BOSTON, MA - Iona College men's basketball sophomore forward Nelly Junior Joseph was one of 50 named to the Watch List for the 2021-22 Lou Henson National Player of the Year Award, announced on Thursday by CollegeInsider.com. The award, which is presented annually to the top mid-major player in division I college basketball, honors the former Illinois and New Mexico State head coach who won 775 games in 41 seasons.
Junior Joseph is the reigning MAAC Rookie of the Year following a spectacular freshman campaign. He appeared in all 18 games and averaged 11.1 points and 7.5 rebounds while shooting 59.6% from the floor. The Benin City, Nigeria native had four double doubles including nationally televised efforts vs. Monmouth on February 19 and Fairfield in the MAAC Championship game on March 13. Twice Junior Joseph scored a season-best 19 points and had a season-high 12 rebounds against Coppin State in December.
Among freshman in the MAAC, Junior Joseph's scoring, rebounding and field goal percentage ranked first. The big man's strong season also saw him ranked in the top five overall in offensive rebounds, total rebounds, blocked shots, and field goal percentage. He was the fourth MAAC Rookie of the Year in Iona history.
Players on teams from the following conferences are eligible for the Lou Henson National Player of the Year Award: America East, Atlantic Sun, Big Sky, Big South, Big West, Colonial, Horizon, Ivy, Metro Atlantic, Mid-American, Mid-Eastern, Missouri Valley, Northeast, Ohio Valley, Patriot, Southern, Southland, Southwestern, Summit, Sun Belt, West Coast.
Joining Junior Joseph from the MAAC is Saint Peter's senior KC Ndefo. Six sophomores and one freshmen were among the 50 players selected.
Lou Henson is the winningest coach in Illinois basketball history with 423 victories. During his 21 seasons (1975-1996), Henson led the Fighting Illini to 16 postseason appearances, including 12 NCAA tournaments and a Final Four appearance in 1989.
Henson, who is also the all-time winningest coach in New Mexico State history with 289 victories, is one of only 11 coaches to take two different schools to the NCAA Final Four. His teams have made 19 NCAA appearances and four NIT appearances.
2021-22 LOU HENSON AWARD WATCH LIST
| Player |
Cl. |
Ht. |
School |
Conference |
| Patrick Baldwin Jr. |
Fr. |
6-9 |
Milwaukee |
Horizon |
| Max Abmas |
Jr. |
6-1 |
Oral Roberts |
Summit |
| Theo Akwuba |
Jr. |
6-11 |
Louisiana |
Sun Belt |
| Neftali Alvarez |
Jr. |
6-2 |
Mercer |
SoCon |
| Ahsan Asadullah |
Jr. |
6-9 |
Lipscomb |
ASun |
| Ledarrius Brewer |
Jr. |
6-5 |
ETSU |
SoCon |
| Tevin Brown |
Jr. |
6-5 |
Murray State |
MEAC |
| D.J. Burns |
Jr. |
6-9 |
Winthrop |
Big South |
| A.J. Green |
Jr. |
6-4 |
Northern Iowa |
MVC |
| Tanner Holden |
Jr. |
6-6 |
Wright State |
Horizon |
| Jalen Moore |
Jr. |
5-11 |
Oakland |
Horizon |
| Isiaih Mosely |
Jr. |
6-5 |
Missouri State |
MVC |
| Grayson Murphy |
Jr. |
6-2 |
Belmont |
OVC |
| Nick Muszynski |
Jr. |
6-11 |
Belmont |
OVC |
| De'Torrion Ware |
Jr. |
6-4 |
Morgan State |
MEAC |
| John Michael Wright |
Jr. |
6-1 |
High Point |
Big South |
| Fardaws Aimaq |
So. |
6-11 |
Utah Valley |
WAC |
| Johni Broome |
So. |
6-10 |
Morehead State |
OVC |
| Nelly Junior Joseph |
So. |
6-9 |
Iona |
MAAC |
| Norchad Omier |
So. |
6-7 |
Arkansas State |
Sun Belt |
| Ryan Rollins |
So. |
6-4 |
Toledo |
MAC |
| Malachi Smith |
So. |
6-4 |
Chattanooga |
SoCon |
| Corey Allen |
Sr. |
6-2 |
Georgia State |
Sun Belt |
| Jamaree Bouyea |
Sr. |
6-2 |
San Francisco |
WCC |
| Hayden Brown |
Sr. |
6-5 |
The Citadel |
SoCon |
| Ryan Davis |
Sr. |
6-8 |
Vermont |
America East |
| Antoine Davis Jr. |
Sr. |
6-1 |
Detroit Mercy |
Horizon |
| Ty Flowers |
Sr. |
6-9 |
Long Island University |
NEC |
| ShanQuan Hemphill |
Sr. |
6-6 |
Drake |
MVC |
| Tevian Jones |
Sr. |
6-7 |
Southern Utah |
Big Sky |
| Tyreke Key |
Sr. |
6-3 |
Indiana State |
MVC |
| Peter Kiss |
Sr. |
6-5 |
Bryant |
NEC |
| Rocky Kreuser |
Sr. |
6-10 |
North Dakota State |
Summit |
| Kameron Langley |
Sr. |
6-2 |
North Carolina A&T |
Big South |
| Darius McGhee |
Sr. |
5-9 |
Liberty |
ASun |
| Jayveous McKinnis |
Sr. |
6-7 |
Jackson State |
SWAC |
| KC Ndefo |
Sr. |
6-7 |
Saint Peter's |
MAAC |
| Elijah Olyani |
Sr. |
6-5 |
Stony Brook |
America East |
| Roman Penn |
Sr. |
6-1 |
Drake |
MVC |
| Gaige Prim |
Sr. |
6-9 |
Missouri State |
MVC |
| Jalen Ray |
Sr. |
6-2 |
Hofstra |
CAA |
| Eli Scott |
Sr. |
6-5 |
Loyola Marymount |
WCC |
| Amadou Sow |
Sr. |
6-9 |
UC Santa Barbara |
Big West |
| Azar Swain |
Sr. |
6-1 |
Yale |
IVY |
| Ben Vander Plas |
Sr. |
6-8 |
Ohio |
MAC |
| Collin Welp |
Sr. |
6-9 |
UC Irvine |
Big West |
| Walter Whyte |
Sr. |
6-6 |
Boston University |
Patriot |
| Jeenathan Williams |
Sr. |
6-5 |
Buffalo |
MAC |
| Douglas Wilson |
Sr. |
6-7 |
South Dakota State |
Summit |
| Camren Wynter |
Sr. |
6-2 |
Drexel |
MVC |
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