Siena’s Jalen Pickett Named Player of the Year, Saint Peter’s Sweeps Remaining Major Awards
Atlantic City, N.J. (March 11, 2020) – The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) has announced its 2019-20 Men’s Basketball Major Awards, as voted on by the league’s 11 head coaches.
Siena College’s Jalen Pickett, a unanimous selection to the All-MAAC First Team, was named the 2019-20 MAAC Player of the Year after averaging 15.3 points, a league-leading 6.0 assists and 4.5 rebounds in his sophomore season. Pickett adds Player of the Year to his list of career accolades along with his pair of All-MAAC First Team appearances and his 2018-19 MAAC Rookie of the Year selection.
Saint Peter’s University became the first school in MAAC history to win four major awards in a single season: Defensive Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year, Sixth Player of the Year and The Rock MAAC Coach of the Year.
KC Ndefo picked up Defensive Player of the Year and Sixth Player of the Year honors after leading the Peacocks in points per game (8.5), blocks (2.4) and steals (1.5). The sophomore’s 2.4 blocks per game put him in first in the league.
Aaron Estrada, an unanimous All-Rookie Team selection, was voted Rookie of the Year. Estrada was named MAAC Rookie of the Week on three separate occasions this season, tied for the league-high. Through the regular season, he averaged 8.0 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists in only 19.1 minutes per game.
Tickets for the 2020 Hercules Tires MAAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships can be purchased by visiting
ticketmaster.com or by visiting
maacsports.com/basketball. To keep up with the postseason action, follow @MAACHoops on Twitter and join the conversation on social media using the hashtag #maAChoops20.
About the 2020 Hercules Tires MAAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships:
The 2020 Hercules Tire MAAC Men’s and Women’s Basketball Championships return to New Jersey on March 10-14, 2020 at Jim Whelan Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City. To stay up to date on MAAC basketball, visit
http://maacsports.com/basketball and follow
@MAACHoops on Twitter.
About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:
With 11 institutions strongly bound by the sound principles of quality and integrity in academics and excellence in athletics, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) is in its 39
th year of competition during the 2019-20 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius College, Fairfield University, Iona College, Manhattan College, Marist College, Monmouth University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena College.