EASTON, Pa. — Williamsburg native Alex Chaikin was among three Lafayette Leopards who earned recognition from the Patriot League on Monday afternoon, as the 2024-25 men’s basketball post-season honors were announced.
Chaikin, a freshman guard, received All-Patriot League Third-Team and All-Rookie nods. Chaikin paced the Lafayette offense through the regular season with 13.3 points. He was most comfortable beyond the arc, shooting a team-high 45 percent on 150-plus attempts. Chaikin renewed his career-highs multiple times this season, finishing the winter with a season-high 27 points and seven rebounds at Army on Feb. 25.
Chaikin also chipped in with a 2.5 rpg and 1.0 apg average in 30 games played. He was recognized by the conference three times as its Rookie of the Week on Dec. 1, Feb. 17 and Feb. 3. In December, he compiled 34 points, 13 rebounds and two assists to help the Leopards finish 2-1 in the inaugural Lafayette Classic. This month, he averaged 19.5 points against Patriot League foes American and Bucknell. His 23 points on 6-of-13 shooting from the floor with 3-pointers against the Bison on Feb. 15 kept the Leopards in contention until the final minutes.
Chaikin attended Trinity Episcopal, averaging 22 points, six rebounds and two assists per game. He was named an All-Prep League Team, a VISSA Division 1 All-State and an 804 All-Star Game selection and set both the school’s single-season record for 3-pointers made (108) and the career record for shots from beyond the arc (231) as the eighth all-time leading scorer. He also played club basketball for Virginia Premier under coach Corey Stitzel.
Senior center Justin Vander Baan was crowned the Defensive Player of the Year after a sensational season in the frontcourt and Caleb Williams, a first-year guard, also secured an All-Rookie accolade as he competed in all 31 games with 23 starts.
Lafayette has had at least one player on the Patriot League All-Rookie squad since 2019. Chaikin and Williams continued the streak as Mark Butler (2023-24), Josh Rivera (2022-23), CJ Fulton (2021-22) and Leo O’Boyle (2019-20) were all past Leopard honorees.
The No. 7 Leopards (12-19, 7-11 PL) open up postseason play on Tuesday, hosting No. 10 Holy Cross in the first round of the Patriot League Tournament at 7 p.m. at Kirby Sports Center.
For the latest on the Lafayette College men’s basketball program, follow the Leopards on Twitter @LafayetteMBB and Instagram @lafayettembb.
