Power Rankings
I had a long deliberation about who to rank No. 1 in these power rankings, but landed on the Eagles, who return all but one notable piece from last year's team. That starts with a breakout year for sophomore guard Madden Collins, who had a bunch of big games but has the chance to take a leap into Patriot POTY talks. Greg Jones is one of the best defenders in the conference, while Julen Iturbe is an excellent smallball/stretch five for the Eagles. Collins needs to take a playmaking leap, but I believe he can. American has veterans Wyatt Nausadis and Matt Mayock back as well.
I'm the conductor of the Andrew Alekseyenko hype train. The sophomore power forward was dominant at the practice I went to, combining an outside shot, scrappy rebounding, smart passing, and point-to-point physicality. Sam Wright is back as well, forming the best frontcourt in the Patriot League. Parker Jones can shoot the skin off the ball, while Josh Ahayere gives an athleticism jolt to the backcourt. I'm looking for freshman Kingston McKoy to be a major piece of the backcourt with his toughness. Blake Forrest and Isaiah Skinn at the point guard spot is probably this team's biggest question mark.
The Mountain Hawks lost their best player in Nasir Whitlock but return two of what I believe will be the top four players in the conference, in likely point guard Joshua Ingram and big man Hank Alvey. Alvey is the best post scorer in the league, while Ingram is a 6-foot-4 guard who can handle and playmake but also drains 38% of his threes. Power forward Edouard Benoit combines with Alvey to make a frontcourt as good as the Raiders' ahead of them. The reigning champs round out a fairly even top tier.
This is where it starts to get a little complicated. Boston University is the easiest pick for fourth place. Kyrone Alexander is back after missing all of last season and projects to be the team's leading scorer. Sharpshooting guard Azmar Abdullah and forward Sam Hughes will flank his scoring prowess with shooting. The Terriers are hoping for a big year from Brandeis transfer Alex Zakheim as he's probably the closest thing to a true point guard on the squad. Maybe sophomore Donte Tisinger Jr. takes a leap.
I'm going to plant my flag on the Leopards taking a leap behind a star jump from sophomore big man Shareef Jackson. I was also impressed by injury returner Beckett Currie, who dropped 30 in the Leopards' exhibition win over Drexel. That game might be the best game that he and Lafayette play all year, but it shows that teams will have to worry about Currie. Shelton Henton was the Rookie of the Year in a good Division II league, and I'm super fascinated by Australian freshman Jasraj Gill. Is this ranking an exhibition overreaction? Maybe. But I'm in.
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Bucknell is relying on junior guard Jayden Williams to take a leap from a solid floor general into a star point guard. They also brought in Norwegian 6-foot-11 stretch big Ludvik Bergseng (who is working his way back from an injury) to replace Amon Dörries. If Bergseng can give them 70% of what Dorries did, that's one of the best rookies in the conference. Division-II transfers Rocco Lamuno and Luke Soden bring some skill to the backcourt, while Luca Soroa Schaller hopes dropping down from the CAA will allow him to thrive.
The Midshipmen are going to need a huge jump from both Jinwoo Kim and Jordan Pennick. Those are the two returning starters off the regular season title team that loses superstars Austin Benigni and Aidan Kehoe. I've always liked Kim's shooting, but Pennick needs to be more consistent. Cam Cole will be a defensive pest in the backcourt but doesn't provide the on-ball creation that Benigni did. The biggest difference though, is that Jon Perry simply won't have a dominant interior presence like he did with Kehoe last year.
Army returns star guard Ryan Curry for his senior season, where he'll likely reach the 120 games started milestone with the program as well as 1,500 points. However, I still expect him, and the team, to struggle on the defensive side of the ball. I like wing Jacen Holloway and big man Tate Laczkowski, but who is going to be this team's enforcer? They've lacked a level of defensive punch since Josh Scovens left.
Loyola managed to finish 8-10 in the Patriot League last year, but it lost Jacob Theodosiou, Emmett Adair, Braeden Speed, Tyson Commander and Jordan Stiemke. Josh Loeffler is relying on JUCO transfer (yes, they exist in the Patriot League) Leo Ricketts to be the key contributor. The Greyhounds have more transfers than most of the rest of the league, but I struggle to pick out who will be the standouts. Maybe it's Max Ortega? Maybe it's D'Andre Harrison?
Dave Paulsen hasn't finished higher than 6-12 in his three years at Holy Cross, and I don't expect that to change this year. The Crusaders took a step up defensively last year… going from 10th to eighth in the league. Aidan Richard and Declan Ryan are back in the frontcourt, and Division-II transfers Kole Hanson and Arius Alijosius could be difference-making scorers. Jaelon Germany could have a big role as a freshman. The biggest question for HC is when does Joe Nugent, who tore his Achilles last year, return to the floor.
Picks
Player of the Year: Andrew Alekseyenko, Colgate
Defensive Player of the Year: Cam Cole, Navy
Rookie of the Year: Ludvik Bergseng, Bucknell
