NEPSAC Players of the Year

The New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) recently announced their end of season awards, which included Player of the Year, All-NEPSAC teams, and honorable mention selections for each of the six classes that make up the league.   Below, we'll take a look at each of the Player of the Year recipients.   Class AAA: [player_tooltip player_id='2638999' first='Lucas' last='Morillo'] - Newman School    Morillo, a guard out of the Newman School in Massachusetts, wrapped up his high school career as the Class AAA Player of the Year. The 6'7" guard played a major role in Newman winning both the Class AAA and National Prep championships. After recovering from an early season injury, he reminded everyone why he was such a highly regarded recruit, showing incredible poise with the ball in his hands, the ability to dictate tempo, and an impressive three-level scoring arsenal. His combination of feel for the game, positional size, and basketball IQ is rare and allowed him to impact games in a variety of ways, on both ends of the floor. He will continue his academic and athletic careers in the fall at Illinois.    Class AA: [player_tooltip player_id='2341363' first='Alex' last='Egbuonu'] - Lawrence Academy    Egbuonu, a wing out of Lawrence Academy in Massachusetts, finished his senior season by earning the Class AA Player of the Year award. Egbuonu had a dominant senior season, showcasing his ability to make a two-way impact from the open tip all the way through the final buzzer. A powerful, but highly skilled, 6'7" wing, he does a terrific job of getting to his spots as a scorer and improved every season with the consistency of his perimeter jumper. He can handle in transition, is a powerful finisher at the rim, and does a nice job of competing on the glass on both ends of the floor. He will continue his academic and athletic careers in the fall at Marquette.    Class A: [player_tooltip player_id='1411408' first='Jordan' last='Ghee'] - Hotchkiss School    Ghee, a guard out of the Hotchkiss School in Connecticut, closed out his post-graduate season with the Class A Player of the Year award. Ghee was a major reason why Hotchkiss was able to win the Class A championship, as the big guard continued to elevate his play from the end of the season all the way through the tournament. He proved to be one of the better isolation scorers in the region this winter, particularly in the mid-range, where his combination of size and strength allowed him to elevate over smaller defenders. He competes on the glass, can make decisions with the ball in his hands in the half-court, and does a nice job of finding his scoring within the flow of the offense. He has yet to decided on a college destination.    Class B Large: [player_tooltip player_id='2341414' first='Alexander' last='Echevarria'] - St. Mark's & [player_tooltip player_id='2341443' first='Luca' last='Palermo'] - St. Mark's    Echevarria, a guard out of the St. Mark's School in Massachusetts, finished his high school career by being named the Class B Large Co-Player of the Year. Echevarria helped lead St. Mark's to the Class B Large title, a culmination of one of the best seasons in the school's history. A heady lead guard, he evolved this winter from a scoring guard to true lead guard, making plays for his teammates and generating easy baskets in the half-court and in transition. He continued to knock down shots at a high clip from behind the arc while proving to be competitive on the defensive end and a good decision maker out of ball screen actions. He'll continue his academic and athletic careers in the fall at Trinity.     Palermo, a forward out of the St. Mark's School in Massachusetts, wrapped up an impressive junior season by earning the Class B Large Co-Player of the Year. Palermo formed one half of the league's top duo and played an instrumental role in St. Mark's quest to capture the Class B Large title. Thr 6'7" forward averaged over 18 points and 9 rebounds per game this winter, scoring in double figures in 26 of his 28 games played. He's ultra efficient as a scorer, has terrific footwork in the low post, and shows touch as a scorer in the mid-post. He can make plays as a handler out of DHO actions, does a nice job of making plays from the elbows, and can really rebound the ball in traffic. He'll run this spring and summer with BABC on the 3SSB circuit.    Class B Small: [player_tooltip player_id='2341412' first='DJ' last='Biggins'] - Kingswood Oxford    Biggins, a guard out of the Kingswood Oxford School in Connecticut, finished out his high school hoops career as the Class B Small Player of the Year. Biggins, a terrific two-way guard, managed to lead Kingswood Oxford all the way to the Class B Small championship game, where they came up just short of capturing the title. He's a terrific perimeter defender that causes havoc on the ball with his combination of athleticism, quickness, and strength. He has another gear in transition, where he thrives as a scorer and creator, and even showed the ability to make shots from the perimeter in catch and shoot situations. He did all the little things a lead guard needs to do to impact winning and make his teammates better. He will continue his academic and athletic careers in the fall at Boston College, where he'll focus his athletic exploits on football!    Class C: [player_tooltip player_id='2571881' first='Drew' last='Herren'] - Wheeler School    Herren, a guard out of the Wheeler School in Rhode Island, closed out an impressive sophomore season by being named the Class C Player of the Year. Herren led Wheeler to the Class C semi-finals, where their season came to an end against the eventual league champions from the Bancroft School. The 6'0" guard can really shoot the basketball, but impressed this year with his evolution as a decision-maker with the ball in his hands. He makes great reads out of ball screens, knows how to step behind screens to knock down shots, and generally, plays with a really high basketball IQ on the offensive end of the floor. His feel for the game extends to the defensive end of the floor, where he shows a good understanding of how to play angles and make an impact in passing lanes. He'll run this spring and summer with BABC on the 3SSB circuit.

The New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC) recently announced their end of season awards, which included Player of the Year, All-NEPSAC teams, and honorable mention selections for each of the six classes that make up the league.