The first 16-team, 20-game Big 12 men’s basketball conference slate wrapped up on Saturday night and now the Big 12 Tournament awaits in Kansas City.
But, before we get there, it’s time for the Heartland College Sports Big 12 Conference superlative awards. It’s never been harder to pick the players for the league’s top awards. The conference’s awards will come out soon and I’m sure there will be some differences of opinion. Same goes with Big 12 fans.
Later, we’ll release our first team, second team, third team and other awards for the campaign.
Let’s dig in.
Player of the Year: JT Toppin, Texas Tech
There are 10 players I could choose for this award. With the influx of new teams and new talent, I’m not sure this decision has been harder in the eight seasons I’ve covered this league for Heartland. In the last week of the season, I zeroed in on two players that I felt were most deserving — Toppin and Houston guard LJ Cryer.
My guess is the coaches are going to choose Cryer, and I wouldn’t have an issue with that. He’s had a terrific season — 15.3 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game. He’s one of the best 3-point shooters in the country at 43.1,% and there have been a few games in conference play where he has legitimately carried the Cougars. He’s not the one-dimensional jump-shooter he was early in his career at Baylor. He’s a player in full.
Toppin has been incredible as well. The first-year Red Raider (he spent his freshman season at New Mexico) averaged 18.1 points, 9.3 rebounds, 1.1 assists and 1.2 blocks per game. Offensively, he’s a runaway train, a get-out-of-his-way type of player. Defensively, he’s emerged as a solid player, and with coach Grant McCasland and his staff, he’s only going to get better there.
This was incredibly close. Like, bank-my-head-against-a-wall close because I love what both players bring to the floor. But I felt Toppin had a slightly better season.
Freshman of the Year: VJ Edgecome, Baylor
He was one of the most hyped recruits in this recruiting class, and if we’re being honest, he didn’t disappoint. In what will probably be his only season with the Bears, the guard averaged 15.0 points, 5.4 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 2.1 steals per game.
Baylor took on a lot of water in terms of losing personnel to injury, and as it did, Edgecombe stepped up and assumed more of the load. He also learned that he could impact things when the scoring isn’t here. Against Oklahoma State on March 1, he only had eight points. But he also had 10 rebounds, three steals and an assist.
There were some incredibly talented freshmen in the Big 12, including his teammate, Robert Wright III, BYU’s Egor Demin, and Texas Tech’s Christian Anderson. But Edgecombe was a cut above.
Newcomer of the Year: Joshua Jefferson, Iowa State
I think we’ve always defined this award as newcomer to the conference, so that eliminates two potential candidates in Houston’s Milos Uzan and West Virginia’s Javon Small, as both played at Big 12 schools last season but were newcomers to their program.
Toppin is a candidate here and will probably win this award from the coaches. But I don’t like doubling up. Since Toppin was my POY, I’m taking Jefferson as my newcomer.
I made a list. There were 13 players I could have legitimately considered here, including Baylor’s Norchad Omier and UCF’s Keyshawn Hall, the latter of which had some insane games for an underachieving Knights team.
Jefferson is, quite possibly, the best interior offensive player Iowa State has had since I started covering the league. The junior forward averaged 12.7 points, 7.5 rebounds, 2.9 assists and 2.1 steals per game. He fit right into what ISU likes to do on both ends of the floor, and the Cyclones are not the team they are now without him.
Coach of the Year: Kevin Young, BYU
Talk about banging your head against a wall. The coaching bench in this league is deep. Houston’s Kelvin Sampson, Texas Tech’s Grant McCasland, Iowa State’s T.J. Otzelberger, and Arizona’s Tommy Lloyd are all deserving.
But here’s why I’m picking Young.
His arrival allowed the Cougars to retain two players who were in the transfer portal and have been key this season in guards Richie Saunders and Trevin Knell. It also helped BYU land recruit Egor Demin, who could have gone into the NBA Draft.
He had to install a new offensive system with mostly holdover players, one with NBA principles. It took time. Then, in mid-January, at the program’s lowest moment, everything kicked in.
Back on Saturday, Jan. 18, the Cougars lost to Utah in overtime, 73-72. At that time, ESPN had BYU out of the NCAA Tournament field. BYU was 2-4 in league play.
Entering the Big 12 Tournament, the Cougars have won 12 of their last 14 and are now considered a No. 7 seed by ESPN. Plus, BYU played its way into a Big 12 Tournament double-bye.
This was the best in-season turnaround in the conference. It’s hard to do when you have this many incredible teams, and it’s even harder with a 20-game schedule. Young deserves a tip of the cap.
By the way, I think the coaches will pick either Sampson or McCasland, and there is nothing wrong with either selection.
Defensive Player of the Year: Tamin Lipsey, Iowa State
I’m interested to see who the coaches select because the best defender in the league isn’t always obvious. And, defensively, you won’t win games with just one player. It requires five players completely connected for 40 minutes, 30 or so games a season.
Lipsey is probably the best individual perimeter defender in the league. He accepts every tough defensive assignment and finished the season with more than two steals per game. I’ll admit — this is more of an eye test than anything else. The top individual defensive player in any conference can be hard to quantify. And, in a league that truly values it, there is no shortage of great defenders.
But, if we’re looking at analytics, EvanMiya.com does individual defensive analytics. The best player in the country in their defensive Bayesian performance rating is … Houston forward Joseph Tugler.
Sixth Man of the Year: Curtis Jones, Iowa State
By far the easiest decision. No player in the Big 12 came close to giving to Iowa State what Jones did off the bench. One could even make the case he was the league’s best player.
Even as he played most of his games off the bench, the senior guard averaged 17.0 points, 4.5 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.2 steals per game. He finished fifth in the conference in scoring.
If you’re old school like me, the name that comes immediately to mind is Vinnie “The Microwave” Johnson, the esteemed sixth man of the “Bad Boys” Detroit Pistons. Once he hit the floor, shots started to fall.
You can find Matthew Postins on Twitter @PostinsPostcard.
