Zouzoua, Grant earn All-NEC recognition on eve of NEC Quarterfinals

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – The league's top scorer and top scoring rookie were recognized for their season-long efforts Tuesday, as the Northeast Conference's top-scoring duo of Bryant sophomore sharpshooter Nisre Zouzoua (Brockton, Mass.) and rookie guard Adam Grant (Franklin, Va.) were respectively named to the All-NEC First Team and NEC All-Rookie Team.

The pair led the Bryant University men's basketball team back to the postseason in 2017, and the Bulldogs (12-19, 9-9 NEC) enter the NEC Tournament as one of the hottest teams in the league.

Just a sophomore, Zouzoua adds this recognition to an ever-growing list of accomplishments, a list that now also includes becoming the fastest 1,000-point scorer in the Bulldogs' Division I history. A 2016 NEC All-Rookie Team selection, Zouzoua has led the NEC in scoring nearly start to finish, averaging a 20.2 points per game clip that ranks 32nd nationally.

Zouzoua has posted 20 or more points an impressive 16 times this season, more than any other NEC player, and has failed to score double-digit points in just a single outing. He also leads the league in triples per game, hitting a shade under three each time out to rank 36th in the NCAA, and ranks in the top-10 in minutes per game and steals per contest. This season, the sophomore assassin set a new Division I program mark for single-season points (606 and counting) and is on pace to reset the mark for scoring average (20.2). One of the most prolific scorers to don the Black and Gold, Zouzoua already ranks sixth and fourth in the DI era for career field goals (331) and trifectas (149).

Grant earns an NEC All-Rookie Team nod after leading all NEC freshmen in scoring this season, averaging 13.6 points per game to rank second on the team and ninth on the league circuit. Averaging the NEC's highest minutes-per-game mark for much of the season, the rookie sharpshooter has netted double-figure points in 21 contests and will challenge to set the program mark for rookie single-season scoring.

Another clutch 3-point shooter, Grant tied an all-time Bryant record for treys in a single game, dropping in nine against Sacred Heart on Jan. 14. The rookie also ranks second on the team in assists (81), steals (43) and free throw percentage (.786).

The pair combine to average 33.8 points per game this season, tops for any duo in the NEC. Bryant enters the 2017 NEC Tournament looking for its second postseason victory and will be on the road in the quarterfinals for the first time in four playoff appearances.

The fifth-seeded Bulldogs tip off against fourth-seeded Saint Francis U. on Wednesday, March 1 at 7 p.m. from DeGol Arena in Loretto, Pa.