2014-15 Conference Honors & Awards

All-AAC

Nic Moore, Southern Methodist [jr]

Ryan Boatright, Connecticut [sr]

Will Cummings, Temple [sr]

Shaquille Harrison, Tulsa [jr]

Austin Nichols, Memphis [soph]

Player of the Year: Nic Moore, Southern Methodist

Top Defender: Austin Nichols, Memphis

Best Freshman: Daniel Hamilton, Connecticut

Coach of the Year: Larry Brown, Southern Methodist

All-ACC

Jerian Grant, Notre Dame [sr]

Terry Rozier, Louisville [soph]

Montrezl Harrell, Louisville [jr]

Rakeem Christmas, Syracuse [sr]

Jahlil Okafor, Duke [fr]

Player of the Year: Jahlil Okafor, Duke

Top Defender: Darion Atkins, Virginia

Best Freshman: Jahlil Okafor, Duke

Coach of the Year: Tony Bennett, Virginia

All-Big East

Kris Dunn, Providence [soph]

D'Angelo Harrison, St. John's [sr]

Darrun Hilliard, Villanova [sr]

LaDontae Henton, Providence [sr]

Sir'Dominic Pointer, St. John's [sr]

Player of the Year: Kris Dunn, Providence

Top Defender: Sir'Dominic Pointer, St. John's

Best Freshman: Angel Delgado, Seton Hall

Coach of the Year: Jay Wright, Villanova

All-Big Ten

Melo Trimble, Maryland [fr]

D'Angelo Russell, Ohio State [fr]

Sam Dekker, Wisconsin [jr]

Aaron White, Iowa [sr]

Frank Kaminsky, Wisconsin [sr]

Player of the Year: Frank Kaminsky, Wisconsin

Top Defender: A.J. Hammons, Purdue

Best Freshman: D'Angelo Russell, Ohio State

Coach of the Year: Mark Turgeon, Maryland

All-Big 12

Juwan Staten, West Virginia [sr]

Buddy Hield, Oklahoma [jr]

Georges Niang, Iowa State [jr]

Perry Ellis, Kansas [jr]

Rico Gathers, Baylor [jr]

Player of the Year: Buddy Hield, Oklahoma

Top Defender: Anthony Hickey, Oklahoma State

Best Freshman: Myles Turner, Texas

Coach of the Year: Lon Kruger, Oklahoma

All-Pac-12

T.J. McConnell, Arizona [sr]

Joseph Young, Oregon [sr]

Tyrone Wallace, California [jr]

Gary Payton, Oregon State [jr]

Delon Wright, Utah [sr]

Player of the Year: Delon Wright, Utah

Top Defender: Gary Payton, Oregon State

Best Freshman: Stanley Johnson, Arizona

Coach of the Year: Larry Krystkowiak, Utah

All-SEC

Michael Qualls, Arkansas [jr]

Bobby Portis, Arkansas [soph]

Jordan Mickey, LSU [soph]

Karl-Anthony Towns, Kentucky [fr]

Willie Cauley-Stein, Kentucky [jr]

Player of the Year: Karl-Anthony Towns, Kentucky

Top Defender: Willie Cauley-Stein, Kentucky

Best Freshman: Karl-Anthony Towns, Kentucky

Coach of the Year: John Calipari, Kentucky

2013-14 Preseason Conference Projections

AAC

1. Louisville

2. Connecticut

3. Memphis

4. Cincinnati

5. Temple

6. Houston

7. SMU

8. South Florida

9. Rutgers

10. Central Florida

All-AAC
Shabazz Napier, Connecticut [sr]
Russ Smith, Louisville [sr]
Sean Kilpatrick, Cincinnati [sr]
DeAndre Daniels, Connecticut [jr]
Montrezl Harrell, Louisville [soph]

Awards
Player of the Year: Russ Smith, Louisville
Top Defender: Russ Smith, Louisville
Best Freshman: Keith Frazier, SMU

ACC
1. Duke
2. Syracuse
3. Notre Dame
4. North Carolina
5. Virginia
6. Pittsburgh
7. Maryland
8. Georgia Tech
9. Boston College
10. Florida State
11. North Carolina State
12. Wake Forest
13. Miami
14. Clemson
15. Virginia Tech

All-ACC
Olivier Hanlan, Boston College [soph]
Joe Harris, Virginia [sr]
PJ Hairston, North Carolina [jr]
CJ Fair, Syracuse [sr]
James Michael McAdoo, North Carolina [jr]

Awards
Player of the Year: CJ Fair, Syracuse
Top Defender: Okaro White, Florida State
Best Freshman: Jabari Parker, Duke

Big East
1. Georgetown
2. Creighton
3. Marquette
4. St. John's
5. Villanova
6. Providence
7. Xavier
8. Seton Hall
9. DePaul
10. Butler

All-Big East
Bryce Cotton, Providence [sr]
D'Angelo Harrison, St. John's [jr]
JaKarr Sampson, St. John's [soph]
Doug McDermott, Creighton [sr]
Davante Gardner, Marquette [sr]

Awards
Player of the Year: Doug McDermott, Creighton
Top Defender: Chris Obekpa, St. John's
Best Freshman: JaJuan Johnson, Marquette

Big Ten
1. Michigan State
2. Ohio State
3. Michigan
4. Wisconsin
5. Iowa
6. Indiana
7. Minnesota
8. Purdue
9. Illinois
10. Penn State
11. Northwestern
12. Nebraska

All-Big Ten
Aaron Craft, Ohio State [sr]
Gary Harris, Michigan State [soph]
Glenn Robinson, Michigan [soph]
Mitch McGary, Michigan [soph]
AJ Hammons, Purdue [soph]

Awards
Player of the Year: Glenn Robinson, Michigan
Top Defender: Aaron Craft, Ohio State
Best Freshman: Noah Vonleh, Indiana

Big 12
1. Kansas
2. Oklahoma State
3. Baylor
4. Iowa State
5. Kansas State
6. Oklahoma
7. West Virginia
8. Texas
9. Texas Tech
10. TCU

All-Big 12
Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State [soph]
Markel Brown, Oklahoma State [sr]
Le'Bryan Nash, Oklahoma State [jr]
Cory Jefferson, Baylor [sr]
Isaiah Austin, Baylor [soph]

Awards
Player of the Year: Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State
Top Defender: Michael Cobbins, Oklahoma State
Best Freshman: Andrew Wiggins, Kansas

Pac-12
1. Arizona
2. UCLA
3. Colorado
4. Stanford
5. Oregon
6. California
7. Washington
8. Arizona State
9. USC
10. Oregon State
11. Utah
12. Washington State

All-Pac-12
Jahii Carson, Arizona State [soph]
Justin Cobbs, California [sr]
Spencer Dinwiddie, Colorado [jr]
CJ Wilcox, Washington [sr]
Dwight Powell, Stanford [sr]

Awards
Player of the Year: Jahii Carson, Arizona State
Top Defender: Josh Huestis, Stanford
Best Freshman: Aaron Gordon, Arizona

SEC
1. Kentucky
2. Florida
3. Tennessee
4. Alabama
5. LSU
6. Arkansas
7. Missouri
8. Vanderbilt
9. Mississippi
10. Georgia
11. Texas A&M
12. South Carolina
13. Auburn
14. Mississippi State

All-SEC
Trevor Releford, Alabama [sr]
Marshall Henderson, Mississippi [sr]
Jordan McRae, Tennessee [sr]
Jabari Brown, Missouri [jr]
Willie Cauley-Stein, Kentucky [soph]

Awards
Player of the Year: Willie Cauley-Stein, Kentucky
Top Defender: Willie Cauley-Stein, Kentucky
Best Freshman: Julius Randle, Kentucky

2013-14 Preseason All-Americans and Award Predictions

First Team
Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State [soph]
Russ Smith, Louisville [sr]
Glenn Robinson, Michigan [soph]
CJ Fair, Syracuse [sr]
Doug McDermott, Creighton [sr]

Second Team
Shabazz Napier, Connecticut [sr]
Kendall Williams, New Mexico [sr]
Gary Harris, Michigan State [soph]
Joe Harris, Virginia [sr]
Willie Cauley-Stein, Kentucky [soph]

All-Defense
Aaron Craft, Ohio State [sr]
Briante Weber, VCU [jr]
Russ Smith, Louisville [sr]
Fuquan Edwin, Seton Hall [sr]
Chris Obekpa, St. John's [soph]

All-Freshman
Wayne Selden, Kansas
Andrew Wiggins, Kansas
Jabari Parker, Duke
Aaron Gordon, Arizona
Julius Randle, Kentucky

Player of the Year: Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State

Top Defender: Aaron Craft, Ohio State

Best Freshman: Jabari Parker, Duke

2012-13 NCAA Honors & Awards

First Team All-American

Trey Burke, Michigan
Victor Oladipo, Indiana
Otto Porter, Georgetown
Doug McDermott, Creighton
Kelly Olynyk, Gonzaga

Second Team All-American

Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State
Russ Smith, Louisville
Ben McLemore, Kansas

Cody Zeller, Indiana

Jeff Withey, Kansas

All-Defensive Team

Aaron Craft, Ohio State

Victor Oladipo, Indiana

Nerlens Noel, Kentucky
Gorgui Dieng, Louisville
Jeff Withey, Kansas

All-Freshman Team

Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State

Ben McLemore, Kansas
Shabazz Muhammad, UCLA
Anthony Bennett, UNLV
Nerlens Noel, Kentucky

Player of the Year: Trey Burke, Michigan

Top Defender: Jeff Withey, Kansas

Best Freshman: Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State

Coach of the Year: Jim Larranaga, Miami

*And that wraps up the 2012-13 season.  2013-14 Preseason Top 25 is on its way.

Starting Five: Non-Conference Review Edition

1. Oklahoma State's Marcus Smart exploded out of the blocks but has since cooled off a bit.  He's still playing excellent basketball - putting up 12 points, 6 rebounds, and 5 assists per game.  In the meantime, UNLV's Anthony Bennett has caught and passed Smart in the race to be crowned the nation's best freshman.  Bennett is doing his best Larry Johnson impression in Vegas (averaging 19.2 points and 8.8 boards per contest) and is the main reason the Rebels have been able to withstand Mike Moser's recent absence due to injury.  Kansas' Ben McLemore also has passed up Smart but trails Bennett for now.

2. In the National Player of the Year race, Doug McDermott gets my vote through the first third of the season.  An argument can certainly be made for Duke's Mason Plumlee, but I would argue that the Blue Devils' big man is surrounded by far more talent than the Bluejays' forward and is asked to do less.  McDermott's numbers are impressive (23.5 points and 7.0 rebounds per game), but his headiness and ability to lift his teammates' level of play have been even more important.  McDermott has been pretty flawless thus far, but there's still plenty of basketball to be played.  

3. The Defensive Player of the Year race is more of a landslide at this point, as Jeff Withey shot-blocking has the Jayhawks looking like a contender.  Withey is currently second in the country (after freshman Chris Obekpa of St. John's) at 4.9 blocks per game, but that really doesn't account for all of the shots he's altering.  Shout out to LSU's Anthony Hickey for leading the nation in steals per game.

4. At this point in the season, my All-American ballot would look like this - Trey Burke (Michigan), Isaiah Canaan (Murray State), Russ Smith (Louisville), Doug McDermott (Creighton), and Mason Plumlee (Duke).  My second team is as follows: C.J. McCollum (Lehigh), Nate Wolters (South Dakota State), Brandon Paul (Illinois), Tony Bennett, (UNLV), Jeff Withey (Kansas).  All of these guys were on my radar to start the season, but I wouldn't have believed it if you had told me before the season started that the Plumlee the Middle or Russdiculous would be in the running for All-American honors.

5. RBP's preseason Final Four was Louisville, Indiana, Syracuse, and Kentucky with the Cardinals winning a National Championship.  At this point, RBP's revised Final Four is as follows - Louisville, Indiana, Michigan, and Florida.  We're sticking with Rick Pitino's squad, though our faith had wavered a bit in Gorgui Dieng's absence and in light of Indiana's improved defense.  However, with Dieng's return and the Hoosiers' tendency to play to the level of their competition, we're sticking with our original pick at this early juncture.

Top 25

*previous rank in parentheses

1. Louisville 3-0 (1)

2. Indiana 3-0 (2)

3. Syracuse 2-0 (3)

4. Michigan 3-0 (7)

5. Ohio State 3-0 (5)

6. Duke 3-0 (11)

7. Florida 3-0 (9)

8. Kentucky 2-1 (4)

9. Michigan State 2-1 (12)

10. Kansas 2-1 (6)

11. Cincinnati 3-0 (15)

12. North Carolina 3-0 (14)

13. Oklahoma State 4-0 (NR)

14. North Carolina State 3-1 (8)

15. UNLV 2-0 (21)

16. Missouri 3-0 (19)

17. Creighton 3-0 (18)

18. San Diego State 2-1 (10)

19. Gonzaga 3-0 (NR)

20. Memphis 2-0 (17)

21. Arizona 2-0 (20)
22. Minnesota 4-0 (NR)

23. Wisconsin 2-1 (16)

24. UCLA 3-0 (24)

25. Colorado 4-0 (NR)

IN: Oklahoma State, Gonzaga, Minnesota, Colorado

OUT: Notre Dame, Florida State, Lehigh, New Mexico

CBB Uniforms (1988-89 to Present): 11 Seeds

We are moving along with RBP's ranking of the top 64 uniforms from the 1988-89 season to the present. For more on that process, read the introduction to the original post. Now for the 11 seeds:

44) Syracuse (Lawrence Moten):And this ranking doesn't even factor in Moten's signature knee-highs.



43) Washington (Brandon Roy): The unfortunate gold alternates keep the Huskies from being ranked higher.





42) Alabama (Kennedy Winston): Cursive "A" and horizontal striping on the shorts offset an otherwise average jersey.



41) Oklahoma State (James Anderson):Oklahoma State still sports its second and final entry in the Field of 64 - a design that features subtle stitching down the sides of both the jersey and shorts.

CBB Uniforms (1988-89 to Present): 14 Seeds

We now continue with RBP's ranking of the top 64 uniforms from the 1988-89 season to the present. For more on that process, read the introduction to the original post. The 14 seeds are:

56) Oklahoma State (Tony Allen): I prefer "OSU" on the black version to "STATE" on the white version.





55) Baylor (Curtis Jerrells): Big fan of the bold colors, but these unis are too busy to be rated higher.





54) Georgetown (Greg Monroe):Note the kente-cloth trim, which was a much more prominent feature during the Allen Iverson era.





53) Arizona State (James Harden):The tights are not part of the uniform.