Conger, Kloof selected to preseason All-Big Four teams

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Courtesy of GoBonnies.com.

BUFFALO, N.Y. – St. Bonaventure’s Demitrius Conger and Charlon Kloof have been named to the 2012-13 Preseason All-Big Four Basketball Teams, which were unveiled Thursday at Pearl Street Grill and Brewery.

Conger, a senior forward, was selected to the First Team, while Kloof, a junior guard, was a Second Team selection. The two five-man teams were voted on by media and athletic communication staffs that cover St. Bonaventure, the University at Buffalo, Canisius College and Niagara.

Conger and Kloof were key figures in the Bonnies’ run to the 2012 Atlantic 10 Conference Tournament championship and the program’s first NCAA Tournament appearance since 2000. The duo also helped SBU sweep three games against Big Four rivals Buffalo, Canisius and Niagara last season.

Conger, who was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Championship Team last year, is St. Bonaventure’s leading returning scorer and rebounder after averaging 12.1 points and 6.2 rebounds in 2011-12. With 792 points and 439 rebounds heading into the 2012-13 season, the Brooklyn N.Y., native is in position to become the 23rd player in program history to collect 1,000 points and 500 rebounds in a career.

Kloof, who averaged 6.4 points and 2.7 assists in 2011-12, solidified the Bonnies’ point guard position over the course of his first year at SBU and is poised to build on the numbers he put up during the team’s late-season surge. The native of Suriname averaged nearly 10 points and more than four assists per game over the Bonnies’ final eight contests, including a career-best seven assists in a narrow loss to Florida State in the NCAA Tournament.

In addition to Conger, the All-Big Four First Team includes Niagara teammates Juan’ya Green and Antione Mason, Canisius’ Harold Washington and Buffalo’s Javon McCrea, who was named Preseason Player of the Year.

The Second Team is made up of Kloof, Canisius teammates Billy Baron and Alshwan Hymes, and UB’s Jarod Oldham and Will Regan.

The Bonnies begin the 2012-13 season by hosting Division II Mansfield in an exhibition at 3 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 3, before opening the regular season at home against Bethune-Cookman at 7 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 9. As part of the opener against Bethune-Cookman, the 2011-12 NCAA Tournament and Atlantic 10 championship banners will be raised to the Reilly Center rafters.

Game tickets may be purchased online through tickets.com or by calling 888-223-6000. They may also be bought by contacting the SBU Ticket Office at 716-375-2500, by email at tickets@sbu.edu or in person at the Ticket Office, located inside the Reilly Center across from the Bookstore.

2012-13 Preseason All-Big Four Men’s Basketball Teams:

First Team
Demitrius Conger, St. Bonaventure (12.1 ppg., 6.2 rpg.)
Juan’ya Green, Niagara (17.7 ppg., 4.5 apg.)
Antoine Mason, Niagara (15.1 ppg., 4.6 rpg.)
Javon McCrea, Buffalo (14.7 ppg., 6.9 rpg.) – Preseason All-Big Four Player of the Year
Harold Washington, Canisius (17.0 ppg., 4.3 rpg.)

Second Team
Billy Baron, Canisius (13.0 ppg., 4.4 rpg. at Rhode Island)
Alshwan Hymes, Canisius (15.4 ppg., 3.2 rpg.)
Charlon Kloof, St. Bonaventure (6.4 ppg., 2.7 apg.)
Jarod Oldham, Buffalo (4.7 ppg., 5.9 apg.)
Will Regan, Buffalo (1.3 ppg., 0.9 rpg. at Virginia in 2010-11)