Benimon Headlines All-CAA Men's Basketball Team
To watch any of the videos mentioned in this story on your mobile device or tablet download one of our newly redesigned apps or visit us on YouTube.
RICHMOND,
Va. (March 8, 2013) - Towson junior forward Jerrelle Benimon was
selected as the Colonial Athletic Association men's basketball Player of the
Year in voting by the league's head coaches, media relations directors and
members of the media. The announcement was made Friday night at the league's
pre-tournament awards banquet in Richmond, Va.
Also
receiving top honors were Towson's Pat
Skerry as the CAA Coach of the
Year, Georgia State freshman guard R.J.
Hunter as the CAA Rookie of the
Year and Delaware senior forward Jamelle
Hagins as the CAA Defensive Player
of the Year. Northeastern senior guard Jonathan Lee was the recipient of
the Dean Ehlers Leadership Award.
Benimon is the first Towson player to earn CAA
Player of the Year honors. The junior forward recorded double-doubles in 20 of
the Tigers' 31 contests, which is currently tied with UNCW's Keith Rendleman
for the most in Division I. He was the league's fourth-leading scorer with 17.1
points per game and reached double figures in 27 of 31 outings. Benimon led the
CAA and ranked third in the nation with 11.2 rebounds per game and his 346
rebounds set a Towson season record and were the eighth-most in a season in CAA
history. Showing his all-around game, Benimon was also third in the conference
in blocked shots (1.9 bpg) and fourth in field goal percentage (53.3%) and his
79 assists were the most of any Towson player.
Skerry guided Towson to the biggest turnaround in
NCAA Division I history this year. After going just 1-31 during Skerry's inaugural
campaign in 2011-12, the Tigers posted an 18-13 mark this season, which was the
most victories by a Towson squad since 1993-94. Their 13-5 record in CAA play
and second-place finish in the league standings were also the best ever. Towson won 12 of its 18 games away from home
(9 away/3 neutral), which was the program's highest total since 1976-77. The
Tigers closed the season with eight victories in their final nine contests.
Hunter was a unanimous selection for the CAA Rookie
of the Year award (coaches and SID's couldn't vote for their own players) and
is the first Georgia State player to receive the honor. The freshman guard
ranked sixth in the CAA in scoring with 17.0 points per game and broke the
Panthers' freshman scoring mark with 527 points. He tallied double figures in
24 contests and topped the 20-point mark 12 times. On Feb. 2 against Old
Dominion, he poured in a career-high 38 points after tying a CAA record by
hitting 10-of-15 from three-point range. Hunter, who was one of only four
freshmen in the nation to average at least 17 points and five rebounds per
game, ranked fifth in the CAA in steals (1.7 spg). He is also the first
freshman to be named to the All-CAA first team since UNCW's Brett Blizzard in
1999-2000.
Hagins is the first Delaware player to garner CAA
Defensive Player of the Year accolades. The senior forward led the league and
ranked 33rd in the nation with 2.4 blocked shots per game this
season. He is the Blue Hens' all-time leader in blocks and ranks fourth on the
CAA's all-time chart with 285. Hagins was also second in the CAA and eighth in
the nation in rebounding with 10.5 per contest. He became UD's all-time leading
rebounder earlier this season and has climbed to sixth in CAA history with
1,051 caroms. Hagins is one of only eight players in CAA history to accumulate
over 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in a career.
Lee is the first Northeastern player to receive the
Ehlers Award, which is presented annually to the men's basketball
student-athlete who "embodies the highest standards of leadership, integrity
and sportsmanship in conjunction with his academic athletic achievement." After
missing the Huskies' first nine games due to injury, the senior guard started
the final 21 contests and contributed 13.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and a team-high
4.1 assists per game. Earlier this season, he went over the 1,000-point mark
for his career. Lee is one of 10 finalists for the Senior CLASS Award, which
honors student-athletes who have noteworthy accomplishments in community,
classroom, character and competition.
Joining Towson's Benimon and GSU's Hunter on the
All-CAA first team was UNCW senior forward Keith
Rendleman, Delaware junior guard Devon Saddler, and
Northeastern senior guard Joel Smith.
Rendleman made the first team for the second year in
a row after ranking among the top five in the CAA in scoring (17.0 ppg/5th),
rebounding (10.5 rpg/3rd), field goal percentage (53.9%/3rd)
and blocked shots (1.6 bpg/5th). He's UNCW's all-time leader and
ranks fifth in the CAA history in rebounding (1,055) and is fourth on the
Seahawks' career scoring chart with 1,516 points. Rendleman is one of eight
players in CAA history with over 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds in a career.
Saddler, who was a second-team All-CAA honoree in
2011-12, led the CAA and ranked 15th in the nation in scoring with
20.2 points per game. He has scored double figures in 37 consecutive games,
which is the second-longest streak in Division I, and he topped the 20-point
mark 15 times. Saddler is already third on UD's all-time scoring list with
1,641 points, which is the second-most of any junior in the nation.
Smith earns All-CAA honors for the first time after
a breakout season. The senior guard led NU and ranked seventh in the league in
scoring with 16.5 points per game. He was also second in the conference in
three-pointers (77) and three-point FG percentage (42.5%) and led the CAA in
free throw percentage (87%). Smith is second on NU's career treys chart with
237.
Earning second-team All-CAA honors were Delaware's Hagins
(11.6 ppg/10.5 rpg), Drexel sophomore guard Damion Lee (17.5 ppg/5.2
rpg), Drexel junior guard Frantz Massenat (14.6 ppg/4.2 apg), William
& Mary sophomore guard Marcus Thornton (18.6 ppg/2.7 rpg) and George
Mason junior guard Sherrod Wright (16.5 ppg/4.9 rpg).
Named to the All-CAA third team were Northeastern
sophomore forward/guard Quincy Ford (12.9 ppg/5.7 rpg), James Madison
senior forward Rayshawn Goins (12.9 ppg/7.4 rpg), Northeastern's Lee
(13.8 ppg/4.5 rpg), James Madison senior guard Devon Moore (11.3 ppg/4.8
apg), William & Mary junior forward Tim Rusthoven (14.4 ppg/7.2 rpg)
and Delaware sophomore guard Jarvis Threatt (13.1 ppg/5.7 rpg).
When the championship action starts Saturday we encourage all fans not in attendance to logon to CAA Hoop Scoop (caamenshoops.wordpress.com), the official blog of Men's #CAAHoops, to interact with the live blog for each game. A live radio feed from the first five games of the championships will be available at CAA.TVand via each of our iPhone and iPad apps. A FREE login is required to access the audio.
We invite you to share your #CAAHoops thoughts, ideas and photos with us on Facebook. We are also on Twitter @CAAHoops and encourage fans from all our schools to follow our tweets for all the latest league information. Be sure to tag all #CAAHoops-related tweets with our official hashtag #CAAHoops. Fans can also follow CAASports on Instagram, which will likely have several photos posted during the weekend's events and be sure to tag your Instagram photos with the #CAAHoops hashtag and we'll like them
2012-13 CAA MEN'S
BASKETBALL AWARD WINNERS
First Team All-CAA Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School
Jerrelle Benimon,
Towson Jr. F 6-8 245 Warrenton,
Va./Fauquier
R.J. Hunter,
Georgia State Fr. G 6-5 175 Indianapolis,
Ind./Pike
Keith Rendleman,
UNCW Sr. F 6-8 220 Denver,
N.C./East Lincoln
Devon Saddler,
Delaware Jr. G 6-2 210 Aberdeen,
Md./Aberdeen
Joel Smith,
Northeastern Sr. G 6-4 180 Leander,
Texas/Leander
Second Team All-CAA Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School
Jamelle Hagins,
Delaware Sr. F 6-9 235 Roanoke,
Va./William Fleming
Damion Lee, Drexel So. G 6-6 195 Baltimore,
Md./Calvert Hall
Frantz Massenat,
Drexel Jr. G 6-4 185 Ewing,
N.J./Trenton Catholic
Marcus Thornton,
William & Mary So. G 6-4 185 Upper
Marlboro, Md./Bishop McNamara
Sherrod Wright,
George Mason Jr. G 6-4 196 Mount
Vernon, N.Y./Mount Vernon
Third Team All-CAA Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School
Quincy Ford,
Northeastern So. F/G 6-8 212 St.
Petersburg, Fla./Gibbs
Rayshawn Goins,
James Madison Sr. F 6-6 265 Cleveland,
Ohio/Glenville
Jonathan Lee,
Northeastern Sr. G 6-2 200 Flint,
Mich./Flint Carmen-Ainsworth
Devon Moore, James
Madison Sr. G 6-4 175 Columbus,
Ohio/Northland
Tim Rusthoven,
William & Mary Jr. F 6-9 235 Winfield,
Ill./Wheaton Academy
Jarvis Threatt,
Delaware So. G 6-2 165 Richmond,
Va./Highland Springs
2012-13 CAA Player
of the Year - Jerrelle Benimon, Towson
2012-13 CAA Coach
of the Year - Pat Skerry, Towson
2012-13 CAA Rookie
of the Year - R.J. Hunter, Georgia State
2012-13 CAA
Defensive Player of the Year - Jamelle Hagins, Delaware
2012-13 Dean Ehlers
Leadership Award - Jonathan Lee, Northeastern
CAA All-Rookie Team Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School
Jerome Hairston,
Towson Fr. G 6-3 190 Cheyenne,
Wyo./Christ School
R.J. Hunter,
Georgia State Fr. G 6-5 175 Indianapolis,
Ind./Pike
Andre Nation, James
Madison Fr. G 6-5 200 Plant
City, Fla./Faith Baptist Christian
Keenan Palmore, Old
Dominion Fr. G 6-1 174 Stone
Mountain, Ga./Paideia School
David Walker,
Northeastern Fr. G 6-6 176 Stow,
Ohio/Stow-Munroe Falls
CAA All-Defensive
Team Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School
Jerrelle Benimon,
Towson Jr. F 6-8 245 Warrenton,
Va./Fauquier
Jamelle Hagins,
Delaware Sr. F 6-9 235 Roanoke,
Va./William Fleming
Stevie Mejia,
Hofstra Sr. G 5-9 175 Hyde
Park, Mass./Lawrence Academy
Keith Rendleman,
UNCW Sr. F 6-8 220 Denver,
N.C./East Lincoln
James Vincent,
Georgia State Sr. C 6-10 260 Columbus,
Ga./Northside
CAA All-Academic
First Team Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School
Kyle Anderson,
Delaware So. G 6-2 195 Newark,
Ill./Newark
Kyle Gaillard,
William & Mary Jr. F 6-8 220 Huntersville,
N.C./North Mecklenburg
Donte Hill, Old
Dominion Jr. G 6-4 205 Virginia
Beach, Va./Norfolk Collegiate
Shane Reybold, UNCW Jr. F 6-8 238 Laurel,
Md./Reservoir
Tim Rusthoven,
William & Mary Jr. F 6-9 235 Winfield,
Ill./Wheaton Academy
CAA All-Academic
Second Team Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School
Brandon Britt,
William & Mary Jr. G 6-2 195 Chesapeake,
Va./Atlantic Shores Christian
Daquan Brown,
Hofstra Jr. F 6-10 215 Brooklyn,
N.Y./Lincoln
Jonathan Lee,
Northeastern Sr. G 6-2 200 Flint,
Mich./Flint Carmen-Ainsworth
Tanner Milson, UNCW Jr. G 6-2 190 Cedar
Hill, Texas/Cedar Hill
Kris Walden, Towson So. G 6-1 175 Richmond,
Va./Henrico
CAA All-Academic
Hon. Mention Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School
Bryan Blackstone,
Towson Gr. G 5-10 185 Ivyland,
Pa./Council Rock North
Brett Goodloe, William
& Mary Sr. G 6-4 190 Staunton,
Va./St. Anne's Belfield
Fred Heldring,
William & Mary Jr. F 6-9 245 Winnetka,
Ill./New Trier
Doug Howard,
William & Mary Sr. G 5-9 160 Leesburg,
Va./Flint Hill
Anton Larsen, Old
Dominion Jr. C/F 7-0 240 Copenhagen,
Denmark/Oster Farimagsgades
Stevan Manojlovic,
Drexel Jr. G 6-5 197 Toronto,
Ontario/Martingrove Collegiate Inst
Andrew Pavloff,
William & Mary Sr. F 6-9 240 Akron,
Ohio/Walsh Jesuit
Tom Schalk, William
& Mary So. F 6-8 210 Burnsville,
Minn./Apple Valley
Will Townsville,
Delaware Sr. G 6-3 180 Newark,
Del./Glasgow