Alumni Makes NCAA History

Evan Conti named NYIT men’s basketball head coach

OLD WESTBURY, N.Y. — The best candidate for the NYIT men’s basketball head coaching position turned out to already be with the program.

Evan Conti, who finished last season as the interim head coach, has been selected as the permanent leader for the program, director of athletics Dan Vélez announced Thursday.

Conti, a former standout guard at Quinnipiac, who has professional playing experience in Israel, had joined the NYIT men’s basketball staff as an assistant coach before the 2018-19 season.

“I am excited about the future of New York Tech Basketball,” Vélez said. “Evan brings a passion for the game and a work ethic that will propel our program forward. His experience as a collegiate player and as a professional will be instrumental in the growth of our basketball program.

“As we conducted this search and interviewed candidates from all levels of basketball, Evan rose to the top. We are thrilled he will be taking the reins of our basketball program.”

Conti had been appointed interim head coach on Feb. 23, 2019. He coached two games and earned his first collegiate head coaching victory against LIU Post in the season finale.

Conti’s résumé includes playing in 121 career games as a guard over four seasons at Division I Quinnipiac, then playing professionally for three Israeli clubs — Hapoel Be’er Sheva, Hapoel Afula and Hapoel Migdal Haemek.

He averaged 9.0 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game as senior with Quinnipiac in 2014-15. That included a 26-point performance against Niagara.

The 6-foot-3 Conti’s 1,120 career points at Holy Cross High School in Queens rank fifth all time.

“NYIT is a university with a prestigious tradition of success both academically and athletically,” Conti said. “I am extremely proud and humbled to become part of its impressive legacy. I would like to thank Dan Vélez, Danny Hagenlocher and the entire athletic department for believing in me. The team has been incredibly supportive. I want to thank them for trusting me with their development on and off the court. I look forward to the seasons to come as we work toward building a basketball culture and program of which we are proud.”

Said Vélez: “I truly believe, in a short amount of time, Evan will lead our Tech men’s basketball program to East Coast Conference championships and to becoming a regular participant in the NCAA Tournament. I am confident Evan will win with class and integrity. Above all, he will ensure our men’s basketball student-athletes reach their full academic potential.”

At only 26 years old, Evan Conti from NYC is one of youngest head coaches in Division I or Division II basketball.

Irishman Sean Bresnan Makes the Call

South Kent School and Born Ready Elite forward Sean Bresnan is the latest local prep product to accept a full athletic scholarship from a division II school.

Bresnan made a verbal commitment to Franklin Pierce College on Tuesday, announcing his decision via his twitter account.

Sean@SeanB24_

Excited to announce my commitment to play at Franklin Pierce University! #FP23’

109

12:53 PM – Apr 16, 2019 · Bronx, NY

28 people are talking about this

Twitter Ads info and privacy

Prior to arriving at South Kent, Bresnan had a storied high school career at Saunders High School in Yonkers, New York. He was a three-year starter and 1,000 point scorer who won a Yonkers City championship in each season and earned All-LHBCA 1st team honors as a senior.

He earned his first scholarship offer over the summer while starring for Born Ready Elite at stops including the Big Apple Showcase and others.

This season at South Kent, Bresnan averaged 15 points and 10 rebounds per game while leading the Cardinals back to the post-season and earning All-NEPSAC honors.

“Sean Bresnan played hard every single night,” said South Kent head coach Bill Barton. “He was one of the best rebounders in AA and he can score from all three levels.”

Ultimately, Bresnan earned multiple scholarship offers before deciding on Franklin Pierce.

He is the second South Kent product to commit to a D2 school in the last week, joining longtime teammate Manasseh Small, who committed to St. Rose.

Manasseh “Nas” Small Makes the Call

South Kent School post-graduate guard Manasseh Small committed to St. Rose on Saturday just one day after the Northeast-10 school offered scholarships to both him and teammate Sean Bresnan.

Small and Bresnan starred together both on the summer circuit, with Born Ready Elite, as well as during the prep year with South Kent.

Bresnan has yet to finalize his college decision.

St. Rose head coach Mike Perno has made recruiting the New England prep schools a priority since taking over the program and has now added a late NEPSAC commitment in each of the last three seasons with Small following Cheshire Academy’s Jeff Allen and Williston Northampton’s Josh McGettigan.

Small made his New England debut last June at the Elite 75 College Showcase and followed up a strong showing there with a similarly impressive performance at the Big Apple Showcase.

This winter, he had a terrific season this year for South Kent, emerging into their most potent perimeter scorer, helping to guide the team back to the post-season and earning honorable mention All-NEPSAC honors in the process.

Once dubbed a “heat seaking missile on his way to the basket,” by head coach Bill Barton, Small is a physical guard who plays a downhill style to attack the rim. He’s also added to his skill-set within the last year though and can also beat defenders with pull-ups and threes, making him a threat at all three levels.

Introducing Jordan Agayemang

A lot of people may be learning the name Jordan Agyemang (South Bronx Prep ’19) very soon as the 6’6″ wing who led his Cougars team to the PSAL Class B Championship will now be heading up to Glens Falls for this coming weekends NYS Federation Tournament of Champions.

Once there, Agyemang’s first test will be Glens Falls led by high scoring guard 

Joe Girard

 III ’19 as South Bronx Prep will be taking on the Indians in Saturday’s semifinals in what promises to be a sold-out crowd at the Cool Insuring Arena in Glens Falls.

It’s Agyemang’s chance to showcase that Girard isn’t the only high scoring potent shot maker on the court on Saturday as he has averaged 28 points, 15 rebounds, and 5 assists a game this season as the still uncommitted Agyemang will look to continue to bolster his stock for those coaches in attendance.

There aren’t many with the skill set of Agyemang if you are to ask his coach at South Bronx Prep in Paul Campbell. Having seen a lot of players in his day on the H.S. and AAU scenes, Campbell says there is a lot to Agyemang’s game that makes him very special.

“Jordan is a two-way player who is a versatile 6’6″ and is super athletic. He puts defense first as you saw today too as he had 10 blocks,” Campbell said this past Wednesday after the Cougars PSAL Class B semifinal victory. “Offensively though he plays the game at his pace and is such a sponge because he wants to learn and keep getting better every day.”

Displaying an excellent pull up jumper off the dribble, Agyemang is also excellent at attacking the basket and finishing above the rim as he is as bouncy a player as they come and should only continue to develop more and more with his every improving long range jumper coming together as well.

According to Campbell, Agyemang has a handful of Division 2 offers along with some Division 1 interest though Campbell didn’t want to name the schools who are in the mix right now, though with the chance to be playing Glens Falls this weekend, a good game there in front of what should be many college coaches on hand, things could blow up even more for the talented wing.

Wherever he ends up Campbell says he is very excited for Agyemang’s future as players like him have become fewer and fewer these days he believes, with Agyemang just scratching the surface of the player he believes he can be.

“He fits the mold for what colleges want with his length and his size and his ability to do so many different things well,” Campbell said. “He’s a diamond in the rough and someone is really going to get a major steal.”

Introducing Mohamed Wague

He may not be a household name yet among college coaches, but without question 6’9″ wing Mohamed Wague (Frederick Douglass Academy ’20) should and will be a name that many in Division 1 circles begin to know about sooner rather than later.

Having come to the United States two years ago from Mali, Wague has quickly developed both on and off the court as he became a strong student in the classroom at FDA, while also being a key cog in the Lions success to winning the PSAL Class A Championship.

If you had said that Wague would be where he is now when he came to the U.S. in the summer of 2017 many would have looked at you funny. Speaking no English, Wague enrolled at International Community H.S. in the Bronx and quickly began excelling in the classroom proving to be a quick learner which enabled him to enroll at one of the more academically challenging high schools in New York City in Frederick Douglass Academy for this his junior year.

Lions head coach Pat Mangan said Wague did everything expected of him, including being one of the bright students on an FDA team that requires everyone to have an 80 average, but it was his growth on the basketball court that has to have college coaches excited.

In what was his first year of organized basketball Wague averaged over 11 points and 10 rebounds a game, showing off not as an interior 4 man, but as a wing who could shoot from the perimeter and be a tough midrange weapon off the dribble.

The fact that Wague has only been playing basketball overall for about three years makes it scary in Mangan’s mind about how good he could be, with the longtime FDA head man saying it’s pretty much up to Wague himself as to how far he will have the game of basketball take him.

“Mohamed has incredible potential and can be as good as he wants to be,” Mangan said. “With his size and his athleticism, he will attract a lot of scouts at some point be it this year or next year.”

Unfortunately, Mangan says that Wague will not be back at Frederick Douglass Academy come the fall as because he was pushed back a year because of his adjustment to the language difference he has run out of PSAL eligibility. He will be somewhere else come September, and with his AAU status according to Mangan still in the works as well there will be a lot new situations for Wague in the near future.

So far there hasn’t been too much in terms of college interest because as Mangan said most schools are looking for fully developed prospects, readymade players ready to instantly come in and make an impact, whereas Wague isn’t the finished product as of yet, though the upside is there.

Right now it’s about finding the proper positions to put Wague in to get the best out of him to help him in the future, with Mangan stating that it’s all about seeing him success and become all he can be, even if it’s somewhere else from FDA as Mangan says he will do all he can to help get Wague in the right path.

“We just have to get him in a good spot where he can continue to grow,” Mangan explained. “He’s grown a lot with us so we just have to put him in some good soil. If Mohamed is put in some good soil he will grow into something very special.”

NJCAA Division III All American & Region XV Player of Year Steven Tynes Leads Suffolk County Community College to the National Tournament

Suffolk County Community College will take its undefeated record to the NJCAA Division III men’s basketball championships.

The Sharks defeated Nassau Community, 72-67, to win the Region XV championship at Borough of Manhattan Community College Sunday. After trailing by five points at halftime, the Sharks outscored Nassau 47-37 in the second half.

“It was just a matter of getting our guys to really calm down,” coach Victor Correa said. “I think they were overly excited and it caused us to get in some foul trouble in the first half. Basically, I just explained to them that we felt they were the best team on the floor, and it was just calming down and getting back to basics.”

Tyree Grimsley of North Babylon led Suffolk with 23 points and seven rebounds and Steven Tynes, of Brentwood added 13 points and 11 rebounds; the two players played all 40 minutes for the Sharks. Grimsley was named most valuable player of the tournament. Tynes, who was a first-team All-American point guard last year, was named to the all-tournament team and Region XV Player of the Year as Suffolk’s leader in a team-oriented offense.

“Everything we do, we don’t care who ends up with the high points, it’s all about winning,” said Correa, who was named the Region XV Coach of the Year. “And when you have your point guard who has the ball 90 percent of the time and he buys in and believes it, it just makes it easier for everyone else around you.”

Suffolk (27-0) returned six rotation players — Grimsley, Tynes, Jaye Bookhart, Ryan Graziano, James Signer and Jonathan Agostino —  from last year’s team, which reached the Region XV final, and Correa credited their leadership and experience for the team’s play.

The Sharks, the top-ranked team in the country, play in the quarterfinals of the NJCAA Division III championships March 14 at the Rochester Regional Sports Center in Minnesota. The semifinals are the following day with the championship March 16 Suffolk has won the national championship twice.

“We separate the year into three seasons and the guys understand that the third season is the three games at the national tournament,” Correa said. “If they can buy in and focus in those three games, they will fall in that category of the other two great Suffolk basketball teams.”

Steven Tynes Leads Suffolk County Community College to the Finals

Suffolk, which fell behind by nine with under 15 minutes left, responded with a 15-0 run and outscored their opponents from the Bronx 57-43 in the second half. The surge helped the Sharks continue a turnaround season, as they finished 11-15 last year and were bounced from the Region XV tournament in the first round as the No. 8 seed.

“I’m real proud of the guys,” coach Victor Correa said. “They’ve been fighting all year and I couldn’t be happier for them.”

After leading early in the first half, the Sharks (26-2) were on the wrong end of a 20-6 run that put Hostos up 42-31 with 1:38 left in the period. Suffolk scored the final five points of the first half, before Hostos (11-16) built its lead back up to 54-45 with 14:54 left.

Suffolk responded with a three-pointer from Tynes on its next possession, before Tyler Hammond got a steal in the backcourt and converted a layup to make it 54-50. Suffolk got within two after Tyree Grimsley (22 points) hit a layup off an offensive rebound and Jake Signer made layups on consecutive possessions to put the Sharks ahead 56-54 with 13 minutes left.

The run featured an uptick in defensive intensity from the hosts, who forced a series of turnovers and dominated on the glass at both ends. Suffolk also attacked the rim more frequently than the first half.

“We had to get back to our game, which is pushing the ball up the floor,” Correa said. The coach also credited Tynes, as the point guard’s shooting and playmaking helped key the comeback. “He’s the Region XV player of the year for a reason and he’s the engine that makes us go.”

Suffolk will now again have to contend with Nassau, the two-time reigning Region XV champions who eliminated Suffolk in each of the past two tournaments.

Isiah Deas Career Night leads LaSalle to the Win

PHILADELPHIA 

Isiah Deas scored a career-high 25 points as La Salle got past Davidson 79-69 on Wednesday night. Traci Carter added 24 points for the Explorers. Carter also had six rebounds for the Explorers.

Saul Phiri had 14 points for La Salle (9-18, 7-8 Atlantic 10 Conference). Ed Croswell added 11 rebounds.

Kellan Grady had 21 points for the Wildcats (20-8, 11-4). Jon Axel Gudmundsson added 19 points, seven rebounds and six assists. Luka Brajkovic had 12 points.

La Salle plays Saint Joseph’s on the road on Saturday. Davidson plays Fordham at home on Saturday.

Michigan hands Indiana its Worst Loss & Nunez Scores First Collegiate 3 Pointer

Freshman Adrien Nuñez scored the first points of his Michigan career, swishing a deep 3 in the final minute.

Born Ready the Leading source of second-unit offense

Lakers’ Lance Stephenson: Leading source of second-unit offense

Stephenson offered 20 points (6-10 FG, 5-8 3Pt, 3-3 FT), three rebounds, one assist and one steal across 30 minutes in the Lakers‘ 123-120 overtime win over the Clippers on Thursday.

Stephenson paced the second unit in scoring during the OT win and checked in second only to the returning LeBron James on the team overall. The mercurial veteran continued a red-hot streak from distance Thursday, one that’s seen him drain half of his 30 attempts from behind the arc across the last six contests. The 28-year-old’s usage does see its fair share of fluctuation, however, and it usually requires double-digit shot attempts for Stephenson to generate an appreciable scoring tally.