Big 12 basketball: Postseason awards shows that Kansas still owns the conference
By Phil Poling
The Big 12 announced their regular season award winners on Sunday and there weren’t many surprises.
Kansas’ Devonte’ Graham was named Big 12 Player of the Year, marking the second-consecutive season a Jayhawk won the award and the 9th overall. He’s averaging 17.6 points and 7.2 assists for Kansas.
West Virginia’s Jevon Carter was named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year for the second time in as many seasons. He’s West Virginia’s all-time leader in steals and currently ranks second all-time in the Big 12 record books with 306.
Coach of the Year was awarded to Kansas’ Bill Self and Texas Tech’s Chris Beard, the first time since 2011 the award was shared. Self has won the award six times, while it was Beard’s first in the Big 12; he was named the Sun Belt Coach of the Year last season after leading Arkansas-Little Rock to a 30-5 record.
Another Jayhawk was honored when Malik Newman was announced the Big 12’s Newcomer of the Year. He’s averaging 12 points and 4.9 rebounds his first season in Lawrence.
More from Busting Brackets
- NCAA Basketball Recruiting: Analyzing top 5 teams for top-100 SG Larry Johnson
- Oregon Basketball: Projected starting lineup and depth chart for 2023-24
- Big East Basketball: Ranking all head coaches going into 2023-24 season
- Florida State Basketball: Is Seminoles roster good enough to win in 2023-24?
- SEC Basketball: 10 potential additions for the league if they ever expanded
Baylor senior Terry Maston earned Sixth Man of the Year honors after averaging 10.8 points and 5.6 rebounds off the bench for head coach Scott Drew.
Oklahoma’s Trae Young, the nation’s leading scorer and assist man, was named Big 12 Freshman of the Year. He’s averaging 27.5 points and 8.9 assists per game.
The All-Big 12 First Team is composed of Graham, Carter, Young, Kansas State’s Dean Wade and Texas Tech’s Keenan Evans. Wade is averaging a career-high 16.7 points and 6.4 rebounds per game; Evans is averaging 17.4 points per game.
Big 12 coaches vote for the awards, but aren’t allowed voting for their own players. This system displays just how much respect some players garner compared to others.
Next: Bracketology a week before Selection Sunday
The Phillips 66 Big 12 Tournament starts on Wednesday when No. 8 Oklahoma State and No. 9 Oklahoma square off at 6 p.m. No. 7 Texas and No. 10 Iowa State are scheduled to play after the first game concludes. You can see the full tournament schedule here.