MEN'S BASKETBALL: Lasell Senior EJ Day Voted GNAC Player of the Year

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Day was nation's
Division III leading scorer

WINTHROP, Mass. – Lasell University senior EJ Day, the nation's top scorer in points per game (25.8) for Division III, has been tabbed as the 2023 Great Northeast Athletic Conference Player of the Year, as voted upon by the league's head coaches. 

Day, who ranks third in D3 with 620 points overall during the 2022-23 campaign, nets his first Player of the Year award and second straight seasin of All-GNAC First Team honors. Also a GNAC Third Teamer back in 2019-20, this winter he shot 42.7% overall and 37.9% from three and eclipsed 25 points on 14 different occassions, including two games of 40 points or more. Day contributed 4.4 rebounds and 6.1 assists per game as well for the Lasers.

Joining Day on the 2023 All-GNAC First Team were Albertus Magnus College senior Terry Dawkins, Johnson & Wales University (RI) senior Aireus Raspberry, and University of Saint Joseh (CT) grad student Ryan O'Neill and USJ senior Jaecee Martin. 

Rounding out the First Team, GNAC Tournament MVP Dawkins has averaged 17.3 points and 8.0 rebounds on the season for the Falcons, who appeared in their 11th consecutive conference title game and won the program's ninth overall GNAC crown on Sunday with a stunning 83-79 victory over previously undefeated USJ. Meanwhile Raspberry was second in the GNAC only to Day with 19.7 points to go along 5.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists.

For USJ, O'Neill was the leading scorer for the nation's No. 1 ranked team since late December, averaging 16.0 points and 3.6 rebounds while shooting 46.5% overall and 40.5% from three on 148 attempts. Blue Jays teammate Martin, who was the 2021 GNAC Defensive Player of the Year and the 2022 GNAC Player of the Year, has averaged 11.7 points, 3.4 assists and 1.7 steals this winter while shooting 49.0% from the field. 

Blue Jays senior Jalen Samuels was voted as the GNAC Defensive Player of the Year for the second straight season, plus received an All-GNAC Third Team nod. Entering NCAA Tournament play, Samuels has helped anchor the nation's sixth-best scoring defense (58.0). 

For his efforts leading USJ to its banner season, which included beating three nationally-ranked teams and three more that were receiving votes in the national poll, Blue Jays head coach Glen Miller was voted the GNAC Coach of the Year for the second straight year by his coaching peers.

USJ, which hopes to serve as host of an NCAA Regional site, will learn its first-round tournament draw during the NCAA Division III Selection Show, scheduled for 12:30 PM on Monday, as will GNAC champion and automatic qualifier Albertus Magnus.

Rounding out the major awards was Saint Joseph's College of Maine first-year John Paul Frazier, the league's top three-point shooter in 2022-23, as the freshman took home GNAC Rookie of the Year accolades. Frazier averaged 11.6 points and 3.5 rebounds in 25.5 minutes per game for the Monks, who advanced to the GNAC Tournament Semifinals. He shot 51.5% from the floor and 48.3% from three-point range, connecting on 56-of-116 long-distance attempts. 

First Team
Terry Dawkins, Albertus Magnus
Aireus Raspberry, Johnson & Wales (RI)
EJ Day, Lasell
Ryan O'Neill, St. Joseph (Conn.)
Jaecee Martin, St. Joseph (Conn.)

Second Team 
Justice Washington, Albertus Magnus
AJ Weston, Dean
Donte Pope, Emmanuel (Mass.)
Josh Zangerle, Johnson & Wales (RI)
Russell Rau, Regis (Mass.)

Third Team
Omar Boone, Colby-Sawyer
Scott Lampron, Colby-Sawyer
Donovan Lewis Jr., Norwich
Jalen Samuels, St. Joseph (Conn.)
Griffin Foley, Saint Joseph's (Me.)

All-Rookie Team
Zaire Baines, Emmanuel (Mass.)
Quinton Partee Jr., Lasell
Joe Joe DuBrul, Norwich
Jamir Harvey, Regis (Mass.)
John Paul Frazier, Saint Joseph's (Me.)

PLAYER OF THE YEAR - EJ Day, Lasell
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR - Jalen Samuels, St. Joseph (Conn.)
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR - John Paul Frazier, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
COACH OF THE YEAR - Glen Miller, Jalen Samuels, St. Joseph (Conn.)
TEAM SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD - Norwich University

All-Sportsmanship Team
Taufick Aziz, Albertus Magnus
Drew Paulhus, Anna Maria 
Michael Joanou, Colby-Sawyer 
Mark Blair, Dean 
Tahquell Cadle, Elms
Ricky Martin, Emmanuel 
Bryan Davis , Johnson & Wales
Demerrick Warren, Lasell
Owen Liss, Norwich
Zakaria Latifi, Regis 
Pharaoh Davis, Rivier 
Lence Altenor, St. Joseph (Conn.)
Bryton Early, Saint Joseph's (Me.)

The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 14 member institutions and over 3,500 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 22 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience. 

– #TheGNAC –