The America East has seen the last ten years dominated by Vermont and Stony Brook. Nine of the ten regular-season titles were captured by those schools. When reflecting on the last decade, both schools had players that dominated the league. However, there were a few other programs that had solid players as well. The America East has been one of the most consistent mid-major leagues over the last ten years.
America East 2010s All-Decade Team
Starters
Guard – Trae Bell-Haynes, Vermont
Trae Bell-Haynes ushered in the most recent dominance by Vermont of the conference. The Toronto native played for the Catamounts from 2014-18. His last two seasons were huge for himself and Vermont. Bell-Haynes won the conference player of the year as both a junior and a senior. He was also named to the league’s first-team as well as an honorable mention on the AP All-American team both of those years.
Bell-Haynes averaged 11.7 points, 3.1 rebounds and 3.7 assists per game for his career. He played in 139 career games, second all-time at Vermont and in league history. His 518 career assists put him 11th all-time in conference history. Bell-Haynes was the catalyst for Vermont’s regular-season titles during his final two seasons. He made one NCAA Tournament appearance and was denied a second by the UMBC team that made history a few seasons ago.
Guard – Darryl Partin, Boston University
Darryl Partin played for Boston University from 2010-2012. He transferred from LaSalle and played two seasons in the league. Partin made an instant impact, being named conference player of the year in 2012. He was a member of the first-team both years as well as an honorable mention for the AP All-American team in 2012.
In his two seasons as a Terrier, Partin averaged 16.9 points and 3.6 rebounds per game. He had a knack for scoring in spurts, pouring in massive amounts of points in just one half. Boston University used him on 31.5 percent of his career possessions with the team, the fourth-most ever in conference history. His efforts helped the Terriers make one NCAA Tournament appearance in 2011.
Forward – Jameel Warney, Stony Brook
Jameel Warney was by far the most dominant player of the decade in the America East, playing from 2012-16. Warney became just the third player in league history to be named player of the year three times. He also captured the conference defensive player of the year award twice and was rookie of the year as a freshman. Furthermore, he was a three-time honorable mention on the AP All-American team. Warney ended his career as Stony Brook’s career leader in points, rebounds, blocks, games, and the winningest player in school history.
For his career, Warney averaged 15.8 points, 9.4 rebounds, and two blocks per game. He was also a 59.6 percent career shooter. He remains the America East’s career leader in made field goals, made two-point field goals, and offensive rebounds. His player efficiency rating of 31.3 is also the best in league history and seventh-best in NCAA history. Unfortunately, for all of the individual recognition, Warney only made once NCAA Tournament appearance, though he did capture two regular-season titles with the Seawolves.
Forward – Anthony Lamb, Vermont
Anthony Lamb is the most recent player to make the team. He just finished his career, picking up where Trae Bell-Haynes left off for Vermont. Lamb won player of the year twice and was an AP All-American honorable mention in 2019. He was also the conference tournament’s most valuable player in 2019. Lamb finished in the top ten in six career categories at Vermont, including points and blocks.
Lamb averaged 16.4 points, 6.5 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.4 blocks per game for his career. He finished in the top ten in ten advanced statistical categories for the league. His 27.6 career player efficiency rating is second all-time for the conference, only behind Jameel Warney. If not for a broken foot during his sophomore year, he may well have done enough to rival Warney as the best player this decade. Lamb helped Vermont win regular-season titles in all four of his years, with two NCAA Tournament appearances.
Forward – John Holland, Boston University
John Holland only played one season in this decade, but it was a dominant one. He was the 2011 conference player of the year, tournament most valuable player, and an honorable mention on the AP All-American team. When Holland finished his career, he was just the second player in league history to finish with at least 2,000 points, 700 rebounds, and 200 steals. Holland also finished as Boston University’s second all-time leading scorer.
His 19.2 points per game during the 2010-11 season led the America East. He also finished with 5.8 rebounds and 1.6 steals per game that season. His 2,212 career points make him the league’s fifth all-time leading scorer. Holland helped lead the Terriers to the 2011 NCAA Tournament, icing the conference tournament championship at the free-throw line with two seconds remaining.
Bench
Guard – Carson Puriefoy, Stony Brook
Carson Puriefoy played alongside Jameel Warney from 2012-16. He made the all-conference team three times, twice as a first-team member. During his junior year, he became just the third player in school history to score 500 or more points in a season.
Puriefoy averaged 11.9 points, 2.7 rebounds, and 2.6 assists per game for his career. He was also a career 37 percent three-point shooter. He led the league in free-throw makes and attempts in 2014-15. The one-two punch of Puriefoy and Warney helped Stony Brook win two regular-season titles and make one NCAA Tournament appearance.
Guard – Jahad Thomas, Massachusetts-Lowell
Jahad Thomas was part of a Massachusetts-Lowell team that transitioned from Division II to Division I from 2014-18. He was recognized as a first-team all-conference player twice, the first player to be recognized on the first-team in River Hawks history. He started all 109 of his career games and owns nine Division I records for UMass-Lowell.
Thomas averaged 17.1 points, 7.9 rebounds, and 3.5 assists per game for his career. He was the league’s top shooter during the 2016-17 season and the leading scorer in 2017-18 (21.1 points per game). He ended his career ranked in the top three in America East history in points produced and points produced per game. Thomas is easily the best player UMass-Lowell has had in its short Division I history.
Forward – Tanner Leissner, New Hampshire
Tanner Leissner played at New Hampshire from 2014-18. He finished his career as the school’s all-time leading scorer. He also finished number one in three other categories for the Wildcats. Leissner was a three-time member of the conference’s first-team and rookie of the year as a freshman. He started all but two of the career games he played in.
Leissner averaged 16.1 points, 7.1 rebounds, and 1.6 assists per game for his career. He finished in the top five in rebounds in the league all four years. The monstrous rebounder finished fourth in league history in offensive rebounds. Leissner also finished in the top five in league history in points produced, points produced per game, and offensive rating.
Forward – Mark Nwakamma, Hartford
Mark Nwakamma was a Hartford Hawk from 2011-2015. He was a first-team all-conference member for two seasons, the first-ever to do that for Hartford. He was also a member of the all-rookie team as a freshman.
Nwakamma averaged 12.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game for his career. He led the America East in made field goals during the 2012-13 season. He also led the league twice in usage during his career and is fifth all-time in usage. Nwakamma was the man for the Hawks during his time at Hartford.
Forward – Tommy Brenton, Stony Brook
Tommy Brenton rounds out the America East all-decade team. Brenton was the conference player of the year in 2013 and won defensive player of the year twice. He became just the second player in league history to win player and defensive player of the year in the same season. Brenton was also named the national defensive player of the year in 2013, the first-ever national award for a member of the Seawolves. At the end of his career, he was Stony Brook’s leader in rebounds and steals.
For his career, Brenton averaged 7.6 points, 8.8 rebounds, 3.2 assists, and 1.7 steals per game. He finished in the top ten in career offensive and defensive rebounds, total rebounds, and steals for the league. Brenton’s 87.1 career defensive rating is second-all time in America East history and 22nd best in NCAA history. He was the best defender of the decade in the league.
Main Photo
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