2026 CAA Men’s Basketball Awards Unveiled; Hofstra’s Davis and Edmead Make History

2026 CAA Men’s Basketball Awards Unveiled; Hofstra’s Davis and Edmead Make History

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Dylan Smith


RICHMOND, Va. – The Coastal Athletic Association unveiled its postseason men’s basketball awards on Friday, ahead of the 2026 Air Force Reserve CAA Men’s Basketball Championship beginning this afternoon in Washington, D.C.
 
Voting was conducted in a poll of the CAA’s 13 head coaches following the conclusion of the regular season. Coaches were not permitted to vote for their own players. Honorees will be recognized prior to their first game of the conference tournament, which will be played on March 6-10 at CareFirst Arena in Washington, D.C.
 
Hofstra is the first program in league history to roster the conference’s Player and Rookie of the Year selections in the same season, with junior guard Cruz Davis and freshman guard Preston Edmead.
 
Davis elevated his game to new heights during the 2025-26 season to secure the program’s fourth CAA Player of the Year honor in the last five campaigns. The junior guard averaged a league-best 20.3 points per game, shooting an efficient 44.7% from the floor and 82.2% from the charity stripe to help the Pride to a 21-10 overall record and a 12-6 mark in league play. Davis also finished top three in the conference with 4.7 assists per game. The Plano, Texas native was instrumental in the Pride’s two road wins over ACC foes Pittsburgh and Syracuse, unloading a 36-point effort against the Panthers and a 22-point, nine-assist showing against the Orange to help garner USBWA Player of the Month in December. Davis also excelled off the court and was named CAA Scholar-Athlete of the Year after boasting a 3.64 GPA in his studies.
 
Edmead joined his fellow backcourt mate among the major award winners with a Rookie of the Year nod. The Deer Park, N.Y., native put forth an incredible campaign highlighted by seven CAA Rookie of the Week nods, becoming just the third CAA freshman in league history to do so. The Pride guard ranked ninth in the league’s overall scoring with 15.4 points per game on 39.0% efficiency from behind the arc, good for third. Edmead also sat fourth in the conference with 4.6 assists per contest. His game elevated in CAA action, ranking inside the top 10 with 16.5 points per slate (9th) on 43.5% shooting from the floor (10th) and 43.4% from deep (1st).
 
Charleston’s Chol Machot notched Defensive Player of the Year after being one of the nation’s top rim protectors. The Cougars’ big man swatted away 77 shots, good for fifth in the country. The Australian center logged six or more blocks in a game on four occasions this season, including a season-high seven against Elon to close out the 2025 calendar year. Machot’s four outings with six or more blocks are the most in a single season since William & Mary’s Nathan Knight produced four of his own in 2018. The redshirt sophomore also chipped in 8.9 points and 5.6 rebounds per game.
 
Madison Durr captured Sixth Man of the Year after being a vital part of UNCW’s regular season success and earning the program’s 10th regular season title. A spark of the bench, the Seahawks’ guard averaged 9.8 points in 21.5 minutes per game in reserve. The Atlanta, Ga., native knocked down 133 free throws this season in 31 appearances off the bench, good for fifth in the conference. Durr also ranked second on the team with 70 total assists on the season.
 
William & Mary’s Chase Lowe was bestowed the coveted Dean Ehlers Leadership Award, exemplifying and embodying " the highest standards of leadership, integrity and sportsmanship in conjunction with his academic and athletic achievement." A three-year representative of the university’s Student-Athlete Advisory Committee, the Weddington, N.C., native has been active in the Williamsburg community with food drives, reading to local students at Matoaka Elementary School and giving guitar lessons in his spare time. On the court, Lowe, who has spent all four years with the Tribe, is one of three players in program history with at least 1,000 points, 600 rebounds and 300 assists. This season, the senior guard continued to be a steady presence for W&M with 9.3 points, 5.8 boards and 3.8 helpers per game, while his +2.3 assist/turnover ratio ranked third in the CAA.
 
UNCW Head Coach Takayo Siddle earned his second CAA Coach of the Year honor after guiding the program to its first outright CAA regular season title since the 2016-17 campaign. For the fifth time in as many seasons, the Seahawks also notched 20-plus wins, posting a 26-5 overall record and a 15-3 mark in league play under his direction. Siddle helped orchestrate three winning streaks of six contests or more, including a nine-game victory spree during non-conference action.
 
2025-26 CAA Men’s Basketball Postseason Awards
All-CAA First Team
DJ Smith                         Campbell                   Gr.        G               North Little Rock, Ark.
Jlynn Counter                Charleston                  Gr.          G               Oklahoma City, Okla.
Cruz Davis                      Hofstra                       Jr.           G              Plano, Texas
Patrick Wessler             UNCW                         R-Jr.       F                Matthews, N.C.
Erik Pratt                        Stony Brook                Sr.          G               Lake Worth, Fla.
 
All-CAA Second Team
Shane Blakeney             Drexel                          Jr.           G               Rock Hill. S.C.
Chandler Cuthrell          Elon                              Gr.          F                Baltimore, Md.
Preston Edmead            Hofstra                        Fr.          G               Deer Park, N.Y.
Jason Rivera-Torres      Monmouth                  Jr.           G               Bronx, N.Y.
Nolan Hodge                 UNCW                         Sr.          G               Greensboro, N.C.
 
All-CAA Third Team
Jeremiah Johnson         Campbell                     So.          G               Del City, Okla.
Christian Reeves           Charleston                  R-Jr.       C               Charlotte, N.C.
Lewis Walker                 N.C. A&T                     R-Fr.      F                Winston-Salem, NC
Tyler Tejada                   Towson                       Jr.           G/F           Teaneck, N.J.
Dylan Williamson          Towson                       R-Jr.       G               Upper Marlboro, Md.
 
CAA All-Defensive Team
Chol Machot                  Charleston                  R-So.      C               Melbourne, Australia
Christian Reeves           Charleston                  R-Jr.       C               Charlotte, N.C.
Shane Blakeney             Drexel                          Jr.           G               Rock Hill. S.C.
Joshua DeCady             Hofstra                        So.          F                Queens Village, N.Y.
Jason Rivera-Torres      Monmouth                  Jr.           G               Bronx, N.Y.
 
CAA All-Rookie Team
Chris Davis Jr.                Charleston                  Fr.          G               Madison, Wis.
Preston Edmead            Hofstra                        Fr.          G               Deer Park, N.Y.
Xavier Abreu                  Northeastern              Fr.          G               Lynn, Mass.
Lewis Walker                 N.C. A&T                     R-Fr.      F                Winston-Salem, N.C.
Andrej Shoshkikj           Stony Brook                Fr.          G               Skopje, North Macedonia
 
Player of the Year – Cruz Davis, Hofstra
Defensive Player of the Year – Chol Machot, Charleston
Rookie of the Year – Preston Edmead, Hofstra
Sixth Man of the Year – Madison Durr, UNCW
Scholar-Athlete of the Year – Cruz Davis, Hofstra
Dean Ehlers Leadership Award – Chase Lowe, William & Mary
Coach of the Year – Takayo Siddle, UNCW
 
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