Canisius' Zeh is MAAC Coach of Year
Niagara guard Tyrone Lewis wins top defensive honor
Canisius and Niagara scored some major honors today when the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference announced its season-ending basketball awards.
Canisius women's coach Terry Zeh won his first MAAC Coach of the Year honor after guiding the Griffs to a program Division I-record 22 wins following last year's 13-18 campaign.
Ellie Radke and Brittane Russell also earned some hardware for the Griffs.
Radke is the first Canisius player to earn MAAC Sixth Person of the Year, as the 6-foot forward averaged 7.2 points and 5.0 rebounds.
Russell became the second Griff to earn MAAC Defensive Player of the Year, joining Jenel Stevens, who captured the honor in 2004. Russell averaged 2.5 steals per game and has 232 in her career.
On the men's side, Niagara junior guard Tyrone Lewis was chosen as MAAC Defensive Player of the Year.
The 5-foot-11 Lewis, from Levittown, Pa., was also named to the All-MAAC first team. He is currently third in the MAAC in scoring with 16.3 points an outing for the Purple Eagles.
Lewis leads the league in steals, recording 2.7 a game, while shooting 81.5 percent from the free throw line, ranking him fifth in the league. He posted double digits in 28 games and one double-double during the regular season.
Also, Siena's Kenny Hasbrouck was named the MAAC's Player of the Year by the league's coaches. Iona's Scott Machado was named the Rookie of the Year, while Siena's Clarence Jackson was honored as the Sixth Man of the Year.
In the MAAC women's tournament in Albany, Canisius earned the No. 2 seed and is 22-7 overall. The Griffs are just one of three teams to beat three-time defending MAAC champion and top seed Marist this season.
Zeh is 90-60 at Canisius since being named coach April 16, 2004. He guided the program to an NCAA Tournament appearance in 2005.
Siena's Fran McCaffery earned the men's MAAC Coach of the Year honor after guiding the Saints to a 23-7 mark, including 16-2 in taking the conference's regular-season title.
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