The Southeastern Conference announced its postseason awards Tuesday, ending speculation on tight races for the honors. While no LSU players won individual awards, three Tigers received All-SEC team honors. Junior guard Marcus Thornton, the SEC’s leading scorer in conference play, was selected to the All-SEC Second Team. Junior guard Garrett Temple received All-SEC Defensive Team honors, and forward Anthony Randolph was a unanimous selection to the All-Freshman Team. The SEC East won all but one individual award, led by Vanderbilt senior guard Shan Foster’s Player of the Year. The Kenner, La., native led the SEC in scoring with 20.6 points per game. The two coaches whose teams finished ahead of Vanderbilt in the SEC East, Tennessee’s Bruce Pearl and Kentucky’s Billy Gillespie, shared Coach of the Year honors. Pearl navigated the No. 4 Volunteers to a 28-3 overall record, 14-2 conference record and a week atop the Associated Press Poll. Gillespie led the Wildcats to an 18-11 overall record and a 12-4 SEC record in his first season at Kentucky. The Wildcats have won 11 of their past 13 games. Kentucky freshman forward Patrick Patterson also won Co-Freshman of the Year honors with Florida guard/forward Nick Calathes. Patterson was No. 2 and No. 3 among freshman scorers and rebounders, respectively, averaging 16.4 points and 7.7 rebounds per game. Calathes led the SEC with 6.1 assists per game. His 15.9 points per game average was third among freshmen in the conference, and his 5.0 rebounds per game was fourth. The only unanimous award winner and the only SEC West player to capture an individual award was Mississippi State sophomore forward/center Jarvis Varnado, who took home Defensive Player of the Year. Varnado led the nation with 4.8 blocks per game. Only three conference teams, including Mississippi State, averaged more blocks per game this season. Tennessee sophomore guard J.P. Prince won Sixth Man of the Year, and Georgia center Dave Bliss won Scholar-Athlete of the Year. Varnado’s teammate, junior guard/forward Jamont Gordon, and Foster were the All-SEC First Team’s only unanimous selections. Calathes and Patterson made the second team, as did fellow freshman, Vanderbilt center A.J. Ogilvy. Calathes, Patterson, Ogilvy, Ole Miss guard Chris Warren and Florida guard Jai Lucas were unanimous selections to the All-Freshman Team with Randolph.
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