Busting Brackets
Fansided

Big Ten Basketball: Takeaways from 2019-20 all-conference selections

By Anthony Brown

WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 12: Big Ten logo on the floor before the Big Ten Men's Basketball Final against the Wisconsin Badgers and Michigan Wolverines at the Verizon Center on March 12, 2017 in Washington, DC. The Wolverines won 71-56. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) *** Local Caption ***
WASHINGTON, DC - MARCH 12: Big Ten logo on the floor before the Big Ten Men's Basketball Final against the Wisconsin Badgers and Michigan Wolverines at the Verizon Center on March 12, 2017 in Washington, DC. The Wolverines won 71-56. (Photo by Mitchell Layton/Getty Images) *** Local Caption *** /
facebooktwitterreddit
Prev
2 of 4
Next
ANN ARBOR, MI – DECEMBER 6: Luka Garza #55 of the Iowa Hawkeyes and Austin Davis #51 of the Michigan Wolverines (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images)
ANN ARBOR, MI – DECEMBER 6: Luka Garza #55 of the Iowa Hawkeyes and Austin Davis #51 of the Michigan Wolverines (Photo by Leon Halip/Getty Images) /

Luka Garza, Greg Gard, Xavier Tillman headline individual award winners

Big Ten Player of the Year: Luka Garza, Junior, Iowa Hawkeyes

Luka Garza deserved to be Big Ten Player of the Year for his stellar season anchoring Iowa’s frontcourt. The unanimous All-Big Ten First Team selection averaged a conference-best 23.9 points per game, 9.8 rebounds and about two blocks per game. He scored 44 points in a loss at Michigan in December and was held under double figures one time this season. With Jordan Bohannon, Patrick McCaffery and Jack Nunge out for the year, Garza had to be Mr. Do everything for the Iowa Hawkeyes. He was up for the challenge and led by example.

Big Ten Coach of the Year: Greg Gard, Head Coach, Wisconsin Badgers

Greg Gard won the Big Ten Coach of the Year under some tough circumstances on and off the court. Kobe King, the Badgers’ second-leading scorer left the program. The team was 13-10 (6-6 Big Ten)  looking towards the final two months of the season and they went on to win eight straight, a share of the Big Ten regular-season title and the number one seed in the Big Ten Tournament.

They rallied around one another and kept their assistant coach and his family with them. Wisconsin Badgers assistant coach Howard Moore, his wife, and two children were involved in a multi-vehicle car crash that claimed the lives of his wife, Jennifer Moore and their child Jaidyn Moore according to the Chicago Tribune’s Jim Folzin. The slogan “Lead more. Do more. For Moore,” was adopted by the team to signify the four family members affected by the tragedy Gard said on The B1G Show Monday.

Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year: Xavier Tillman Sr., Junior, Michigan State Spartans

Michigan State standout Xavier Tillman Sr. won Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year for his efforts on that end of the court this season. He averaged 13.7 ppg, 10.3 rpg and 2.1 blocks per game during the regular season and gave props to his fellow big men Garza and Jalen Smith for the way that they play the game. He also mentioned that Coach Izzo believes that if you have a 30 point game, but you give up 15 or 20 points to your matchup, then your individual performance was bad. That makes a lot of sense. Tillman had a great defensive game against Garza shutting him down in the second half en route to a 78-70 win.

Big Ten Freshman of the Year: Kofi Cockburn, Freshman, Illinois Fighting Illini

Kofi Cockburn was a force on both ends of the floor for the Fighting Illini. The Jamaican-born seven-footer averaged 13.3 ppg and 8.8 rpg in the regular season. He had five 20-point games and 12 double-doubles. He was very effective for the Illini and just wait until next season and the year after that if he stays. He keeps this up, his player development is going to increase rapidly.

Big Ten Sixth Man of the Year: Aaron Wiggins, Sophomore, Maryland Terrapins

Aaron Wiggins was the X-factor for the Maryland Terrapins this season. If he wasn’t knocking down three-point jumpers, he blocked shots or took the ball to the basket for a highlight-reel slam. His improvement from year one to year two was evident. The Maryland Terrapins are a much better team when he plays well. He averaged 10.4 ppg and 4.9 rpg this season. His three-point percentage dropped from 41 percent to 31 percent this year, but he still produced at a high level. This honor is well deserved.

Home/Big Ten