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2010 Daktronics Division II Men's Basketball All-America Teams
KUTZTOWN’S STEPHEN DENNIS NAMED 2010 DAKTRONICS DIVISION II MEN’S BASKETBALL PLAYER OF THE YEAR
EDINBORO, Pa. – Kutztown University senior Stephen Dennis has been named the 2010 Daktronics Division II Men’s Basketball Player of the Year.
Dennis is a 6’6”, 185 lb. guard who led the Golden Bears to a 23-8 record and a second consecutive appearance in the Atlantic Regional. He is the top scorer in Division II at 26.6 ppg., adding 5.8 rpg., 4.5 assists per game and 2.1 steals per game. He also made an incredible 228 of 303 free throws. Dennis broke his own school record for points scored in a season with 817 after scoring 710 points a year ago. He scored 30-or-more points nine times. He was previously named the Daktronics Atlantic Region Player of the Year.
Dennis broke Kutztown’s career scoring record, and his 2,406 points ranks third in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference history. He was named the PSAC East Player of the Year this season, and was a four-time All-PSAC East selection. He earned first team honors the last three years after earning second team honors as a freshman in addition to being named the PSAC East Rookie of the Year. He has been selected to participate in the prestigious Portsmouth Invitational.
The team is sponsored by Daktronics, Inc., an acknowledged world leader in scoring, timing and programmable display systems for virtually every sport at every level of competition. The team is voted on by the members of the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA).
The online nomination and voting processes are powered by ATHLETICSITE.COM. Headquartered in Charleston, S.C., ATHLETICSITE.COM is the official provider for college athletic websites for over 30 sports organizations, including 26 colleges, universities and conferences primarily at the NCAA Division II level. To receive more information on how your institution can partner with ATHLETICSITE.COM for a customized website solution, visit www.athleticsite.com.
The Daktronics’ first team features five seniors. In fact, 13 of the 15 players to earn All-American status were in their final year.
The Elite Eight is also well-represented, with four teams still chasing the Division II national championship – Augusta State, Bentley, St. Cloud State and Valdosta State – having a Daktronics All-American.
Four players are repeat selections. Leading the way is LeMoyne’s Laurence Ekperigin, who was named to the first team for the second straight year. Darren Duncan of Merrimack moved up from the third team to a spot on the first team this year. Southwest Baptist’s Matt Rogers was a second team All-American a year ago while Ben Magden of Augusta State was a third team selection in 2008-09. Both are third team members this year.
The First Team
In addition to Dennis, the 2010 Daktronics first team is led by Sanijay Watts of Central Missouri, the South Central Region Player of the Year. A 6’4” forward, he was named the MIAA Player of the Year while leading Central Missouri to a 27-4 record and a berth in the South Central Region title game. Watts led the MIAA in scoring (21.7 ppg.) and rebounding (9.5 rpg.) while shooting 57.3 percent from the floor. In just two seasons the senior became just the seventh player at Central Missouri to score 1,000 points and pull down 500 rebounds.
Two-time Daktronics first team All-American Laurence Ekperigin ranks as LeMoyne’s all-time leading scorer with 1,966 points and top rebounder with 1,171 rebounds. The 6’7” forward earned first team All-Northeast-10 honors for the third straight year, the first Dolphin to do so. He averaged a league-leading 21.6 ppg. and also led the Northeast-10 in rebounding (12.1 rpg.). LeMoyne finished with an 18-10 record.
Guards Jason Westrol of Bentley and Merrimack’s Darren Duncan round out the first team. Westrol was named the Daktronics East Region Player of the Year and was the Northeast-10 Player of the Year. The 6’3” senior averaged 21.2 ppg., 5.3 rpg., 3.2 assists per game and 2.3 steals per game. He is just the second player at Bentley to score more than 2,000 points in his career with 2,030 points. He has led the Falcons to a 26-5 record and a berth in the Elite Eight, where they will face Augusta State in the quarterfinals.
Duncan is a 5’11” senior who led Merrimack to a 21-9 record, losing to Bentley in the East region semifinals. After earning third team Daktronics All-American honors a year ago he moved up to the first team in 2010 after averaging 18.6 ppg. along with 6.8 assists per game and 2.6 steals per game. Duncan leads the Northeast-10 in assists and steals. He ranks as Merrimack’s all-time leading scorer with 2,049 points, and is a three-time All-Northeast-10 first team selection. He also has 825 career assists, good for second all-time in the Northeast-10.
The Second Team
The second team is led by Gage Daye, a 6’2” guard from Bloomfield who ranks second in Division II in scoring at 26.0 ppg. He was named the CACC Player of the Year while leading Bloomfield to an 18-6 record. He added 6.1 rpg. and 4.6 assists per game.
Southern Indiana’s Jamar Smith was previously recognized as the Midwest Region Player of the Year and the GLVC Player of the Year. The 6’3” senior has been invited to the Portsmouth
Invitational after averaging 21.6 ppg., 4.1 rpg. and 3.7 assists per game. He led the Screaming Eagles to a 24-3 record. In two seasons after transferring from Illinois he averaged a school-record 20.2 ppg.
Kyle Moore of Tusculum is another prolific scorer at 24.8 ppg., good for third in Division II. The 6’3” senior led the South Atlantic Conference in scoring for the second straight year and is a three-time All-SAC selection. In three seasons he scored 1,813 points, good for fourth all-time at Tusculum. He also set school and SAC records for three-pointers made in a season this year with 117, and also holds the SAC career record of 306. He helped Tusculum finish with a 16-12 record.
LaMarshall Corbett of Angelo State joins Daye as the lone juniors to earn All-American status. A 6’3” guard, Corbett was named the Lone Star Conference South Division Player of the Year after averaging 23.4 ppg. and shooting 90.6 percent from the floor (203 of 224). He was in his first year with the Rams after transferring from Kilgore JC. He helped Angelo State finish with a 17-11 record.
Mike Dominguez of Mesa State completes the second team. A 6’3” senior, Dominguez helped the Mavericks to a 23-6 record, losing in the Central Region semifinals. He averaged 21.6 ppg., 4.6 rpg. and 3.5 assists per game while shooting 52.7 percent from the floor. He was named the Daktronics Central Region Player of the Year. It was Dominguez’ lone season at Mesa State after previously playing at Florida International and Northeastern JC.
The Third Team
The third team is showcased by a pair of 2009-09 Daktronics All-Americans in Matt Rogers of Southwest Baptist and Augusta State’s Ben Magden. Rogers repeated as an All-American despite playing in just 20 games after going down with a season-ending injury in late January. He ranked among the Division II leaders in scoring, rebounding and blocked shots prior to that. The 6’11” senior averaged 21.8 ppg., 8.8 rpg. and 3.6 blocks per game. He earned first team All-MIAA honors for the third straight year. Southwest Baptist finished the year at 20-11, but was 16-4 before Rogers went down.
Magden hopes to cap a brilliant career with a national championship as he has led Augusta State to a 29-3 record and a berth in the Elite Eight for the third straight year. The Jaguars will play Bentley in the quarterfinals. Magden, a 6’4” senior, was named the Daktronics Southeast Region Player of the Year for the second consecutive year after averaging 19.5 ppg. and 4.4 rpg. He was also named the Peach Belt Conference Player of the Year and was a first team All-PBC selection for the fourth consecutive year. He has scored a conference record 2,293 points.
Matt Schneck of St. Cloud State is also in the Elite Eight, leading the Huskies to a 28-5 record and the Central Region crown. The Huskies play Midwestern State in the quarterfinals, marking the school’s second trip to the Elite Eight. A 6’8” senior, he is averaging 18.3 ppg. and 11.1 rpg. while shooting 61.8 percent from the floor. Schneck was named the NSIC Player of the Year. He has scored 1,563 career points and pulled down 879 career rebounds, ranking seventh and fourth, respectively, at St. Cloud State.
Roman Andrade of New Mexico Highlands and Valdosta State’s Tyrone Curnell complete the group of Daktronics All-Americans. Andrade is a 6’2 senior who led the Cowboys to a 20-11 finish and a berth in the Central Region Tournament. He averaged 23.0 ppg., along with 3.3 rpg., 3.8 assists per game and 1.6 steals per game. He was a first team All-RMAC selection.
Curnell was the Daktronics South Region Player of the Year and was also named the Gulf South Conference Eastern Division player of the Year. The 6’7” senior is averaging a team-high 17.1 ppg., along with 8.9 rpg. for the Blazers, who are 28-4 and play Indiana(Pa.) in the Elite eight quarterfinals. Curnell played two seasons at Valdosta State and went over 1,000 career points in the regional championship game vs. Rollins.
2009-10 DAKTRONICS MEN’S BASKETBALL ALL-AMERICAN TEAMS
First Team
Player School Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr. Hometown
Stephen Dennis
Kutztown
G 6-6
185
Sr. West Chester, PA
Sanijay
Watts
Central Missouri
F
6-4
215
Sr. St. Louis, MO
Laurence Ekperigin@
Le
Moyne
F
6-7
235
Sr. Cortlandt Manor,
NY
Jason
Westrol
Bentley
G
6-3
195
Sr. Brielle, NJ
Darren Duncan%
Merrimack
G
5-11 170
Sr. Briarwood, NY
2009-10 Player of the Year: Stephen Dennis, Kutztown
Second Team
Player
School
Pos. Ht.
Wt.
Yr. Hometown
Gage Daye
Bloomfield
F
6-2
170
Jr. Newark, NJ
Jamar
Smith
So.
Indiana
G
6-3
185
Sr. Peoria,
IL/Richwood
Kyle Moore
Tusculum
G
6-3
185
Sr. Gainesville, FL
LaMarshall Corbett Angelo
State
G
6-3
170
Jr. Reidsville, NC
Mike Dominguez Mesa
State
G
6-3
185
Sr. Santa Fe, NM
Third Team
Player School Pos. Ht. Wt. Yr. Hometown
Matt
Rogers#
Southwest Baptist
F/C 6-11
220
Sr. Doniphan, MO
Ben
Madgen%
Augusta
State
G
6-4
185
Sr. Williamstown,
Australia
Matt
Schneck
St. Cloud
State
C
6-8
230
Sr. Whitefish Bay, WI
Roman Andrade New
Mex.
Highlands
G
6-2
Sr. Albuquerque, NM
Tyrone Curnell
Valdosta
State
F
6-7
225
Sr. Ocoee, FL
@ 2009 Daktronics first team All-American
# 2009 Daktronics second team All-American
% 2009 Daktronics third team All-American
