2011-12 Conference Honors & Awards

After the 2011-12 season ended, I started working on conference-by-conference "Honors & Awards" posts.  I ran out of steam, having only finished the ACC and Big East posts.  Because I want to turn to the 2012-13 season (preseason Top 25, conference projections, All-American teams, etc.), I am posting the six power conferences all at once.

All-ACC

Kendall Marshall, North Carolina

Harrison Barnes, North Carolina

Mike Scott, Virginia

John Henson, North Carolina

Tyler Zeller, North Carolina

Player of the Year: Tyler Zeller, North Carolina

Top Defender: John Henson, North Carolina

Best Freshman: Austin Rivers, Duke

Coach of the Year: Leonard Hamilton, Florida State

All-Big East

Darius Johnson-Odom, Marquette

Jason Clark, Georgetown

Kris Joseph, Syracuse

Jae Crowder, Marquette

Kevin Jones, West Virginia

Player of the Year: Jae Crowder, Marquette

Top Defender: Gorgui Dieng, Louisville

Best Freshman: Moe Harkless, St. John's

Coach of the Year: John Thompson III, Georgetown

All-Big Ten

Aaron Craft, Ohio State

Jordan Taylor, Wisconsin

Draymond Green, Michigan State

Jared Sullinger, Ohio State

Cody Zeller, Indiana

Player of the Year: Draymond Green, Michigan State

Top Defender: Aaron Craft, Ohio State

Best Freshman: Cody Zeller, Indiana

Coach of the Year: Tom Crean, Indiana

All-Big 12

Tyshawn Taylor, Kansas

Marcus Denmon, Missouri

Royce White, Iowa State

Thomas Robinson, Kansas

Jeff Withey, Kansas

Player of the Year: Thomas Robinson, Kansas

Top Defender: Jeff Withey, Kansas

Best Freshman: Quincy Miller, Baylor

Coach of the Year: Bill Self, Kansas

Pac-12

Jorge Gutierrez, California

Devoe Joseph, Oregon

Jared Cunningham, Oregon State

Terrence Ross, Washington

Andre Roberson, Colorado

Player of the Year: Jared Cunningham, Oregon State

Top Defender: Jorge Gutierrez, California

Best Freshman: Tony Wroten, Washington

Coach of the Year: Tad Boyle, Colorado

SEC

John Jenkins, Vanderbilt

Jeffery Taylor, Vanderbilt

Michael Kidd-Gilchrist, Kentucky

Arnett Moultrie, Mississippi State

Anthony Davis, Kentucky

Player of the Year: Anthony Davis, Kentucky

Top Defender: Anthony Davis, Kentucky

Best Freshman: Anthony Davis, Kentucky

Coach of the Year: John Calipari, Kentucky

ACC Honors & Awards

All-ACC

Kendall Marshall, North Carolina
#5 Sophomore Guard 6-4 195
8.1ppg 9.8apg 1.2spg

Harrison Barnes, North Carolina
#40 Sophomore Forward 6-8 215
17.1ppg 5.2rpg 1.1spg

Mike Scott, Virginia
#23 Senior Forward 6-8 235
18.1ppg 8.4rpg .563FG%

John Henson, North Carolina
#31 Junior Forward 6-11 220
13.7ppg 9.9rpg 2.9bpg

Tyler Zeller, North Carolina
#44 Senior Center 7-0 250
16.3ppg 9.6rpg 1.5bpg

Yes, it is gross that four Tar Heels are among the conference's top five performers.

Player of the Year: Tyler Zeller, North Carolina
Big Z edges out UVA's Mike Scott in what was a highly competitive race for the conference's top honor.

Top Defender: John Henson, North Carolina
Despite his tendency to play out of position, Henson's ability to alter and block shots (tenth in NCAA) played a large part in the Tar Heels' oft-criticized defense finishing as the nation's eleventh most efficient.

Best Freshman: Austin Rivers, Duke
Rivers led the 27-win Blue Devils in scoring at 15.4 points per contest and rounded into one of the most dangerous scorers in the country.

Coach of the Year: Leonard Hamilton, Florida State
The Seminoles beat the Tar Heels and the Blue Devils twice apiece and rode their stingy, physical defense to an ACC Tournament Championship and a 3 seed in the NCAA Tourney.

New Air Jordans Disappoint.

If you watched North Carolina-Duke or Syracuse-Georgetown on Wednesday night, you may have noticed the kicks being worn by some of the Tar Heels and pretty much all of the Hoyas. Carolina and Georgetown are both Jordan Brand schools and, therefore, got first dibs on sporting the Air Jordan 2012 model. The shoe is scheduled to be made available to the general public on February 25. I'm not a fan, but I did stumble upon a funny story (with language that may offend) about Michael Jordan and the designer of the Air Jordan XI (the shiny patent leather ones), Tinker Hatfield. Incidentally, Hatfield is a co-designer of the Air Jordan 2012. Here's a video about the Air Jordan 2012 that is really stupid.

Notes: Duke at North Carolina

1. Wow. Just wow. What a finish. What a game. Every now and then the Duke-UNC rivalry lives up to its considerable hype. Tonight we witnessed one of those games. I had written Duke off after the Tar Heels built up a 13-point second half lead. Down 10 with 2 and a half minutes left, a comeback seemed all but impossible. Rivers' 3 at the buzzer gave new life to a Blue Devils squad that has looked like a solid team with little chance of competing against the Kentuckys and Ohio States of the world come March. And UNC's collapse raises all sorts of questions about a team that seemed to have righted itself after its embarrassing 33-point loss to Florida State.

2. Love him or hate him, Austin Rivers is going to be a special player at the college level (assuming he sticks around for another year). Sure, he's a gunner, and it's hard to argue that he makes those around him better. He's a talented scorer who doesn't bring much else to the table at this early stage of his career. That being said, he's leading the 9th ranked Blue Devils in scoring as a freshman and just put 29 on the rival Tar Heels. There aren't many players in the country who could have done what he did tonight.

3. People have been saying it all year, but it's worth mentioning again after tonight's collapse - the Tar Heels lack the killer instinct possessed by teams that win championships. The talent and skill are there. I'm just not sure Roy Williams' squad has the mentality needed by a team that is going to win 6 straight games in March and April.

4. It should be mentioned that Carolina's top 4 players all had good individual games tonight. Harrison Barnes finished with 25 points with most of those coming in the second half. Tyler Zeller had as good a first half as anyone has had in the country this year and finished with 23 points and 11 boards. John Henson tallied 12 and 17. And Kendall Marshall finished with 14 points and 8 assists. (I thought Marshall did a really good job of being a threat to score tonight.)

5. Stat of the night - UNC hit one 3-pointer as compared to the 14 made by the Blue Devils. At some point, Roy Williams has to make adjustments. Duke made a number of difficult shots, but, if UNC decides to make taking away the 3-pointer a priority, I think the Tar Heels win that game.

6. Losing Dexter Strickland to injury for the rest of the season certainly hurts UNC's depth, especially at the point guard position where Strickland served as Marshall's backup. And while I'm not suggesting the injury has helped the Tar Heels, it has provided an opportunity for sophomore wing Reggie Bullock. Bullock should have been starting at the two spot the entire year. He's UNC's best perimeter defender and adds length to an already extremely long starting five.

7. Call me crazy, but, despite Carolina's failures against Florida State and now Duke, I still think this team has a chance to win the National Championship. They wouldn't be my pick right now, but I'm not writing them off, either.

8. Oh, and one more thing, we all know the popular narrative this season about the Tar Heels has been that they don't play defense. As recently as two weeks ago, in my midseason awards post, I made a crack about how much more awful UNC's defense would be without John Henson. Upon further examination, I'm not so sure I was being totally fair (or particularly accurate for that matter). I'm not saying the Heels are stalwarts on the defensive end, but an examination of the numbers reveals that this team actually plays pretty good defense. Statistical guru Ken Pomeroy currently has Carolina rated as the nation's 14th best defense. I should also note that the Heels' vaunted offense is rated 17th in the country according to Pomeroy's system. No ranking system is without its flaws, but I find Pomeroy's system to be both an accurate evaluator of a team's play and a reliable predictor of a team's success. I'm not suggesting that UNC is actually a great defensive team or that they put forth maximum effort on that side of the ball. In fact, I continue to believe that, given the Heels' personnel, they could be a much better defensive team. I'm simply saying that the narrative we've all come to believe concerning UNC's supposed ineptitude on the defensive end doesn't quite ring true.

Top 25

1. Ohio State 29-2
quality wins: @Florida, @Florida State, Minnesota, @Illinois, Purdue, @Minnesota, Michigan State, Illinois, Wisconsin
losses: @Wisconsin, @Purdue
previous rank: 1

2. Kansas 29-2
quality wins: Arizona(n), UCLA, Memphis(n), @Baylor, @Colorado, Kansas State, Missouri, Colorado, Texas A&M, @Missouri
losses: Texas, @Kansas State
previous rank: 2

3. Pittsburgh 27-4
quality wins: Maryland(n), Texas(n), Connecticut, Marquette, @Georgetown, Syracuse, Cincinnati, @West Virginia, @Villanova, West Virginia, Villanova
losses: Tennessee(n), Notre Dame, @St. John's, @Louisville
previous rank: 3

4. Notre Dame 25-5
quality wins: Georgia(n), Wisconsin(n), Gonzaga, Georgetown, Connecticut, St. John's, Cincinnati, Marquette, @Pittsburgh, Louisville, Villanova, @Connecticut
losses: Kentucky(n), @Syracuse, @Marquette, @St. John's, @West Virginia
previous rank: 8

5. Duke 27-4
quality wins: Marquette(n), Kansas State(n), Michigan State, Maryland, Boston College, @Maryland, North Carolina, Temple, Clemson
losses: @Florida State, @St. John's, @Virginia Tech, @North Carolina
previous rank: 4

6. San Diego State 29-2
quality wins: @Gonzaga, St. Mary's, Wichita State, UNLV, @UNLV
loss: @Brigham Young, Brigham Young
previous rank: 9

7. Texas 25-6
quality wins: Illinois(n), North Carolina(n), @Michigan State, Texas A&M, @Kansas, Missouri, @Texas A&M, Baylor, @Baylor
losses: Pittsburgh(n), @USC, Connecticut, @Nebraska, @Colorado, Kansas State
previous rank: 6

8. Purdue 25-6
quality wins: @Virginia Tech, Alabama, Michigan State, Minnesota, @Illiois, Wisconsin, Ohio State, @Michigan State, Illinois
losses: Richmond(n), @Minnesota, @West Virginia, @Ohio State, @Wisconsin, @Iowa
previous rank: 7

9. Brigham Young 28-3
quality wins: Utah State, St. Mary's(n), Arizona(n), @UNLV, San Diego State, UNLV, @San Diego State
losses: UCLA(n), @New Mexico, New Mexico
previous rank: 5

10. Syracuse 25-6
quality wins: Michigan State(n), Notre Dame, @St. John's, Cincinnati, @Connecticut, West Virginia, @Villanova, @Georgetown
losses: @Pittsburgh, Villanova, Seton Hall, @Marquette, Georgetown, @Louisville
previous rank: 12

11. North Carolina 24-6
quality wins: Kentucky, Virginia Tech, Clemson, @Boston College, Florida State, @Clemson, Boston College, Maryland, @Florida State, Duke
losses: Minnesota(n), Vanderbilt(n), @Illinois, Texas(n), @Georgia Tech, @Duke
previous rank: 16

12. Florida 24-6
quality wins: @Florida State, Kansas State(n), @Xavier, @Tennessee, @Georgia, Vanderbilt, Kentucky, Tennessee, Georgia, Alabama, @Vanderbilt
losses: Ohio State, Central Florida(n), Jacksonville, South Carolina, @Mississippi State, @Kentucky
previous rank: 14

13. Louisville 23-8
quality wins: UNLV, Marquette, St. John's, West Virginia, @Connecticut, Syracuse, Connecticut, Pittsburgh
losses: Drexel, Kentucky, @Villanova, @Providence, @Georgetown, @Notre Dame, @Cincinnati, @West Virginia
previous rank: 11

14. Wisconsin 23-7
quality wins: Boston College(n), @Marquette, Minnesota, Illinois, Purdue, Michigan State, Ohio State
losses: @UNLV, Notre Dame(n), @Illinois, @Michigan State, @Penn State, @Purdue, @Ohio State
previous rank: 10

15. Kentucky 22-8
quality wins: Washington(n), Notre Dame(n), @Louisville, Georgia, Tennessee, Florida, Vanderbilt, @Tennessee
losses: Connecticut(n), @North Carolina, @Georgia, @Alabama, @Mississippi, @Florida, @Vanderbilt, @Arkansas
previous rank: 20

16. Arizona 25-6
quality wins: @Washington State, UCLA, Washington State, Washington
losses: Kansas(n), Brigham Young(n), @Oregon State, @Washington, @USC, @UCLA
previous rank: 19

17. Connecticut 21-9
quality wins: Wichita State(n), Michigan State(n), Kentucky(n), @Texas, Villanova, Tennessee, @Marquette, Georgetown, @Cincinnati
losses: @Pittsburgh, @Notre Dame, Louisville, Syracuse, @St. John's, @Louisville, Marquette, @West Virginia, Notre Dame
previous rank: 13

18. Georgetown 21-9
quality wins: @Old Dominion, Missouri(n), Utah State, @Memphis, St. John's, @Villanova, Louisville, @Syracuse, Marquette
losses: @Temple, @Notre Dame, @St. John's, West Virginia, Pittsburgh, @Connecticut, Cincinnati, Syracuse, @Cincinnati
previous rank: 15

19. St. John's 20-10
quality wins: @West Virginia, Georgetown, Notre Dame, Duke, Connecticut, @Cincinnati, @Marquette, Pittsburgh, @Villanova
losses: @Saint Mary's, St. Bonaventure, @Fordham, @Notre Dame, Syracuse, @Louisville, Cincinnati, @Georgetown, @UCLA, @Seton Hall
previous rank: 17

20. Xavier 24-6
quality wins: Temple, @Richmond, @Georgia
losses: Old Dominion(n), @Miami-OH, @Gonzaga, Florida, @Cincinnati, @Charlotte
previous rank: 24

21. Cincinnati 24-7
quality wins: Xavier, @St. John's, Louisville, @Georgetown, @Marquette, Georgetown
losses: @Villanova, @Syracuse, @Notre Dame, West Virginia, @Pittsburgh, St. John's, Connecticut
previous rank: NR

22. Texas A&M 23-7
quality wins: Temple(n), Washington, Missouri, Kansas State, @Colorado
losses: Boston College(n), @Texas, @Nebraska, Texas, Baylor, @Baylor, @Kansas
previous rank: 23

23. Old Dominion 26-6
quality wins: Clemson(n), Xavier(n), Richmond, George Mason
losses: Georgetown, @Delaware, @Missouri, @Drexel, VCU, @George Mason
previous rank: NR

24. Missouri 22-9
quality wins: Vanderbilt, Illinois(n), Old Dominion, Kansas State, Colorado, Baylor
losses: Georgetown(n), @Colorado, @Texas A&M, @Texas, @Oklahoma State, @Kansas, @Kansas State, @Nebraska, Kansas
previous rank: 18

25. Vanderbilt 21-9
quality wins: North Carolina(n), Belmont, Marquette, Georgia, St. Mary's, Alabama, Kentucky, @Georgia
losses: West Virginia(n), @Missouri, @South Carolina, @Tennessee, Arkansas, @Florida, Tennessee, @Kentucky, Florida
previous rank: 22