TRAFFORD, Pa. (pacathletics.org) - The All-Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) men's basketball teams and annual award winners, determined through voting by the league's 11 head coaches, were released Tuesday night. The teams were first revealed during an announcement show through the PAC Sports Network.

Earning PAC Player of the Year status was Saint Vincent College sophomore forward Jaden Gales (Pittsburgh, Pa./Bishop Canevin). Now a two-time First Team All-PAC selection, he won the conference's Newcomer of the Year last season. His selection as Player of the Year makes him the first Bearcat to earn the league's top player award since Tom Kromka was recognized following the 2018-19 season. 

The PAC Defensive Player of the Year award went to Waynesburg University senior forward Antone Baker (Maple Heights, Ohio/Maple Heights) and Franciscan University freshman guard Sawyer Butler (Beaver, Pa./Beaver Area) was voted the PAC Newcomer of the Year, marking the first time players from either program have earned those honors.

The coaches of the conference voted long-time Geneva College head coach Jeff Santarsiero as the PAC Coach of the Year, the first award for Santarsiero in the Golden Tornadoes' 13-year tenure in the league.

In becoming the first sophomore to earn PAC Player of the Year since Thiel's Blair Rozenblad in 2010-11, Gales finished fourth in the conference in scoring with 17.8 points per game, as well as 10th in rebounding with 7.4 boards per contest. He also ranked 10th in the league in field goal percentage (45.7) and ninth in blocked shots (1.2).

Gales posted five double-doubles during the season, highlighted when he set season-highs with 30 points and 13 boards in an overtime victory over Benedictine (Ill.) University on Dec. 20. That game was also one of 12 that Gales scored 20 or more points in, with nine of those coming in PAC games. 

Baker excelled on the defensive end of the floor for Waynesburg this season. The 6-5 forward led the PAC with 49 blocks and 1.9 rejections per game, while also ranking seventh with 1.7 steals per game. Baker had three or more blocked shots in 12 games, highlighted by a season-high five against Hood College Dec. 19. His 49 blocks this year are the most by a Yellow Jacket since Don Frazier had 54 in 2000-01.

In addition to his defensive work, Baker also led Waynesburg in scoring (17.9), rebounding (8.0) and field goal percentage (56.1). He was outstanding in conference games, averaging 19.3 points and 8.7 rebounds in the 20 games against PAC opponents.

Butler made an immediate impact for Franciscan in his initial season. His 64 steals set a new single-season program record and also tied for the most in the PAC. In addition, his 2.91 steals per game average ranked first in the league and seventh in all of NCAA Division III. Butler set a new Franciscan single-game record with eight steals against Grove City Nov. 21, one of 13 games he posted with at least three steals.

Additionally, Butler led the Barons in scoring with 15.0 points per game, most by any freshman in the conference. The 6-2 guard also passed out 2.7 assists per game and ranked third in the PAC in free throw percentage (82.5).

Now in his 28th year as the head coach, Santarsiero was recognized after guiding Geneva to a 22-3 regular season record, including the top spot in the PAC standings with an 18-2 mark. As the top seed in the conference tournament, the Golden Tornadoes edged Grove City 68-67 in the semifinals before beating Saint Vincent 83-63 in the title game before a huge crowd at Metheny Fieldhouse in Beaver Falls. 

The spark to the Geneva success this season was their work on the defensive end, as the Golden Tornadoes allowed the fewest points in the PAC per game (65.9) and held opponents to 40.3 percent shooting from the floor, lowest in the league. On the offensive side, not only does Geneva lead the PAC, they also lead all of Division III in three-point percentage (40.95%) and free throw percentage (82.57%).  

After winning the automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament with their PAC Tournament championship, Geneva (24-3) will begin their NCAA run Friday, March 1st, against the University of Saint Joseph (24-4) in Ashland, Va., at Randolph-Macon College, who will host the four-team pod Friday and Saturday.

Saint Vincent (23-4) will also continue their season, having earned a bid to the ECAC Tournament. The Bearcats are the fourth seed and open ECACs Saturday, March 2nd, against fifth-seeded Penn State Behrend in the first round.

The PAC also released its 2023-24 Men's Basketball Sportsmanship Team (linked above). The PAC Sportsmanship Teams were established to recognize student-athletes who have distinguished themselves through demonstrated acts of sportsmanship and ethical behavior and are an ongoing effort to recognize and encourage positive sportsmanship among all PAC teams and student-athletes.

PAC Men's Basketball annual awards
PAC Player of the Year: Saint Vincent sophomore forward Jaden Gales (Pittsburgh, Pa./Bishop Canevin)
PAC Defensive Player of the Year: Waynesburg senior forward Antone Baker (Maple Heights, Ohio/Maple Heights)
PAC Newcomer of the Year: Franciscan freshman guard Sawyer Butler (Beaver, Pa./Beaver Area)
PAC Coach of the Year: Geneva head coach Jeff Santarsiero

2023-24 All-PAC Men's Basketball Teams

First Team
Name	School	Pos.	Yr.	Hometown/High School
Ryan Rachic	Geneva	F	Sr.	Prince Frederick, Md./Calvert
Trevor Tipton	Geneva	G/F	Jr.	Glenside, Pa./Phil-Mont Christian Academy
Jaden Gales	Saint Vincent	F	So.	Pittsburgh, Pa./Bishop Canevin
Alex Acosta	W&J	F	So.	Acworth, Ga./North Cobb
Antone Baker	Waynesburg	F	Sr.	Maple Heights, Ohio/Maple Heights

 

Second Team
Name	School	Pos.	Yr.	Hometown/High School
Cole Dailey	Bethany	F	So.	East Liverpool, Ohio/East Liverpool
Diaun Pinkett	Chatham	G	So.	McKees Rocks Pa./Montour
Chase Yarberough	Grove City	G	Jr.	Lititz, Pa./Warwick
Dev Ostrowski	Saint Vincent	G	So.	Niantic, Conn./East Lyme
Quincy Jones	Westminster	G	So.	Youngstown, Ohio/Chaney

 

Honorable Mention
Name	School	Pos.	Yr.	Hometown | High School
Simon Boyer	Chatham	G	Sr.	Hampton, Va./Hampton Roads Academy
Elijah Sutton	Chatham	G	Grad.	York, Pa./Dover
Isaac Massie	Geneva	G	Grad.	Cross Lanes, W.Va./Homeschooled
Mike Iuzzolino	Saint Vincent	G	Jr.	Sewickley, Pa./Canterbury (Conn.)
Rayshod Hooper	Thiel	F	Sr.	Baltimore, Md./St. Frances Academy