VCU?S MAYNOR HEADLINES 2007-08 ALL-CAA MEN?S BASKETBALL TEAM
RICHMOND, Va. (March 6, 2008) - VCU
junior guard Eric Maynor (Raeford, N.C./Westover) was selected as the
2008 Colonial Athletic Association men’s basketball Player of the Year in
voting by the league’s head coaches, sports information directors and members
of the media. The announcement was made Thursday night at the league’s
pre-tournament awards banquet in Richmond, Va.
Also
receiving top honors were William and Mary’s Tony Shaver as the CAA
Coach of the Year, Hofstra freshman guard Charles Jenkins (Queens,
N.Y./Springfield Gardens) as the CAA Rookie of the Year, Old Dominion senior guard
Brandon Johnson (Orlando, Fla./Edgewater) as the CAA
Defensive Player of the Year and UNC Wilmington senior Todd Hendley (Sanford, N.C./Sanford) as the recipient of the Dean Ehlers Leadership
Award.
Maynor was the floor general for a VCU squad that
posted a 23-6 overall record and captured its second straight CAA
regular-season title. The junior point guard ranked second in the conference in
scoring with 17.8 points per game and dished out a league-best 5.3 assists per
contest. Maynor tallied double digits in 26 of the Rams’ 29 games, including
the last 13 in a row, and topped the 20-point mark 12 times. He was also among
the top 10 in the CAA in field goal (46.3%), free throw (77.6%) and 3-point
percentage (40.7%). In just three seasons, Maynor has already scored more than
1,100 career points and is fourth on VCU’s all-time assists list with 443.
Shaver guided William and Mary to its second-most
CAA victories in school history with a 10-8 mark. Picked to finish ninth in the
league’s pre-season poll, the Tribe exceeded expectations by placing fifth,
which was its best conference finish since 2001. W&M reeled off nine
conference victories in a 10-game stretch from January 5 to February 6, which
included four triumphs on the road. The Tribe reached the 14-win mark for the
second year in a row, a feat that hadn’t been accomplished at W&M since
1985.
Jenkins had a sensational freshman campaign, ranking
10th in the CAA in scoring with 15.1 points per game. The 6-foot-3
guard tallied double digits in 26 of his last 27 games, including the final 14
in a row. He made 47% of his shots from the floor, which ranked eighth in the
CAA, and was 13th in the conference in free throw percentage
(77.3%). Jenkins also contributed in other phases of the game, leading the
Pride with 49 steals while ranking third on the team in rebounding (4.6 rpg)
and assists (60).
Johnson completed an excellent career at Old
Dominion in record-setting fashion. The senior guard led the CAA and ranked
seventh nationally with 2.8 steals per game, and his 86 thefts were the
second-highest total in league history. He ranks fourth on the CAA’s career
steals list with 233 and needs only two more to move into third place. Johnson
also contributed 7.5 points per game and was fourth in the conference with 137
assists.
Hendley ranked 18th in the conference in
scoring (12.9 ppg) and rebounding (4.9 rpg) and shot an impressive 55.8% from
the floor. The senior forward went over the 1,000-point mark for his career in
February. Hendley is the fifth UNCW player to earn 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.”
Joining Maynor on the All-CAA first team were
Hofstra senior guard Antoine Agudio (Huntington
Station, N.Y./Walt Whitman), UNC Wilmington senior guard T.J. Carter (Mechanicsville, Md./Chopticon), VCU senior
guard Jamal Shuler (Jacksonville, N.C./Jacksonville) and George Mason
senior forward Will Thomas (Baltimore, Md./Mount St. Joseph).
Agudio led the CAA and ranked 12th in the
nation in scoring this season with 22.5 points per game. The senior netted 20
or more points in 16 of his 26 games and topped the 30-point mark six times. Agudio
broke Hofstra’s all-time scoring record that had stood for 43 years and ranks
fourth in CAA history with 2,249 points. He is second on the league’s career
3-pointers list with 352. Carter showed no ill effects from missing last season
due to hernia surgery, ranking among the CAA’s top 15 in scoring (16.2 ppg/4th),
rebounding (5.7 apg/13th) and assists (4.3 apg/5th). The
senior guard tallied double digits in 27 of his 31 contests, including 12 of
the last 13. Carter was also the CAA’s most accurate free throw shooter at
85.9%, and made a school-record 37 consecutive attempts from the charity
stripe.
Shuler earned first-team All-CAA honors in his first
year as a starter for VCU. The senior guard was the league’s ninth-leading
scorer with 15.6 points per game, reaching double figures in 23 of 29 contests.
He drained a team-high 68 three-pointers and shot nearly 41% from beyond the
arc. Shuler was also outstanding defensively and led the team with 47 steals. Thomas
capped an outstanding career by making the All-CAA first team for the first
time. The senior forward led the league with 10.4 rebounds per game and was
sixth in scoring with 16.0 points per contest. He recorded a league-high 14
double-doubles, with nine of them coming in conference play. Thomas ranks
eighth on the CAA’s all-time rebounds list with 951 and needs only two caroms
to vault into sixth place.
| First
Team All-CAA |
Cl. |
Pos. |
Ht. |
Wt. |
Hometown/High School |
| Antoine Agudio, Hofstra |
Sr. |
G |
6-3
|
190 |
Huntington Station, N.Y./Walt Whitman |
| T.J. Carter, UNC Wilmington |
Sr. |
G |
6-3
|
210 |
Mechanicsville, Md./Chopticon |
| Eric Maynor, VCU |
Jr. |
G |
6-2
|
175 |
Raeford, N.C./Westover |
| Jamal Shuler, VCU |
Sr. |
G |
6-3
|
180 |
Jacksonville, N.C./Jacksonville |
| Will Thomas, George Mason |
Sr. |
F |
6-7
|
230 |
Baltimore, Md./Mount St. Joseph |
Second Team All-CAA Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High
School
Folarin Campbell, George Mason Sr. G 6-4 205 Silver Spring, Md./Springbrook
Frank Elegar, Drexel Sr. C 6-9 225 Bronx,
N.Y./St. Raymond’s
Matt Janning, Northeastern So. G 6-4 175 Watertown,
Minn./Watertown-Mayer
Vladimir Kuljanin, UNC
Wilmington Sr. C 6-10 265 Toronto,
Canada/Forest Hills Collegiate
Gerald Lee, Old Dominion So. F 6-10 250 Uusikaupunki,
Finland/Korihait
Third Team All-CAA Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High School
Herb Courtney, Delaware Sr. F 6-7 215 Horsham,
Pa./Hatboro-Horsham
Marc Egerson, Delaware Jr. G 6-6 225 Wilmington,
Del./Glasgow
Junior Hairston, Towson Jr. F 6-8 205 Salisbury,
N.C./West Rowan
Abdulai Jalloh, James Madison Jr. G 6-1 190 District Heights, Md./Nat’l Christ. Acad.
Laimis Kisielius, William & Mary Sr. F 6-8 225 Vilnius, Lithuania/Miller School (Va.)
Leonard Mendez, Georgia State Jr. G 6-5 180 Smyrna, Ga./Campbell
2008 CAA Player of the Year ? Eric Maynor, VCU
2008 CAA Coach of the Year ? Tony Shaver, William &
Mary
2008 CAA Rookie of the Year ? Charles Jenkins, Hofstra
2008 CAA Defensive Player of the Year ? Brandon Johnson,
Old Dominion
2008 Dean Ehlers Leadership Award ? Todd Hendley, UNC
Wilmington
CAA All-Rookie Team Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High
School
Chaisson Allen, Northeastern Fr. G 6-4 185 Murfreesboro,
Tenn./Oakland
Alphonso Dawson, Delaware Fr. G 6-4 195 Harrisburg,
Pa./Harrisburg
Charles Jenkins, Hofstra Fr. G 6-3 220 Queens,
N.Y./Springfield Gardens
Larry Sanders, VCU Fr. F 6-9 205 Fort
Pierce, Fla./Port St. Lucie
Chad Tomko, UNC Wilmington Fr. G 5-11 165 Charlotte,
N.C./Independence
CAA All-Defensive Team Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High
School
Frank Elegar, Drexel Sr. C 6-9 225 Bronx,
N.Y./St. Raymond’s
Brandon Johnson, Old Dominion Sr. G 6-1 182 Orlando, Fla./Edgewater
Larry Sanders, VCU Fr. F 6-9 205 Fort
Pierce, Fla./Port St. Lucie
Jamal Shuler, VCU Sr. G 6-3 180 Jacksonville,
N.C./Jacksonville
Will Thomas, George Mason Sr. F 6-7 230 Baltimore,
Md./Mount St. Joseph
CAA All-Academic First Team Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High
School
Terrance Carter, James Madison Sr. F 6-5 215 District Heights, Md./Largo
Darion Jeralds, UNC Wilmington So. G 6-1 165 Winston-Salem, N.C./West Forsyth
Nkem Ojougboh, Northeastern So. C 6-9 215 Scottsdale,
Ariz./Christian Academy
David Schneider, William & Mary So. G 6-3 175 Phoenix, Ariz./Brophy Prep
Darren Townes, Hofstra Jr. F 6-7 210 New
York, N.Y./Manhattan Center
CAA All-Academic Second Team Cl. Pos. Ht. Wt. Hometown/High
School
Jonathan Adams, Old Dominion Jr. F 6-6 215 Ringgold,
Ga./Baylor (Tenn.)
Baptiste Bataille, Northeastern So. G 5-10 175 Ferin, France/Community Christian
Chris Fleming, George Mason Jr. F 6-7 240 Manassas,
Va./Osbourn Park
Abdulai Jalloh, James Madison Jr. G 6-1 190 District Heights, Md./Nat’l Christ. Acad.
Matt Janning, Northeastern So. G 6-4 175 Watertown,
Minn./Watertown-Mayer
Ryan Johnson, Hofstra Sr. G/F 6-4 215 Massapequa,
N.Y./St. John the Baptist
Laimis Kisielius, William & Mary Sr. F 6-8 225 Vilnius, Lithuania/Miller School (Va.)
Eric Maynor, VCU Jr. G 6-2 175 Raeford,
N.C./Westover
Sam McMahon, Delaware Sr. G 6-5 225 Lohman,
Mo./Jefferson City
Chris Stratton, William & Mary Sr. F 6-6 205 Burke, Va./Lake Braddock