NCAA All-Conference Awards

By Sean Kennedy (@PhillyFastBreak)

Drexel

Terrell Allen – CAA All-Rookie Team – One of the few brights spots for the Dragons, Allen finished the season with averages of 9.8 points, 3.5 assists, and 1.5 steals. The freshman really began to find his groove as the season went along. He averaged 13.5 points over his final 6 games, including hitting the game-winning bucket to help Drexel defeat Elon in the first round of the CAA conference tournament.

La Salle

No awards received. Sorry Jordan Price, you were snubbed.

Penn

Ivy League has yet to announce its awards.

Saint Joseph’s

DeAndre Bembry – A-10 Player of the Year, All-A-10 First Team, All-A-10 Defensive Team – Before he heads off to the NBA, Bembry is putting together quite the junior season on Hawk Hill. Really since he arrived at St. Joe’s, Bembry has been responsible for carrying every facet of the game for his team, whether it’s scoring or rebounding (2nd in both this season behind Isaiah Miles), distributing (team-leading 4.5 apg), or locking down the team’s top opposing perimeter player (team-leading 1.5 spg). The only knock on his resume has been his outside shooting, which is down below 30% for the first time in his career (26.8%). But he coupled that with his best FG% in three years (47.2%), and in light of everything he does for the Hawks, is a well-deserved conference player of the year.

Isaiah Miles – A-10 Most Improved Player, All-A-10 Second Team – Miles certainly has a worthy case for the Most Improved Player award, scoring more points in his senior season than is previous three years combined. Miles was the leading scorer (18.0 ppg) and rebounder (8.1) for the Hawks this year, and shot lights out at 52.8% from the field and 38.5% from three. His emergence is the reason St. Joe’s has made the jump from middle of the pack in the A-10 to NCAA tournament-caliber team this season.

Lamarr Kimble – All-A-10 Rookie Team – Kimble played all 31 games for the Hawks, averaging 5.9 ppg and shooting 35.7% from three. He has done more the last few weeks of the season, scoring in double digits 4 of his final 6 games, including a 13-point, 5-assist performance in the win over Dayton.

Temple

Quenton DeCosey – All-AAC First Team – The senior led the Owls and was 4th in the conference in scoring at 15.7 ppg, shooting 38.8% from behind the arc. DeCosey also was second on the team in rebounding (5.9 ppg) behind Jaylen Bond. DeCosey has continued to improve as his college career as gone along, as this season he had career-best figures across the board (FG%, 3P%, FT%, points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocks). He also showed off his late game chops with a game-winning jumper against UCF.

Villanova

Josh Hart – All-Big East First Team – Terrific junior season for Hart, who went from a valuable glue guy to the Wildcats’ leading scorer (15.3 ppg) and one of the top shooting guards in the nation. Hart finished second on the team in rebounding (7.2 rpg), and while his three-point shooting (34.6%) took a step back from his torrid sophomore season, the fact that he still shot over 50% from the field as the team’s primary option was very impressive.

Ryan Arcidiacono – All-Big East Second Team – The team’s steady senior leader guided the Villanova offense effectively yet again. His 4.5 assists against 1.6 turnovers per game were good for top-40 in the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio. Arcidiacono also shot over 40% from the field for the first time in his career, and continued to have the knack of coming up with big plays in the clutch, like in the team’s 1-point road win over Seton Hall.

Daniel Ochefu – All-Big East Honorable Mention – The team’s leading rebounder and shot blocker continued his excellence in those areas, but the evolution of his offensive game the last two seasons has also been a huge boon for the Wildcats. The senior finished over 10 ppg for the first time in his career (10.3 ppg to be precise) and shot slightly under 70% from the foul line for the second straight season, after being around 50% his first two years on the Main Line.

Jalen Brunson – All-Big East Freshman Team – The McDonald’s All-American stepped into the starting lineup right away as a freshman and did not disappoint, averaging 10.5 points and 2.8 assists per game. Brunson fit in seamlessly as part of the Wildcat’s efficient offensive machine, shooting 45.1% from the field and 36.3% from three. I’m excited to see what he can do with an even larger role next season.