Lewis and Cooks Earn Met Writers Basketball Honors

NJIT senior Abdul Lewis and sophomore Zach Cooks were named to the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association Division I team for the 2018-19 season Chuck Stogel, president of the Met Writers, announced.

Lewis, who concluded his collegiate career with 1,247 points and 1,000 rebounds, was named to the second team while teammate Cooks, who averaged 17.6ppg, the third highest scoring total in school-history, earned third team honors.

The 86th annual Met Writers Awards banquet was held on Tuesday, April 30 at the Westchester Marriott in Tarrytown, NY.

The Met Writers awards program, the oldest of its kind in the country, began in the 1930s by honoring major college players and programs in and around New York City.

Known in area basketball circles as the Haggerty Awards, the honors have expanded to include men's and women's basketball programs from New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut at all levels of the NCAA.

Preseason All-ASUN and First Team All-ASUN forward, Lewis, led the team in double-doubles (9) and rebounds (9.1 rpg).

The senior eclipsed 1,000 career points (1,015, NJIT & 232, South Alabama - 1,247 total) and reached 1,000 career rebounds (773, NJIT & 237, South Alabama) in his final game against Lipscomb in the ASUN Championship Semifinals.

Lewis' 773 rebounds in his three years at NJIT broke Tim Coleman's (762) record, while his incredible 21 rebound game against Jacksonville broke his own program record.

The Newark, N.J., native finished his NJIT career averaging 11.5 ppg and 8.8 rpg, with 22 career double-doubles for the Highlanders, a program record.

Second Team All-ASUN guard, Cooks, followed up his ASUN All-Freshman season with an impressive sophomore year, ranking nationally in steals (88, 7th NCAA), steals per game (2.5, 12th NCAA), total minutes (1,304, 6th NCAA) and minutes per game (37.3, 14th NCAA).

Cooks led NJIT in scoring, averaging 17.6 ppg, which ranked third in the ASUN. His 34 point-performance in the CIT First Round tied Damon Lynn's single-game scoring record (12-20 FG, 4-7 3FG, 6-8 FT).

The sophomore earned his first double-double at Jacksonville (24 points, 13 rebounds) and scored 20+ points in 15 games this season.

With two seasons remaining, Cooks has combined for 873 points, 234 rebounds, 137 steals, 136 steals and 114 three-pointers.