Ken Horton of Central Connecticut State was named the NEC Player of the Year.

Alex Francis of Bryant was named NEC Rookie of the Year and Akeem Bennett of St. Francis (NY) won Defensive POY.

Joining Horton on the All-NEC First Team is James Johnson and Justin Rutty (Quinnipiac), Julian Boyd (Long Island) and Tyler Murray (Wagner).

Bennett was joined on the All-NEC Second Team by teammate Ricky Cadell, Shane Gibson (Sacred Heart), Cecil Gresham (Bryant) and Umar Shannon (St. Francis of PA).

The Duke Blue Devils created a blueprint of sorts on how to stop Kendall Marshall and the North Carolina Tar Heels.

"They did a great job of picking me up early, and one thing Coach talked to me about was getting our offense started farther down the court, not so much towards half-court," Marshall said. "So I just want to make sure we can get as deep as we can into the offense, and try to get great shots."

The Tar Heels expect 15th-seeded Long Island to key on Marshall, and North Carolina's opponents said little Thursday to persuade them otherwise. Blackbirds guard Kyle Johnson referred to Marshall as "the head of the monster."

"We've got to keep him out of the lane," LIU coach Jim Ferry said. "His aggressiveness to break teams down has really helped North Carolina's offense evolve. He's a freshman. We have to go at him hard and put him in a situation where he doesn't feel very comfortable. [But] he plays so unselfishly, that it might be easier said than done."

Ohio State is the No. 1 overall seed in the 2011 NCAA Tournament and will be placed in the East Region.

Joining the Buckeyes No. 1 seeds is Kansas in the Midwest, Pittsburgh in the Southeast and Duke in the West.

Pitt is the only No. 1 seed to not win their conference tournament, losing to eventual champion Connecticut in the quarterfinals.

San Diego State, North Carolina, Notre Dame and Florida are the No. 2 seeds, while Syracuse, Purdue, Connecticut and BYU are the No. 3 seeds. Kentucky, Louisville, Texas and Wisconsin are the No. 4 seeds.

Kansas and Duke were also No. 1 seeds in the 2010 NCAA Tournament, while Ohio State was a No. 2 and Pitt was a No. 3.

The Final Four will be held in Houston on April 2nd and 4th.

• Click here to view RealGM’s 2011 NCAA Tournament Page.

Long Island defeated Robert Morris by a final of 85-82 in the Northeast Conference Tournament championship game.

Jamal Olasewere was named Tournament MVP, leading all players in points, rebounds, steals and FIC.

Jason Brickman joined teammate Olasewere on the All-Tournament Team, along with Russell Johnson and Velton Jones (Robert Morris) and Justin Rutty (Quinnipiac).

• Click here to view RealGM’s comprehensive list of 2011 Conference Tournaments.