Louison, Megafu and Maddox HVIAC All-Conference Selections; Cocozello Coach of the Year
BROOKLYN, N.Y. – Following a season that saw the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) men's basketball team go undefeated in Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (HVIAC) play and take home the Tournament championship, juniors David Louison (Brooklyn, N.Y./St. Edmund Prep) and Vernon Maddox (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Peter's) along with sophomore Michael Megafu (Brooklyn, N.Y./Nazareth Regional) were named members of the HVIAC All-Conference Team, while head coach Joseph Cocozello was awarded Coach of the Year in ceremonies following the conclusion of the HVIAC championship game on Sunday.
Louison receives All-Conference honors for the third consecutive year and was a constant force for St. Joseph's all season, averaging a career- and team-high 18.3 points per game (No. 2 in HVIAC) and also secured 9.8 rebounds per game (No. 4 in HVIAC). The five-time HVIAC Player of the Week and one-time USCAA Player of the Week finished the season with 16 double-doubles (No. 6 in Division III) and shot an impressive 54.4 percent from the floor (No. 3 in HVIAC) on the season. Louison also became the first Bear to receive Team of the Week honors from d3hoops.com.
The six-time AD3I Player of the Week led the Bears in scoring and rebounding 13 times apiece and had 25 games of 10 or more points on the season, including ten 20-plus point games and two 30-point contests. The junior led the conference with 210 made field goals and 495 points on the season. Louison saved his best game of the season for reaching a career milestone, scoring 30 points on 12-of-16 shooting to secure his 1,000th career point in St. Joseph's win over Brooklyn College on January 13th. The forward capped off his junior season with a 25-point, 17-rebound effort against Vaughn College in the HVIAC Tournament championship game to help the Bears secure the title.
Maddox earns All-Conference recognition for the first time in his career. The junior was the orchestrator of the Bears offense all season, leading the conference with 4.6 assists per game and 125 total assists. The guard also was able to score for St. Joseph's, averaging a career-high 10.0 points per game and produced a 2.0 assist-to-turnover ratio (No. 2 in HVIAC).
Maddox had 12 games with 10 or more points and had 13 contests with five or more assists. The junior also led the team in assists in 20 of the Bears 27 games on the season. The guard saved one of the best games of his career for the most important game of the season against Vaughn College in the HVIAC Tournament title game, pouring in a career-high 19 points on 6-of-11 shooting and dished out a game-high five assists as St. Joseph's defeated the Warriors 92-76.
Megafu receives the All-Conference accolade for the second straight season. The two-time USCAA and HVIAC Player of the Week provided the Bears with a double-double threat each time he touched the floor as he finished with a team-high 17 (No. 3 in Division III) on the season. The three-time AD3I Player of the Week averaged a career-high 17.0 points per game (No. 3 in HVIAC) and corralled a team-high 10.5 boards per game (No. 3 in HVIAC). The sophomore led St. Joseph's in scoring nine times and rebounding a team-high 17 times.
Megafu finished second in the conference with 172 made field goals and a 56.4 field goal percentage. The sophomore led the league with 283 total rebounds and finished third with 40 blocks. The forward was a key contributor in St. Joseph's wins this season, averaging 18.7 points on 61.8 percent shooting and 10.2 rebounds per game. Megafu also had a streak of eight straight double-doubles midway through the season which was tied for the third longest in the nation at the time.
After leading the team to an 18-9 record, head coach Joseph Cocozello has been named the HVIAC Coach of the Year for the sixth time in his career. The 18 wins are the most for a Bears team since the 2006-07 and he has led the Bears to nine-straight HVIAC championship games.