It’s very easy for sports writers to jump out and react strongly and decisively when they disagree with something in the heat of the moment. Usually these types of things turn out similarly; the test of time eventually proves the writer wrong, and months after their initial outrage and a long time after people have forgotten what the writer originally said, they write about the same situation like nothing was ever amiss.

But in this case, we all knew the wrong decision was made right away. And when we look back, we can fully justify our initial reactions.

Mitchell Beauford over Mike Gordon? I mean, come on.

When the America East announced its preseason all-conference team, there were some no-brainers, and then some room for newcomers. Albany’s Jamar Wilson and New Hampshire’s Blagoj Janev were unanimous choices. Mike Trimboli of Vermont was named for the first time and Kevin Reed of Maine was somewhat of a questionable choice after missing all of last year due to an injury. Regardless of background, all had reasons to be selected.

So, four spots down, one to go. And the coaches got it wrong.

Badly, badly wrong.

Anyone who really follows America East basketball knew a mistake was made the minute Beauford’s name was announced over the conference call on that November morning. The final spot was open to debate, but if the league was going to bypass seniors like Bo Taylor and Jermaine Anderson of Hartford and Maine, respectively, and decided to go with a junior, they could have at least made the right call.

First of all, four of the five preseason picks came from teams that are slated to finish in the top half of the America East, all of them but Beauford. The Seawolves were picked to finish seventh; the Bearcats were picked to finish sixth. Advantage: Gordon.

Second, the point guard position is not generally for players who like to score big, so neither Beauford nor Gordon was expected to score 20 a game, but credit to both of them for averaging 13 and 11 points per game, respectively.

The difference is that when they do score, one makes big shots and the other’s points don’t mean nearly as much.

Stony Brook won four conference games this year. In those games, Beauford scored point totals of four, 18, 12 and seven. His own teammate, Ricky Lucas, scored 21, six, 21 and 22 in those same respective games. Beauford’s highest point total in a victory was in a game against Boston University, where five of his 18 came in overtime; that game was sent to the extra session on a buzzer beater, not by Beauford, the apparent Alex Rodriguez of the America East, but by, you guessed it, Lucas.

So, AE coaches, how about recognizing a guy who can nail the big shot or display leadership?

Gordon hit three game-winners this year, two of them coming with less than one second left. He also is the unquestioned leader of the team and needs to be on the court for Binghamton to play well.

The clearest example is not in the points, but in the passes. Gordon had 112 assists this year; second on the team was Richard Forbes, who had only 48. Beauford had only 76 assists this whole season and his teammate Eddie Castellanos had 63. Gordon was 64 assists ahead of his runner-up, Beauford only 13. Advantage: Gordon.

Both of these players are juniors, so neither had the age advantage. Both were third team all-conference last year, so neither had a leg up on the other to be named all-conference this preseason. The key should have been in team performance, and the bottom line is that Binghamton has done astronomically better than Stony Brook in the time that Gordon and Beauford have been leading the way.

Stony Brook is 11-39, with Beauford leading the Seawolves’ offense over three seasons (medical red-shirt 2004-05), and Binghamton is 26-24 with Gordon at the point. The Bearcats’ record is not sparkling, but when you compare .220 and .520, and there really is no comparison to be made.

But, you may say, the numbers were different before this season when the all-conference team was voted on. Fine. Even when you consider that this season saw Binghamton put up its worst record with Gordon at point, adjust the numbers to 7-27 for Stony Brook and 20-14 for Binghamton, or .206 and .588 percentage-wise, it only furthers the point.

Entering this season, Binghamton was coming off a Division-I-best 12-4 mark and second-place finish. Stony Brook was coming off a last place finish at 2-14 and a loss in the play-in game. Advantage: Gordon.

Both programs joined Division I men’s basketball in 2001-02. In conference play, Stony Brook has totaled 29 wins, three last-place finishes ‘ including the last two ‘ and only one tournament win outside of the play-in games.

Binghamton has 51 total wins. The Bearcats have never finished below sixth place. They have two tournament wins and have never even had to play in the first round. Though it’s not supposed to matter, even historically the Bearcats have far out-shined the Seawolves.

With all of this in mind, how did Gordon not make the preseason all-conference team?

You can never predict how a season will go, and surely no one could have expected Gordon to perform this year the way he did, hitting game-winner after game-winner. But with what the coaches had to work with, they ought to be ashamed of the choice they made.

If first-year Hartford head coach Dan Leibovitz was one of the ones who voted for Beauford over Gordon, you can bet he’s regretting that now.

And for once, we sports writers had it right all along. Maybe we should have had the guts to write about it in November.