PITMAN, NJ --- Montclair State University senior forward Jacob Morales (Montvale, NJ/Pascack Hills) has been named the 2025-26 NJAC Men's Basketball Pony Wilson Player of the Year, announced on February 24.
 
The College of New Jersey senior center Matthew Solomon (Spring Lake Heights, NJ/Manasquan) was named NJAC Defensive Player of the Year. Kean University freshman guard Malachi Jeffers-Viera (Plainsboro, NJ/West Windsor-Plainsboro North) was tabbed the conference's Rookie of the Year, while Montclair State head coach Justin Potts and his staff were voted the league's John K. Adams Coaching Staff of the Year.
 
Their selections highlighted the 17-member NJAC men's basketball all-conference team. All NJAC special awards and all-conference honors were determined by a vote of the league's head coaches and were based on conference-only performances.
 
Morales powered Montclair State to a historic NJAC regular season, helping the Red Hawks earn their first-ever national No. 1 ranking and go 24-1 overall and 17-1 in conference regular season play. The senior forward was one of the most productive players in the conference, ranking fourth in conference-only scoring at 18.6 points per game while shooting an efficient 49.2 percent from the field — fourth in the NJAC — and leading the conference in three-point field goals per game at 3.2 per contest on a 41.1 percent clip. He also chipped in 6.2 rebounds per game in conference play. A three-time NJAC Player of the Week, Morales ranked second in the conference in total 3-point field goals made with 58 and was among the league leaders in 3-point percentage.
 
Solomon earns the NJAC Defensive Player of the Year honor after anchoring one of the top defenses in the conference for TCNJ, which finished 19-6 overall and 14-4 in NJAC regular season play to claim the No. 2 seed in the NJAC Tournament. The senior center was at his best on the biggest stage, recording a near triple-double to lead the Lions past No. 1-ranked Montclair State in the regular season finale. Solomon led the conference in conference-only rebounding at 12.2 boards per game, hauling in 220 total rebounds in conference play. He ranked second in the conference in field goal percentage at 53.6 percent, showing his efficiency as both a defender and interior scorer at 15.1 points per game. A three-time NJAC Defensive Player of the Week and three-time NJAC Player of the Week, Solomon was one of the most consistently dangerous players all season.
 
Jeffers-Viera made an immediate and lasting impact at Kean as one of the most versatile freshmen in the conference. A four-time NJAC Rookie of the Week honoree, the guard was central to Kean's conference performance all season. Jeffers-Viera led the Cougars in conference-only scoring at 16.1 points per game while ranking seventh overall and first among rookies in the NJAC. He was one of the most efficient scorers in the league, ranking seventh overall and best among rookies in conference-only field goal percentage at 47.1 percent. He also contributed 5.0 rebounds per game, 2.6 assists per game, and 1.7 steals per game in NJAC action.
 
Montclair State head coach Justin Potts, associate head coach Sean Rossi, and assistants Will Bishop, Kieran Flanagan, Matt Milon, and Kris Bergstol were selected by their peers as the John K. Adams Coaching Staff of the Year. Potts and staff guided the Red Hawks to a 24-1 overall regular season record and a 17-1 NJAC mark to claim the regular season title, a run that included the program’s first-ever national No. 1 ranking. They mentored the Player of the Year in Morales along with three total all-conference selections.
 

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