From K-State Athletics
Senior Barry Brown, Jr., became the first K-State player to be named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year, while he and teammate Dean Wade became the first Wildcat duo to be named All-Big 12 First Team in the same season, as the league office announced its annual men’s basketball awards on Sunday.
Brown was one of three unanimous selections to the All-Big 12 First team, along with Kansas’ Dedric Lawson and Texas Tech’s Jarrett Culver, while Wade became just second Wildcat player to be named to league’s First Team in back-to-back seasons, joining Jacob Pullen (2010, 2011). The duo was joined on the All-Big 12 Teams by fellow senior Kamau Stokes and junior Xavier Sneed, who were both honorable mention selections.
The four overall selections for the Big 12 co-champion Wildcats (24-7, 14-4 Big 12) tied for the most in the Big 12 era, as four players were named honorable mention in 1999. It marks the first time K-State has had two First Team picks since the Big Seven/Eight/12 began designating various all-conference teams and the first time overall since Mike Evans and Curtis Redding were both honored as All-Big Eight selections in 1977.
Brown became the first Wildcat to be named the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year since Rolando Blackman earned the honor in consecutive seasons in the Big Eight in 1979 and 1980. He was also a Big 12 All-Defensive Team selection for the second straight season and one of just two unanimous picks. He is the sixth Wildcat to earn recognition to the All-Defensive Team and first repeat selection since Jacob Pullen (2010, 2011).
Brown and Wade (2018, 2019) join Michael Beasley (2008), Jacob Pullen (2010, 2011) and Rodney McGruder (2013) as the only First Team selections in the Big 12 era with only Pullen and Wade doing it twice. They are just the seventh tandem in the Big 12 era to earn spots on the 15-member All-Big 12 First, Second or Third Teams and the first to repeat since Bob Boozer and Jack Parr did it in 1957 and 1958.
Brown was All-Big 12 Second Team selection a season ago, while Stokes and Sneed earn all-conference honors for the first time in their respective careers.
Fellow co-Big 12 champion Texas Tech earned a pair of individual awards, as sophomore guard Jarrett Culver was named the Player of the Year, while head coach Chris Beard was the Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season. Kansas’ Dedric Lawson was the Newcomer of the Year, Texas’ Jaxon Hayes was the Freshman of the Year and Iowa State’s Lindell Wigginton was the league’s Sixth Man Award winner. Oklahoma’s Kristian Doolittle became the first winner of the Most Improved Player Award.
The All-Big 12 awards are selected by league’s 10 head coaches, who are not allowed to vote for their own players.
The school’s all-time leader in both games played (136) and steals (252), Brown led the Wildcats in nearly every statistical category, including scoring (15.1 ppg.), double-digit scoring games (26), 20-point games (seven), field goals made (172) and attempted (386), free throws made (86) and attempted (122) and steals (63). He connected on 44.6 percent from the field, including 30.2 percent from 3-point range, and shot 70.5 percent from the line. With his 63 steals, he now ranks three times in the school’s Top 10 single season list.
Brown ranks among the all-time leaders in a number of categories, including third in field goals attempted (1,480), fourth in double-digit scoring games (89), fifth in scoring (1,751), field goals made (621) and 3-point field goals attempted (527), sixth in field goals made (621) and assists (341) and eighth in 3-point field goals (169), free throws made (340) and ninth in free throws attempted (486).
Wade, who missed 6 games due to injury, proved to one of the most valuable players in the Big 12, as the Wildcats went 20-5 in games in which he played, including 13-2 in league action. He averaged 12.9 points on 49.2 percent (122-of-248) shooting, including 41.8 percent (23-of-55) from 3-point range, and 78.9 percent (56-of-71) from the free throw line to go with a team-best 6.2 rebounds and 2.8 assists in 30.4 minutes per game. He ranked second on the team in scoring, double-digit scoring games (19) and 20-point games (four).
Wade became just the 10th Wildcat to eclipse 1,500 career points, while he joined Boozer and McGruder, as the only players in school history to rank in the Top 10 in both career scoring (1,510/10th) and rebounding (685/8th). He also ranks among the career Top 10 in double-digit scoring games (81), field goals made (548) and starts (123).
The most unheralded of the senior class, Stokes played perhaps his best basketball of his career in the last month, averaging 13.1 points on 44.4 percent shooting (40-of-90), including 42.3 percent (22-of-52) from 3-point range, with 3.2 rebounds and 3.1 assists in the last 9 games. He was spectacular in his last home games, totaling a game-high 19 points to go with a game-high 6 assists and zero turnovers. For the season, he is averaging 10.8 points on 38.8 percent (107-of-276) shooting, including 36.8 percent (60-of-163) from 3-point range, with a team-high 102 assists. He has 100 or more assists in three consecutive seasons.
Stokes is just the third Wildcat to eclipse 400 career assists (407), while he became just the fourth player in school history to top 200 career 3-point field goals with his four triples in Saturday’s 68-53 win over Oklahoma.
One of four players to average double figures, Sneed averaged 10.3 points on 39.8 percent (104-of-261) shooting, including 35.3 percent (48-of-153) from 3-point range, to go with 5.4 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.4 steals in 30.6 minutes per game. He ranked second on the team in rebounding, steals and 3-point field goals.