OFFICIAL ASUN ALL-ACADEMIC VIDEO


NEWARK, NJ -- NJIT junior Reilly Walsh and sophomore Shyquan Gibbs have been named to the 2018 ASUN All-Academic Team, as announced by conference officials on Saturday. Walsh, the only member on the eight-player list with a 4.0 GPA, was also one of just four unanimous selections.

This marks the second-consecutive selection for Walsh, who became the first-ever Highlander to be selected to the ASUN All-Academic Team a season ago. It also marks a first-time selection for Gibbs, who was the 2016 Valedictorian at St. Anthony's High School in Jersey City, N.J.

In addition, junior Mohamed Bendary was a nominee for the second consecutive season.

Walsh, a business major, started all 29 games for NJIT this season and averaged 4.5 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 1.2 apg and 1.1 spg. A far more important player than what appears on the stats sheet, Walsh has been one of the Highlanders' top defensive players this season and ranked 17th in the ASUN in steals per game despite averaging only 19.7 minutes. He also provided a bump in scoring in conference play, averaging 5.2 ppg in 14 ASUN affairs. The Staten Island native started conference play by scoring a career-high 15 points in an NJIT victory in the ASUN opener against USC Upstate on Jan. 6; and ended league play by tying his career high with eight rebounds while also contributing seven points, three assists and a steal in a huge win at Upstate on Feb. 22. He first set a career high in grabbing eight boards against Florida Gulf Coast on Jan. 13. Walsh also handed out a career-high four assists while adding nine points in a victory over North Florida on Jan. 18. Prior to conference play, the junior tallied a game-high 14 points in a 65-53 victory over Atlantic-10 opponent Drexel on Nov. 25, marking first time in his career he led NJIT in scoring. Last season, Walsh also posted a 4.0 GPA.

Gibbs, a business major, sports a 3.707 GPA. The starting point guard in all 29 games this season, Gibbs averaged 5.5 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 1.8 apg and 1.0 spg. He shot an efficient 46.4-percent (52-for-112) from the floor and 50.0-percent (23-for-46) from beyond the arc -- which would have ranked second in the ASUN if he had enough attempts to qualify. The Hillside, N.J., native ranked seventh in the ASUN in assists-to-turnover ratio (2.0), 18th in spg and tied for 22nd in apg. A careful ball-handler, Gibbs did not commit a turnover in five consecutive games and 123 minutes from Jan. 28 through Dec. 9 -- and only committed an average of one turnover every 23.7 minutes for the season. The sophomore recorded a season-high 14 points (6-for-8 FG, 2-for-3 3FG) along with three rebounds, two assists and two steals in 25 minutes on Nov. 14 against Lafayette College. He also scored 12 points in an NJIT victory in the ASUN conference opener against Upstate on Jan. 6 and netted 11 points against Stetson on Feb. 10.

Although not earning selection, Bendary was nominated on the strength of a 3.532 GPA. The business major has become one of the top back-up bigs in the ASUN. Playing behind preseason All-ASUN center Abdul Lewis, Bendary averaged 3.9 ppg, 3.1 rpg and 0.9 apg in 28 games and two starts. In addition to ranking 38th in the ASUN in rpg despite averaging only 12.3 minutes per game, he placed 19th in blocks per game (0.5). Most impressively, he shot an impressive 70.7-percent (53-for-75) from the floor -- and holds a career .667 (120-for-180) field-goal percentage. In two games when he earned a start (Jan. 6, Jan. 11), he averaged 6.0 ppg, 6.0 rpg, 5.0 apg and 1.0 spg. The span included a career-high nine assists on Jan. 6 in the conference opener against Upstate -- the highest single-game total by a Highlander this season and the most since Ky Howard had nine on Jan. 20, 2015, at St. John's. In fact, in five games in which Lewis either didn't play or fouled out, Bendary averaged 5.2 ppg, 5.2 rpg, 2.9 apg, 1.0 spg and 0.6 bpg. The St. Anthony's product shot 50-percent or better in 22 of 24 contests in which he has registered at least one field-goal attempt. He posted a career-high-tying 16 points (7-for-9 FG) in just 14 minutes on Dec. 3 against UMass Lowell and grabbed a career-high nine rebounds on Jan. 27 versus Lipscomb -- adding eight points, three assists, two steals and two blocks in 24 minutes.

A complete list of the 2018 ASUN All-Academic Team appears below:
 

NAME	POS	GPA	SCHOOL	CL	HOMETOWN	MAJOR
*#Nick Masterson	G	3.47	Kennesaw State	Sr.	Woodstock, Ga.	Mechanical Engineering
*Cody Helgeland	F	3.70	Jacksonville	Sr.	Toccoa, Ga.	Kinesiology
*#Reilly Walsh	G	4.00	NJIT	Jr.	Staten Island, N.Y.	Business
*#Jure Span	G	3.71	USC Upstate	Jr.	Litija, Slovenia	Exercise & Sport Science
#Eli Pepper	F	3.53	Lipscomb	Jr.	Princeton, Ky.	Corporate Marketing
Shyquan Gibbs	G	3.70	NJIT	So.	Hillside, N.J.	Business
Wajid Aminu	F	3.50	North Florida	So.	Stone Mountain, Ga.	International Business
JT Escobar	G	3.52	North Florida	So.	Tallahassee, Fla.	Sociology

Scholar-Athlete of the Year: Nick Masterson, Kennesaw State

* - Denotes unanimous selection

# - Denotes two-time All-Academic Team selection


The Highlanders next begin play in the ASUN Championships with a trip to the Big Dance at stake for the tournament winner. NJIT (14-15, 7-7) received the No. 4 seed and will host at No. 5 North Florida (13-18, 7-7) in the quarterfinals Monday night at the Wellness and Events Center (WEC) in Newark. Tip-off is at 7:30 p.m.

Tickets are available at www.NJITtix.com.