from Colgate who is a good outside shooter. I think they can do a little better than where they are being picked, but with so much roster turnover it is hard to say.
-It has been a rough two years for Jim Christian at Canisius, and this year doesn’t appear like it will be any easier. After winning just 10 total games last year, the entire starting lineup is gone and there just doesn’t appear to be much in the way of talent or experience on the roster.
-Niagara won just 8 total games a year ago and finished 340th in the NET, which is among the 25 worst in all of D1. No starters are back, so the positive way to look at this is that they are getting a fresh start. Their roster is made up of several D1 transfers, and they do have some guys that can really shoot the ball, but most saw limited minutes a year ago and will have to play a bigger role this year for this team to experience any success.
-Rider won just 4 games a year ago, and while they weren’t in contention for the Centenary Award, they were close. No starters return from that team and Head Coach Kevin Baggett is trying to rebuild with some D1 transfers who saw limited roles at their previous schools.
