MANSFIELD, Mass. – Three members of the Mitchell College men's basketball program were honored by the New England Collegiate Conference on Wednesday as the league announced its annual awards.
Junior guards Alfonzo Stokes and Mikey Buscetto were named to the NECC All-Conference Team while Todd Peretz was tabbed NECC Co-Coach of the Year. All awards were determined by a vote of the conference's head coaches.
Stokes and Buscetto are only the second set of Mitchell teammates to earn first-team honors in the same season, joining the duo of Joshua Ford and Parris Hill (2015). Peretz—who shared the award with Eastern Nazarene's Logan Sharp—picked up his second COTY honor, having earned the distinction previously in 2014.
Stokes led the Mariners and ranked third in the NECC in scoring with a career-high 19.3 points per game. He also ranked among the league leaders in steals (40) and assists (67) while shooting 51 percent from the floor. He scored in double digits in 23 of 24 games and topped 30 points on two occasions.
Buscetto made a huge impact in his first season with the Mariners, leading the country in assists at 8.9 per contest. He also ranked third in the NECC in steals (59) and fifth in scoring (15.3) while knocking down a team-high 49 three-pointers. He has scored in double digits in 15 games and has handed out 10 or more assists in seven games.
In his 23rd season at the helm of the Mariners, Peretz led his squad to a share of the league's regular season title with a 4-2 record in NECC action. Mitchell's 15 wins were also the most of any school in the conference.
Ahmani Browne also represented Mitchell as one of four players selected for the Del Malloy Sportsmanship Team.
Mitchell will host New England College in the semifinals of the 2022 NECC Men's Basketball Championship tonight at 6 p.m.
NECC Awards
NECC Co-Player of the Year – Bernie McGuinness, Eastern Nazarene
NECC Co-Player of the Year – Calvin Cheek, New England College
NECC Defensive Player of the Year – Calvin Cheek, New England College
NECC Rookie of the Year – Gabe McCrary, Lesley
NECC Co-Coach of the Year – Todd Peretz, Mitchell
NECC Co-Coach of the Year – Logan Sharp, Eastern Nazarene
All-Conference Team
Bernie McGuinness, Eastern Nazarene
Mikey Buscetto, Mitchell
Alfonzo Stokes, Mitchell
Jamal Allen, New England College
Calvin Cheek, New England College
Del Malloy Sportsmanship Team
Ozzy Trail, Eastern Nazarene
Adonis Giannopolous, Lesley
Ahmani Browne, Mitchell
Kyle Inglis, New England College