ALBANY - Siena senior Alex Franklin scored a game-high 23 points against Iona on Friday night and the forward leads the team averaging 16.4 points per game.

“This is a team loaded with very good basketball players,” Iona coach Kevin Willard said. “But I think he’s the best in the conference by far.”

Willard said he stopped Franklin in the postgame hand shake line and told him he has to graduate because Williard doesn't like playing against Franklin.

“He’s everything that I want my young four’s (power forwards) to be,” Willard said.

While Siena has a number of options for the conference player of the year, Willard said he thought it was pretty cut and dry.

“I don’t know how you could vote for anybody else for player of the year,” he said.