Ohio University men's basketball voted The Almanac’s Best Player Developmental Staff in the MAC
The Ohio University men's basketball staff has been voted The Almanac's Mid-American Conference Best Player Development Staff, the publication announced in its MAC season preview.
The Bobcats' staff includes head coach Jeff Boals, assistant coaches Lamar Thornton, Kyle Barlow and Lee Martin, Director of Operation Jake Ness, video coordinator Mike Cifliku, graduate assistant Casey Crawford, strength and conditioning coach Jared Azar and athletic trainer Tyler Congrove. The recognition was voted upon by fellow MAC coaches in an anonymous poll.
Last season, Ohio finished 19-14 and a 10-8 mark in MAC play, while developing a roster that saw nine newcomers come to Athens, while only returning six, with only three seeing significant playing time from the season prior.
In the same poll, sophomore guard AJ Brown (Orlando, Fla.) was voted the MAC's Breakout Player, while also earning a Second Team All-MAC preseason honors. Last season, Brown played in 26 games for Ohio while making eight starts in his first season in Athens. Overall, Brown averaged 10.3 points, while shooting .426 from the field, .375 from three and .776 from the line.
In MAC play, Brown averaged 8.1 points and 2.3 rebounds, while shooting .336 from the field, .333 from three and .828 from the line. Brown's breakout game came in the MAC Quarterfinals against Ball State where he scored a career-high 28 points, going 10-of-16 from the field and 5-of-10 from three, while snagging a career-high seven rebounds. Brown also earned a spot on the MAC All-Freshman Team.
Senior guard Jaylin Hunter (Manchester, Conn.) also earned Second Team All-MAC preseason honors. Last season, Hunter Played in 33 games while making 32 starts and averaged 13.2 points a game, while shooting .441 from the field, .408 from three and .753 from the line.
He dished out an average of 4.2 assists per game and 3.6 rebounds and recorded 58 steals. He scored a career-high 27 points against Toledo on March 10 in the MAC Semifinals and was name Honorable Mention All-MAC. He was also named to the Blue Ribbon Announces 2023-24 Preseason All-MAC Team earlier this month.
The Bobcats open the 2023-24 season on Nov. 8 against Troy inside the Convocation Center.