Even during a tough season for the Gophers men's basketball team, Jordan Murphy still came away with all-conference honors Monday.
Murphy, who led the Big Ten with 11.4 rebounds per game, was named All-Big Ten second team by the media. The 6-foot-7 junior forward averaged 17 points per game and also broke the program's single-season rebound mark with 352.
Senior guard Nate Mason, who was an all-conference first-team pick last year, finished fourth in the Big Ten in scoring with 18.6 points per game in conference play — but did not claim an all-conference team spot this season, earning honorable mention instead.
Junior guard Dupree McBrayer was among the All-Big Ten Sportsmanship Award honorees.
Ohio State's Keita Bates-Diop was selected as Big Ten Player of the Year by both media and coaches, after the 6-7 junior finished second in the league in scoring (19.2) and rebounding (8.9) for a Buckeyes team that finished in second place. He is the first Buckeyes player to win the award since Evan Turner in 2010 and the sixth overall.
The media and coaches All-Big Ten first teams were nearly identical, with both including Bates-Diop, Michigan State's Miles Bridges, Purdue's Carsen Edwards and Penn State's Tony Carr. Wisconsin's Ethan Happ was named to the first team by the media while Nebraska's James Palmer Jr. was selected by the coaches. Murphy made the coaches' third team.
First-year Buckeyes coach Chris Holtmann earned Coach of the Year honors from both media and coaches, and both groups selected Michigan State's Jaren Jackson Jr. the Freshman of the Year. Jackson was named Defensive Player of the Year by the coaches as well.
The Gophers (15-16, 4-14 Big Ten) face Rutgers in the opening round of the Big Ten tournament Wednesday night in New York.
