Men’s Basketball’s Crandell, Rice Selected to All-NECC Second Team

MARSHFIELD, Mass.- Juniors Garrett Crandell (Bristol, Tenn.) and Josh Rice (Hanson, Mass.) of the Eastern Nazarene College men's basketball team have been tabbed to the All-New England Collegiate Conference (NECC) second team, announced the league office Tuesday.

Crandell paces the Lions with 15.6 points per game and ranks second in the conference with a three-point percentage of 45.2% on the year. He has seen action in all 25 games this season and has contributed with 4.4 rebounds per game.

Crandell turned in eight performances of over 20 points this season, including a 36-point outburst in a key victory over Southern Vermont.

In conference play, Crandell averaged 14.8 points per game and 4.7 boards per contest.

Rice ranks second on the squad with 14.7 points per game and has added 4.3 rebounds per game. He also ranks fifth in the league with 61 makes from beyond the arc.

Rice appeared in 23 contests this season and eclipsed the 20-point mark in six games, including a pair of 28-point efforts.

In league action, Rice tallied 14.3 points per game and 1.8 assists per outing.

The duo helped the Lions posted a 14-11 overall record on the year and finish the regular season with an 11-5 conference mark to earn the No. 2 seed in the New England Collegiate Conference Tournament.

Senior Nathan Vazquez (Weymouth, Mass.) was named to the NECC Del Malloy Sportsmanship Team.

By virtue of claiming a top-two seed in the playoffs, Eastern Nazarene earned a first-round bye and will host an NECC semifinal game Thursday, February 21.