Men's Basketball Tabbed Second in America East Poll, Hooley and Singletary Named Preseason All-Conference
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BOSTON, MASS. – Five-time America East Champion University at Albany men's basketball was selected to finish second in the league's preseason poll, the conference office announced Thursday. America East coaches also named senior guards Peter Hooley and Evan Singletary to the preseason All-Conference squad.
The Danes garnered two first-place votes and a total of 55 points to take the No. 2 spot. Stony Brook edged out the Purple & Gold for No. 1 with seven first-place votes and 63 points. Vermont rounded out the top-three with 49 points, followed closely by New Hampshire at No. 4 (47 points).
Fifteen points separate the fourth and fifth-place teams, as Binghamton went No. 5 (32 points). Hartford lost a significant amount of its starting core from 2014-15 to graduation, earning the No. 6 slot (24 points). The 2014 America East Rookie of the Year Rodney Elliott returns to lead the UMBC Retrievers to a No. 7 vote with 23 points. UMass Lowell (No. 8, 19 points) and Maine (No. 9, 12 points) conclude the 2015 preseason poll.
For the second straight season, senior guard Peter Hooley was selected to the Preseason All-Conference team. Hooley is the two-time America East Tournament Reggie Lewis Most Outstanding Player, a three-time All-Conference and two-time All-Academic pick; as well as a two-time All-Championship team member. In his third season as a team co-captain, Hooley enters his final season of eligibility as one of the top scorers and free throw shooters in the league.
Fellow senior Evan Singletary garnered Preseason All-Conference accolades after making his mark as a junior college transfer last season. He was named a finalist for the Riley Wallace Award, honoring the top Division I transfer in 2015. At the point, Singletary can score, dish and hit free throws. The senior ranked sixth among league scorers with 13.0 points per game, fourth in free throw percentage (.804) and recorded 94 assists, taking All-Conference First Team accolades in 2014. He proved himself a clutch shooter at Patrick Gym last season, hitting a three-pointer at the buzzer in Burlington for a 47-44 victory.
Joining Hooley and Singletary on the Preseason All-Conference team are Stony Brook's double-double machine Jameel Warney, 2015 America East Rookie of the Year Tanner Leissner of UNH and Vermont's Ethan O'Day.
Hooley and Singletary anchor an All-Conference starting backcourt along with senior captain Ray Sanders in 2015-16. The Danes make their season debut on Nov. 13 at USA Today Preseason No. 1 Kentucky.
Season and individual game tickets are now on sale for the 2015-16 UAlbany men's basketball slate, and can be purchased here.
2015-16 AMERICA EAST MEN'S BASKETBALL PRESEASON POLL
| Rank |
Team |
Points (First-Place Votes) |
| 1 |
Stony Brook |
63 (7) |
| 2 |
UAlbany |
55 (2) |
| 3 |
Vermont |
49 |
| 4 |
UNH |
47 |
| 5 |
Binghamton |
32 |
| 6 |
Hartford |
24 |
| 7 |
UMBC |
23 |
| 8 |
UMass Lowell |
19 |
| 9 |
Maine |
12 |
2015-16 AMERICA EAST MEN'S BASKETBALL PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE TEAM
Evan Singletary, Sr., G, UAlbany
Peter Hooley, Sr., G, UAlbany
Tanner Leissner, So., F, UNH
Ethan O'Day, Sr., F, Vermont
Jameel Warney, Sr., F, Stony Brook
