Oct. 4, 2012
Brooklyn, N.Y. -
Fordham University senior forward Chris Gaston (Union City, N.J./St. Anthony) was named First Team Preseason All-Atlantic 10 Conference it was announced today at the Atlantic 10 Men's Basketball Media Day, held at the Barclay Center in Brooklyn. He is the second Fordham men's basketball player to earn A-10 Preseason First Team All-Conference honors, joining Bryant Dunston who received the accolade in 2006.
Chris Gaston, who was named Second Team All-Atlantic 10 and Second Team All-Met last year, led the 2011-12 Fordham squad in both scoring and rebounding for the third straight year, averaging 17.1 ppg and 9.9 rpg. He also recorded 46 blocks (second best in the team), 35 steals (third best on the squad), and 30 assists. Gaston led the Atlantic 10 in rebounding - the third consecutive season he leads the conference in rebounding - and in offensive (4.0/game) and defensive rebounding (5.9/game). He is also ranked fifth in the conference in scoring and seventh in blocked shots (1.6/game).
Gaston registered 16 doubles-doubles on the year, the most for any Atlantic 10 player and the 18th best in the NCAA Division I. He was also 24th in the NCAA in rebounding, 72nd in scoring and 80th in blocks.
On the year Gaston set a new career-high in scoring, netting 35 points in the win over Texas State on December 22nd and then matching that in the victory over La Salle on February 25th. The 35-point outburst was the second best among all A-10 players this winter.
Over his three-year career, Gaston has amassed 1,428 points, good for eleventh place on the Fordham all-time scoring list, seven points behind Fred Herzog (1987-92) for tenth place. He also has 911 career rebounds, placing him sixth on the Fordham all-time rebounding list, six behind John Stevens (1962-65) for fifth place. With his 16 doubles-doubles this year, Gaston brings his career total to 51 in 83 career games.
"We expect another solid year from Chris Gaston," said head coach Tom Pecora. "He enters the year with 52 career double-doubles and had a great offseason. He's working on playing away from the basket and increasing his shooting range which will just make him more valuable to us this year."
It was also announced at media day that Saint Joseph's was chosen as the Atlantic 10 Conference men's basketball preseason favorite in the league's preseason poll. There were also 25 A-10 student-athletes were selected for preseason awards. Both the awards and the predicted order of finish were chosen by a panel of the league's head coaches and media members.
Saint Joseph's garnered 434 total points and 11 first-place votes to edge out second-place Saint Louis, which had 10 first-place votes and 432 points. The Hawks finished 20-14 overall and 9-7 in the A-10 last season and return all five starters from that team. SJU also led all teams with five players selected for preseason awards. Saint Louis, chosen second in the preseason poll, finished at 12-4 last year in the A-10 and 26-8 overall. The Billikens came within four points of upsetting No. 1 Michigan State in the NCAA Tournament last season.
League newcomer VCU was picked third with 410 points and three first-place votes, followed by Temple (394 points, two first-place votes), NIT Semifinalist Massachusetts (389 points, two first-place votes) and newcomer Butler (347 points, two first-place votes). La Salle was picked seventh with 281 points and Dayton tallied 264 points to earn the eighth place. Xavier (239 points) and Richmond (235 points) completed the top 10, while defending champion St. Bonaventure, Charlotte, George Washington, Fordham, Rhode Island and Duquesne rounded out the 16-team field.
Dayton senior guard Kevin Dillard and Fordham senior forward Chris Gaston were both named to the Preseason First-Team All-Conference team. UMass' Chaz Williams, Kwamain Mitchell of Saint Louis and Temple's Khalif Wyatt were also named to the Preseason First Team. All five players were named postseason All-Conference in 2011-12, with Williams garnering first-team honors.
Butler newcomer Rotnei Clarke, Charlotte's Chris Braswell and La Salle's Ramon Galloway all earned Preseason Second Team All-Conference honors. Both Carl Jones and Langston Galloway of Saint Joseph's were also named second team.
Two more Hawks players, C.J. Aiken and Halil Kanacevic were named to the Preseason All-Conference Third Team. Darien Brothers (Richmond), Scootie Randall (Temple) and Juvonte Reddic (VCU) joined Aiken and Kanacevic on the third team.
Aiken was the only Preseason All-Conference honoree to also be named to the Preseason All-Defensive Team. Butler's Roosevelt Jones, Charlotte's Pierria Henry, Jordair Jett from Saint Louis and VCU's Briante Weber also made the defensive squad.
Butler and VCU, playing in their first year in the A-10, had two of the five Preseason All-Rookie selections. Butler's Kellen Dunham and Melvin Johnson from VCU both earned a spot on the first-year player team. Rhode Island's Jordan Hare, Daniel Dingle of Temple and Xavier's Semaj
Christon rounded out the All-Rookie team.
The 2012-13 season on Friday, Nov. 9 with nine Atlantic 10 teams in action. The year will culminate with the 2013 Atlantic 10 Men's Basketball Tournament at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, N.Y. March 14-17. The tournament concludes with the finals on Sunday, March 17 at 1:00 p.m. on CBS.
