Posted: Apr 16, 2020
Osbel Caraballo, Demetre Roberts, and Sekou Cisse of the St. Thomas Aquinas College men's basketball team were named to the Met Basketball Sports Writers Division II post-season team. Each of the three honorees captured the same awards from the East Coast Conference, with Caraballo and Roberts being named to the First Team, and Cisse earning Second Team honors.
Led by the three standouts, St. Thomas Aquinas rolled to a 25-5 overall record, including their fourth ECC Tournament Championship title in the past five seasons. Their standout performance earned the Spartans the #2 seed in the East Regional of the NCAA Division II Tournament, only to have the season end with the cancelation of the tourney due to the Coronavirus outbreak.
Osbel Caraballo continued to be a force in taking home First Team kudos for the second straight season. Once again, Osbel was the team's top point-producer, with 17.5 ppg, while claiming 7.3 rpg. He is one of two just Spartans to have started in all 30 games this season, scoring in double-figures in all but three of those contests, and was named the Most Outstanding Player at the ECC Tournament.
Joining him on the First Team - after being named to the Second Team last season - was Demetre Roberts, whose leadership and still at the point guard position, along with tremendous poise, have bolstered a Spartans lineup that has amassed a 50-12 record (.806 winning percentage) over his two seasons . His 15.0 ppg was second on the team and he also appeared in all 30 games, starting all but one.
Rounding out the Spartans' post-season parade is Sekou Cisse, the only senior on this year's squad, who took home Second Team kudos. Sekou's rebounding ability and interior presence have complimented the STAC attack this season, as his team-leading 8.1 rebounds per game placed him third in the ECC, while his 14.3 ppg placed him 13th among conference leaders.
Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association Division II Men's Basketball Awards
Player of the Year: Peyton Wejnert (Pace University)
Coach of the Year: Joe Clinton (Dominican College)
First Team
Peyton Wejnert, Pace • 6-7, Sr., F, Pt. Pleasant, NJ
Osbel Caraballo, St. Thomas Aquinas • 6-5, So., F, Bolivar, Venezuela
Nick Corbett, Molloy • 5-11, Sr., G, Staten Island, NY
Bryan Griffin, Mercy • 6-8, Jr., F, Pomona, NY
Demetre Roberts, St. Thomas Aquinas • 5-8, So., G, Mt. Vernon, NY
D.J. Rodwell, Dominican • 6-2, Sr., G, Baldwin, NY
Ronnie Silva, Adelphi • 5-9, So., G, Nashua, NH
Second Team
Safee Abdus-Sabur, Bloomfield • 6-0, Sr., G, Newark, NJ
Sekou Cisse, St. Thomas Aquinas • 6-5, Sr., G-F, Harlem, NY
Jason Copman, Dominican • 6-6, Sr., C, Cumberland, MD
Jonathan Garcia, Dominican • 6-2, Sr., G, Springfield, MA
Brandon Jacobs, Pace • 6-0, Jr., G, Cambria Heights, NY
Adeola Latunji, Staten Island • 6-3, Sr., G, Staten Island, NY