WCC Awards

[Angelo Roncalli]

SAN BRUNO, Calif. – Senior guard Eric McClellan was named the West Coast Conference Defensive Player of the Year, while Kyle Wiltjer and Domantas Sabonis were each named All-WCC First Team, league officials announced on Tuesday.

McCllelan becomes the Zags’ second straight league defensive player of the year and the sixth in Gonzaga’s history. Wiltjer earned First Team honors for the second straight season, while Sabonis moved up to the First Team after being named to the Second Team last year. Redshirt freshman Josh Perkins was also named to the WCC All-Freshman team, marking GU’s seventh time in the last nine seasons to have a player named to the team.

McClellan has been a disruptive force on the defensive end for Gonzaga, often drawing the toughest defensive assignments on the perimeter. He notched 26 steals this season and chipped in with seven blocks from his guard position. He also added 9.6 points and 3.2 rebounds per game for the Zags.

Sabonis is having a huge season, ranking second on the team at 17.2 points per game and leading the league with 11.9 rebounds per game and 19 double-doubles. He’s second in the league with a .602 field goal percentage. Sabonis has scored in double figures 23 times and had 20-plus in 10 of those contests.

Wiltjer is the league’s leading scorer at 20.8 points per game and has notched double figures in all but three games. He’s had 18 games with at least 20 points and at least 30 in five of those. He’s also made a team high 73 three pointers and is second on the team at 6.4 rebounds per game.

Gonzaga heads to the WCC Tournament in Las Vegas this weekend, taking on Portland in the quarterfinals on Saturday night at 9 p.m. The game will be televised on ESPN2.

[Angelo Roncalli]

SAN BRUNO, Calif. – BYU senior All-American Kyle Collinsworth set the NCAA all-time record for most triple-doubles (11) and captured West Coast Conference Player of the Year honors after a record-setting career in Provo. Saint Mary’s Randy Bennett collected Coach of the Year accolades for the third time, while junior guard Joe Rahon was named Newcomer of the Year in his first season with the Gaels. Gonzaga’s Eric McClellan earned Defensive Player of the Year honors as announced Tuesday by the league office.

All four individual awards – along with the All-West Coast Conference Teams and the All-Freshman Team – were voted on by the league’s 10 head coaches.

Collinsworth becomes the second Cougar in three seasons to earn selection as WCC Player of the Year following in the footsteps of former teammate, All-American guard Tyler Haws (2014). A national finalist for the Cousy Award, Collinsworth averaged 15.6 points, 8.2 rebounds, 7.6 assists and 2.0 steals per game. BYU’s all-time leader in both assists (660) and rebounds (1,001), Collinsworth ranks first (6) and second (5) on the NCAA single-season triple-double chart.

McClellan is the sixth Gonzaga student-athlete to capture Defensive Player of the Year since the award made its debut in the 1998-99 season and the second straight joining former teammate Gary Bell Jr. (2015). McClellan keys a stingy defensive unit, limiting league foes to just 39.5% from the field and the stingiest 3-point defense in the country – 28.5%. A physical defender, typically tasked with guarding the opposition’s top offensive perimeter player, McClellan adds 10.5 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game.

Rahon is the fifth Gael student-athlete named Newcomer of the Year and the first since current San Antonio Spur Patrick Mills collected the hardware in 2007-08. In his first season at Saint Mary’s, Rahon ranks 11th nationally in assist/turnover ratio (3.59), 25th in total assists (165) and 27th in assists per game (5.9). During league play, Rahon averages 10.0 points, 4.2 rebounds to go along with 5.3 assists and 1.3 steals.

Bennett collects his third WCC Coach of the Year honors after being selected by his peers in both in 2008 and 2011. This season, Bennett replaced his entire starting lineup and Saint Mary’s didn’t miss a beat posting one of the most efficient seasons in league history, ranking in the top-10 nationally in multiple categories including field goal percentage (first) and assist/turnover ratio. Bennett directed the Gaels to its third WCC Regular Season title in six seasons despite being picked to finish fourth in the preseason coaches poll.

Of the 10-member All-WCC First Team, six appeared on the 2015-16 preseason All-WCC squad. Pepperdine’s Stacy Davis earned his third straight first team berth, while Santa Clara’s Jared Brownridge, BYU’s Collinsworth and Gonzaga’s Kyle Wiltjer each appear on the first team for the second consecutive season.

This marks the second straight season the WCC will honor a five-member second team after a 30-year hiatus. The first team expanded to 10 members in 1980-81.

With the conclusion of the regular season, WCC teams head to Las Vegas to compete for the 2016 West Coast Conference Basketball Championship and subsequent automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Tournament action tips off Friday, March 4 at the Orleans Arena.

2015-16 West Coast Conference Major Awards
Player of the Year: Kyle Collinsworth, BYU
Coach of the Year: Randy Bennett, Saint Mary’s
Defensive Player of the Year: Eric McClellan, Gonzaga
Newcomer of the Year: Joe Rahon, Saint Mary’s

2015-16 All-WCC Men’s Basketball First Team

Jared Brownridge
Kyle Collinsworth
Stacy Davis
Chase Fischer
Emmett Naar
Joe Rahon
Domantas Sabonis
Devin Watson
Kyle Wiltjer
Alec Wintering

2015-16 All-WCC Men’s Basketball Second Team

Tim Derksen
Nick Emery
Adom Jacko
Lamond Murray Jr.
Bryce Pressley

2015-16 WCC Men’s Basketball Honorable Mention Selections
Brandon Brown, Loyola Marymount; Alec Kobre, Pacific; Jett Raines, Pepperdine; T.J. Wallace, Pacific

2015-16 All-WCC Men’s Basketball Freshman Team

Kameron Edwards
Nick Emery
KJ Feagin
Evan Fitzner
Josh Perkins

[RenoZag]

Congratulations to Eric, Kyle, Domantas, and Josh

[Hoopaholic]

SAN BRUNO, Calif. – BYU senior All-American Kyle Collinsworth set the NCAA all-time record for most triple-doubles (11) and captured West Coast Conference Player of the Year honors after a record-setting career in Provo. Saint Mary’s Randy Bennett collected Coach of the Year accolades for the third time, while junior guard Joe Rahon was named Newcomer of the Year in his first season with the Gaels. Gonzaga’s Eric McClellan earned Defensive Player of the Year honors as announced Tuesday by the league office.

All four individual awards – along with the All-West Coast Conference Teams and the All-Freshman Team – were voted on by the league’s 10 head coaches.

Collinsworth becomes the second Cougar in three seasons to earn selection as WCC Player of the Year following in the footsteps of former teammate, All-American guard Tyler Haws (2014). A national finalist for the Cousy Award, Collinsworth averaged 15.6 points, 8.2 rebounds, 7.6 assists and 2.0 steals per game. BYU’s all-time leader in both assists (660) and rebounds (1,001), Collinsworth ranks first (6) and second (5) on the NCAA single-season triple-double chart.

McClellan is the sixth Gonzaga student-athlete to capture Defensive Player of the Year since the award made its debut in the 1998-99 season and the second straight joining former teammate Gary Bell Jr. (2015). McClellan keys a stingy defensive unit, limiting league foes to just 39.5% from the field and the stingiest 3-point defense in the country – 28.5%. A physical defender, typically tasked with guarding the opposition’s top offensive perimeter player, McClellan adds 10.5 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.2 assists per game.

Rahon is the fifth Gael student-athlete named Newcomer of the Year and the first since current San Antonio Spur Patrick Mills collected the hardware in 2007-08. In his first season at Saint Mary’s, Rahon ranks 11th nationally in assist/turnover ratio (3.59), 25th in total assists (165) and 27th in assists per game (5.9). During league play, Rahon averages 10.0 points, 4.2 rebounds to go along with 5.3 assists and 1.3 steals.

Bennett collects his third WCC Coach of the Year honors after being selected by his peers in both in 2008 and 2011. This season, Bennett replaced his entire starting lineup and Saint Mary’s didn’t miss a beat posting one of the most efficient seasons in league history, ranking in the top-10 nationally in multiple categories including field goal percentage (first) and assist/turnover ratio. Bennett directed the Gaels to its third WCC Regular Season title in six seasons despite being picked to finish fourth in the preseason coaches poll.

Of the 10-member All-WCC First Team, six appeared on the 2015-16 preseason All-WCC squad. Pepperdine’s Stacy Davis earned his third straight first team berth, while Santa Clara’s Jared Brownridge, BYU’s Collinsworth and Gonzaga’s Kyle Wiltjer each appear on the first team for the second consecutive season.

This marks the second straight season the WCC will honor a five-member second team after a 30-year hiatus. The first team expanded to 10 members in 1980-81.

With the conclusion of the regular season, WCC teams head to Las Vegas to compete for the 2016 West Coast Conference Basketball Championship and subsequent automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament. Tournament action tips off Friday, March 4 at the Orleans Arena.

2015-16 West Coast Conference Major Awards
Player of the Year: Kyle Collinsworth, BYU
Coach of the Year: Randy Bennett, Saint Mary’s
Defensive Player of the Year: Eric McClellan, Gonzaga
Newcomer of the Year: Joe Rahon, Saint Mary’s

2015-16 All-WCC Men’s Basketball First Team

Jared Brownridge
Kyle Collinsworth
Stacy Davis
Chase Fischer
Emmett Naar
Joe Rahon
Domantas Sabonis
Devin Watson
Kyle Wiltjer
Alec Wintering

2015-16 All-WCC Men’s Basketball Second Team

Tim Derksen
Nick Emery
Adom Jacko
Lamond Murray Jr.
Bryce Pressley

2015-16 WCC Men’s Basketball Honorable Mention Selections
Brandon Brown, Loyola Marymount; Alec Kobre, Pacific; Jett Raines, Pepperdine; T.J. Wallace, Pacific

2015-16 All-WCC Men’s Basketball Freshman Team

Kameron Edwards
Nick Emery
KJ Feagin
Evan Fitzner
Josh Perkins

As predicted and appropriate in my opinion. Congrats to everyone.....now refocus on the Tournament and put three good games together

[TexasZagFan]

A bit of local pride here: congrats to Jett Raines, from Coppell HS, on his Honorable Mention selection.

[Reborn]

Congratulations to Eric, Kyle, Domantas, and Josh

ditto

[gonzagafan62]

One small complaint from me (not that it's too relevant) but I would have had Calvin Hermanson over Bryce Pressley. But that's me. Both guys had outstanding years so again it's minor but CH had remarkable games against the better competition (maybe perception? Lol) who knows I'd have to look up stats

[northsidezagfan]

Tough to argue any of those

[Zag 77]

Eric is a pleasant surprise

I thought it was odd that nobody here was touting McClellan for DPOY. Hopefully he can be a defensive stopper in postseason. I thought that Dranginis should at least have gotten Honorable Mention. Hopefully that will give him a little incentive to prove his worth this weekend.

[ProVeeZag]

A bit of local pride here: congrats to Jett Raines, from Coppell HS, on his Honorable Mention selection.

Ditto that, I like Jett's game.

[FroZAG]

Eric McClellan

I thought it was odd that nobody here was touting McClellan for DPOY. Hopefully he can be a defensive stopper in postseason. I thought that Dranginis should at least have gotten Honorable Mention. Hopefully that will give him a little incentive to prove his worth this weekend.

Great job to all the guys, but E Mac has been my favorite player all year. Congratulations Eric on WCC DPOY!

But really, that may only be his second best accomplishment this year.

Helping our perimeter defenders gel as a unit to Lead The Nation in defensive 3 pt%, is no small miracle for our Bulldogs. And credit to the other guards as well.

Thanks to the staff for bringing Eric in, and thanks to Eric for giving us your best.

[Zagger]

Great job to all the guys, but E Mac has been my favorite player all year. Congratulations Eric on WCC DPOY!

But really, that may only be his second best accomplishment this year.

Helping our perimeter defenders gel as a unit to Lead The Nation in defensive 3 pt%, is no small miracle for our Bulldogs. And credit to the other guards as well.

Thanks to the staff for bringing Eric in, and thanks to Eric for giving us your best.

+1

[Hoopaholic]

Great job to all the guys, but E Mac has been my favorite player all year. Congratulations Eric on WCC DPOY!

But really, that may only be his second best accomplishment this year.

Helping our perimeter defenders gel as a unit to Lead The Nation in defensive 3 pt%, is no small miracle for our Bulldogs. And credit to the other guards as well.

Thanks to the staff for bringing Eric in, and thanks to Eric for giving us your best.

spot on

[CDC84]

Several notable basketball pundits continue to laugh at the WCC's insistence on having a 10 man first team.

Congrats to all.

[sideshow06]

Genuine question from an SMC guy... is the EMac selection a surprise to you? Isn't anyone miffed about Sabonis getting blanked in the Big 4 individual awards? This league often (not always, but a LOT) gives DPOY as a sort of consolation-POY to the second best player (or sometimes the best player who wasn't on a first place team). I thought Sabonis was a POY candidate with Gonzaga grabbing a share of the title and SMC really having no individual stat-dominating POY-type player. But with Collinsworth justifiably winning POY even on the third-place team I kind of expected the DPOY to go Sabonis' way.

And with all due respect, was EMac your best defensive player? I don't know how his steals and rebounds ranked in league. Based on your predictions thread it seems like EMac wasn't on your DPOY radar. I think he was a strong player and I know he's one of your favorites as a "heart of the team" kind of guy, but I was just a bit surprised by the pick. I'm just curious. In any case, congrats to him and all the All-League players.