CENTER VALLEY, Pa. — American University men's basketball senior Sa'eed Nelson was named the 2019-20 Patriot League Preseason Player of the Year for the second straight season, as announced by the league office on Wednesday. As a team, the Eagles were chosen to finish third in the Preseason Poll voted upon by fellow PL coaches and sports information personnel.

Heading into his final season at American, Nelson sits seventh all-time on AU's career scoring list with 1,580 points. He needs 477 points to break Russsell 'Boo' Bowers' record of 2,056 set in 1981. 

Nelson ranks among the Patriot League's top-30 in career points (23rd, 1,580), assists (26th, 384) and steals (9th, 195) entering his final season in Washington, D.C. The two-time All-Patriot League selection placed among the League leaders in points (19.8 ppg), assists (5.2 apg) and steals (2.4 spg) during the 2018-19 season to lead the Eagles to a fourth-place regular-season finish. The Pleasantville, N.J. native led all Patriot League guards with 5.6 rebounds per game during the 2018-19 season.

American is coming off a 15-15 mark last season and hosted the Patriot League Quarterfinals for the first time since 2014. The Eagles welcome back four of their five starters led by Nelson and co-senior Mark Gasperini, who averaged 10.3 points per game from the block. Junior Stacy Beckton Jr. is poised for a breakout year and was named as a potential PL breakout player by Mid-Major Madness. American welcomes Minnesota transfer Jamir Harris to the lineup in 2019-20. Harris sat out last season due to NCAA transfer rules. As a freshman with the Golden Gophers, Harris appeared in 28 games and was seventh on the team in scoring, averaging 3.9 points per game. In two starts, Harris had 16 points against Penn State and 10 against Maryland. Sophomore Jacob Boonyasith is coming off an impressive first season with the Eagles and earned All-PL Rookie status and finished the season with five double-digit performances in the final 10 games.

Colgate led the charge in the preseason poll as the defending league champions garnered 18 first-place votes. Bucknell was picked second but did not receive any first-place nods. After American in third, Loyola Maryland and Boston University are neck-and-neck in fourth and fifth, respectively. Army West Point and Lehigh sit sixth and seventh while Lafayette, Navy and Holy Cross round out the poll. 

All five of the Preseason All-Patriot League Men's Basketball selections made the 2018-19 All-League squad. Nelson, defending player of the year, along with Colgate senior forward Rapolas Ivanauskas and Loyola Maryland senior guard Andrew Kostecka were all first-team All-League honorees last season. Boston University senior forward Max Mahoney and Colgate junior guard Jordan Burns were voted onto the 2018-19 All-Patriot League Second Team.

2019-20 Patriot League Men's Basketball Preseason Poll
1. Colgate, 162 points (18 first-place votes)
2. Bucknell, 130
3. American, 126 (2)
4. Loyola Maryland, 98
5. Boston University, 97
6. Army West Point, 86
7. Lehigh, 84
8. Lafayette, 55
9. Navy, 41
10. Holy Cross, 21

2019-20 Patriot League Men's Basketball Preseason Player of the Year
Sa'eed Nelson, American, Sr., G Pleasantville, N.J./Saint Augustine Prep

2019-20 Men's Basketball Preseason All-Patriot League Team (listed alphabetically by school name)
Sa'eed Nelson, American, Sr., G, Pleasantville, N.J./Saint Augustine Prep
Max Mahoney, Boston University, Sr., F, Basking Ridge, N.J./Ridge
Jordan Burns, Colgate, Jr., G, San Antonio, Texas/John Marshall
Rapolas Ivanauskas, Colgate, Sr., F, Barrington, Ill./Brewster Academy (Northwestern)
Andrew Kostecka, Loyola Maryland, Sr., G, Germantown, Md./Clarksburg