BETHLEHEM, Pa. – Colgate senior guard Tucker Richardson received 2022-23 Patriot League Men’s Basketball Player and Defensive Player of the Year in addition to earning a spot on the All-Patriot League First Team when the League office announced the postseason honors presented by PenFed Credit Union.
Richardson became the first Patriot League men’s basketball student-athlete to eclipse 1,600 points (1,695), 700 rebounds (752) and 500 assists (590). He is the second League men’s basketball player to earn player and defensive player in the same season, joining Bucknell’s Nana Foulland (2016-17) and Mike Muscala (2012-13). He is also the first to collect player, defensive player and rookie of the year honors during his career.
Army West Point freshman forward Ethan Roberts claimed Patriot League Men’s Basketball Rookie of the Year honors, the fourth Black Knight to receive the award. Roberts led all Patriot League rookies in scoring (12.7 ppg) while connecting on 45.8 percent of his 3-point attempts during League play, the fourth-best mark in the League.
Colgate men’s basketball Matt Langel earned his League record fourth Patriot League Men’s Basketball Coach of the Year honor after guiding the Raiders to the regular-season title with a record 17 League wins. Langel and the Raiders also set a record with 26 consecutive wins against League opponents.
The Patriot League major awards and All-League teams are presented by PenFed Credit Union. They were voted on by Patriot League men’s basketball head coaches, who could not vote for their student-athletes or themselves.
2022-23 PenFed Credit Union Patriot League Men’s Basketball Player and Defensive Player of the Year
Tucker Richardson, Colgate, Sr., G, Flemington, N.J./Hunterdon Central
2022-23 Stats: 31 GP, 14.1 ppg, 4.9 rpg, 5.2 apg, 2.1 spg, .453 FG pct.
*Richardson leads the League in assists (5.2) and steals (2.1) while placing sixth in scoring (14.1) to lead Colgate to a Patriot League record 17 League wins to clinch the regular-season title.
*The three-time All-League selection and two-time defensive team honoree is the first men’s basketball player in League history to total more than 1,600 points (1,695), 700 rebounds (752) and 500 assists (590). He is fourth in Patriot League history in assists.
*The two-time Patriot League GEICO Player of the Week is tied for the League’s single-game season-high eight made 3-pointers, helping Colgate to a win and record for made 3-pointers (19) at Syracuse’s JMA Wireless Dome.
2022-23 PenFed Credit Union Patriot League Men’s Basketball Rookie of the Year
Ethan Roberts, Army West Point, Fr., F, Arlington Heights, Ill./Hershey (USMAPS)
2022-23 Stats: 31 GP, 12.7 ppg, 4.4 rpg, 1.2 apg, .491 FG pct, .422 3PT pct
*Roberts led all Patriot League rookie scorers with 12.7 points per game on 49 percent shooting from the floor while ranking seventh in the League from 3-point range (42.2 percent).
*The freshman forward averaged 14.3 points per game in 18 League contests to rank ninth in the League. He shot 45.8 percent from long distance in League play, ranking fourth in the Patriot League.
*He earned Patriot League GEICO Rookie of the Week honors after scoring a career-high 32 points in a victory over Bucknell.
2022-23 PenFed Credit Union Patriot League Men’s Basketball Coach of the Year
Matt Langel, Colgate
*Langel collected his Patriot League-record fourth League men’s basketball coach of the year honor after guiding the Raiders to a record 17-1 finish in League play.
*Colgate’s offense has been among the most efficient in NCAA DI, leading the country in 3-point field goal percentage (.406), ranking second in NCAA DI in effective field-goal percentage (.579), field-goal percentage (.508), and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.72).
*The Raiders broke a Patriot League record with 26 consecutive wins against League opponents from Jan. 31, 2022, through Feb. 4, 2023.
2022-23 All-Patriot League Teams
Colgate, Lehigh and Navy tied for a League-high three student-athletes on the three All-Patriot League squads. American, Army West Point, Boston University, Bucknell, Holy Cross and Lafayette had one representative apiece.
Six of the 15 student-athletes voted onto the three All-League teams are multi-year honorees. Boston University graduate student forward Walter Whyte (14.7 ppg, 5.9 rpg), a second-team selection, becomes the fourth player in League history to earn All-League accolades for the fourth time. Colgate’s Richardson and Holy Cross senior forward Gerrale Gates (16.3 ppg, 8.6 rpg) are three-time All-League selections. Army West Point junior guard Jalen Rucker (15.8 ppg, 3.5 apg), Colgate senior forward Keegan Records (12.5 ppg, 6.1 rpg) and Lehigh senior guard Evan Taylor (14.2 ppg, 6.5 rpg), all received All-League honors last season.
Army West Point’s Rucker and Colgate’s Records and Richardson were joined on the All-Patriot League First Team by Lehigh sophomore guard Keith Higgins Jr. (14.9 ppg) and Navy senior forward Daniel Deaver (13.5 ppg, 6.8 rpg). The first team boasts the top-three scorers in League play, with Rucker (16.9 ppg), Higgins Jr. (16.1 ppg) and Deaver (15.9 ppg) leading the way.
Boston University’s Whyte, Holy Cross’s Gates and Lehigh’s Taylor were joined on the second team by American junior forward Matt Rogers (13.7 ppg, 5.9 rpg) and Navy senior guard Sean Yoder (10.7 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 2.5 apg). Gates is the sixth men’s basketball student-athlete in League history to lead the League in scoring and rebounding.
The third team consists of five first-time All-League selections, including Bucknell senior guard Xander Rice (14.0 ppg, 3.7 apg), Colgate senior guard Ryan Moffatt (10.1 ppg, 3.9 rpg, .448 3FG), Lafayette sophomore guard CJ Fulton (10.4 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 5.1 apg), Lehigh sophomore guard Tyler Whitney-Sidney (13.4 ppg, 4.8 rpg) and Navy senior forward Tyler Nelson (12.6 ppg, 6.1 rpg). Fulton and Whitney-Sidney were All-Rookie picks last year, while Moffatt finished the regular-season third on the Patriot League’s career 3-point field goal percentage leaders list at 43.8 percent.
Richardson, the Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year, highlights the All-League Defensive Team along with teammate Keegan Records and Navy’s Yoder. Boston University graduate student guard Jonas Harper makes the defensive team for the third time after averaging 1.3 steals per game. American junior forward Johnny O’Neil makes the squad after leading the League with 1.6 blocks per game.
Roberts leads a talented five-player Patriot League All-Rookie Team that has combined to earn 11 Patriot League GEICO Rookie of the Week honors this season. Four-time rookie of the Week Braeden Smith (11.6 ppg, 4.5 apg) makes the squad after finishing third in the League in assists. Loyola Maryland guard Deon Perry (11.1 ppg) is a three-time rookie and one-time player of the week and finished fifth in the League, shooting 42.7 percent from beyond the arc. Holy Cross guard Will Batchelder finished second among rookie scorers, averaging 12.2 points per game. Lafayette forward Josh Rivera (10.1 ppg, 5.1 rpg) rounded out the rookie squad.
2022-23 PenFed Credit Union Patriot League Men’s Basketball Major Awards and All-League Teams
Player of the Year – Tucker Richardson, Colgate, Sr., G
Defensive Player of the Year – Tucker Richardson, Colgate, Sr., G
Rookie of the Year – Ethan Roberts, Army West Point, Fr., F
Coach of the Year – Matt Langel, Colgate
First-Team All-Patriot League
Jalen Rucker, Army West Point, Jr., G
Keegan Records, Colgate, Sr., F
Keith Higgins Jr., Lehigh, So., G
Tucker Richardson, Colgate, Sr., G
Daniel Deaver, Navy, Sr., F
Second-Team All-Patriot League
Matt Rogers, American, Jr., F
Walter Whyte, Boston University, Gr., F
Gerrale Gates, Holy Cross, Sr., F
Evan Taylor, Lehigh, Sr., G
Sean Yoder, Navy, Sr., G
Third-Team All-Patriot League
Xander Rice, Bucknell, Sr., G
Ryan Moffatt, Colgate, Sr., G
CJ Fulton, Lafayette, So., G
Tyler Whitney-Sidney, Lehigh, So., G,
Tyler Nelson, Navy, Sr., F
Patriot League All-Defensive Team
Johnny O’Neil, American, Jr., F
Jonas Harper, Boston University, Gr., G
Keegan Records, Colgate, Sr., F
Tucker Richardson, Colgate, Sr., G
Sean Yoder, Navy, Sr., G
Patriot League All-Rookie Team
Ethan Roberts, Army West Point, Fr., F
Braeden Smith, Colgate, Fr., G
Will Batchelder, Holy Cross, Fr., G
Josh Rivera, Lafayette, Fr., F
Deon Perry, Loyola Maryland, Fr., G
ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its fourth decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athlete can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League’s athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes that are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.