It has to be Stanley Burrell. Senior leader of the Muskies. Possibly the best defender in the country - definitely best in A-10. Can score when he needs to. Most unselfish player in the conference. Go to guy who refuses to lose and always finds a way to win. Went to the Sean Miller radio show Monday and he said that he could not keep keep track of the number of teams who have request tape of him for their teams to watch. He is an example for the rest of the country.....
Sadly, Stanley will not win the A-14 player of the year. Xavier is too balanced for any one of its players to be a legitimate POY. On the other hand, I feel that he should be the unanimous vote for Defensive Player of the year.
I voted for Gary Forbes. I think he has the all-around statistics, as well as being on a good team, that will get him the most votes for the A-14 POY.
Burrell and Duncan will get consideration for POY. As balanced as Xavier is, you can't rule out players from the team that played head and shoulders above the rest of the league.
Lavender would have been in the picture too, if not for the sprained ankle limiting him in league play.
That said, I'd guess it will go to Gary Forbes, for being the best player on the team that didn't throw away its NCAA tournament chances.
Stanley Burrell! You cannot kick out considered players because they play on a well-balanced team. Besides, Burrell, as far as defense goes, is one of a kind...that is not mimicked by other players on the team.
Sadly to admit... I would be absolutely shocked if an X-men won POY. No one really stands out from the rest. Drew Lavender or Duncan would have to be considered, but they play so well as a team that if you took one of them off there wouldn't be such a drop off. You take Will Daniels off URI and they'll drop a couple of games. You take Forbes off Umass and they'll drop a couple of games. I'd say either Pat Calathes for St. Joe's or Forbes for Umass. I'm surprised to not see any Dayton fans on here posting yet. Depending on which bracket I will have X going to the very least the elite 8 if not beyond.
Where is Drew Lavender??? His team (Xavier) is in the top ten in the country and Xavier is 13-2 in the A-10. He averages 10.8 ppg and 4.4 apg but more importantly he runs the offense and means more to Xavier than any other team in the A-10. Julio8189 is just putting statistcal leaders in the poll not the best players. (By the way where is Josh Duncan??)
Lavender would be my choice, but he doesn't have POY stats. He is MVP of his team for sure and I can't see them being anywhere near where they without him at the point.
See, that's the reason why I didn't put any X players up. If I put one up, then I'd have to put up the other five Muskie players, and although they are all great players in their own right, none of them have the outstanding stats that these other players have, and I can't see the A10 giving any of them a POY award. Here's my justification for each player.
Brian Roberts - obvious candidate. Before mid-season collapse, led Dayton to it's highest ranking in quite a while. He's been chosen as Dickie V's preseason best player you've never heard of, helped upset top-ranked teams like Louisville and Pitt, and is averaging 19 points and 3.69 assists per game.
Will Daniels - he and Jimmy Barron, had it not been for Burrell and Lavender, would've arguably have been the best 1-2 scoring combo in the league. Daniels also helped take Rhodie to a top 25 ranking, not seen since the days of Lamar Odom. Hit up 18.8 ppg and brought down 6.7 rpg.
Dionte Christmas - big reason why Temple is #2 in the A10. Lights-out shooter from long range, and has the potential to drop 30 points once he steps on the court, just ask Florida and Duquesne. Also part of a great tandem with Mark Tyndale, and is only a junior! Finished the season scoring 20.3 per game and getting 6.2 boards a game.
Leemire Goldwire - probably one of the best pure shooters in the league, especially from beyond the arc. I love the confidence he has in his shot (most attempted 3 pointers in the league), and once he gets hot, game over (39 against St. Bonaventure). He also is one of the top defenders in the league, averaging over 2 steals a game.
Gary Forbes - my MVP for the year, and the reason why UMass has a great chance of making the NCAA tournament. He has scored in double figures in every game of the season. He is tied with Christmas in ppg, and averaging 8 rpg. He is an absolute beast in the paint, and I'm sure Virginia is feeling sorry for letting him get away. He would of been a great complement to Sean Singletary, but the fact of the matter is that he is probably the best player of the conference, and my MVP for the year.
Pat Calathes - it's always scary when St. Joe's comes to play, especially when you look in the paint and see three players over 6'8", and two of them can shoot down low and from beyond the arc. Pat Calathes is a great player, averaging a little under 18 ppg and 8 rpg. He is the leader of a St. Joe's team that also has five players averaging double figures for the year. With all the attention his little brother Nick has been getting at Florida, Pat has flown under the radar this year, but has been a huge contribution to the Hawks this season.
And the league agrees. Forbes wins POY. Everyone I listed except Goldwire made first team. Duncan and Lavender take over 2nd team, and Burrell with 3rd and all defensive teams. Sean Miller takes coach of the year honors once again.
Stanley Burrell made a helluva statement today standing up for Xavier and ALL the team's players and coaches. Sounds like Burrell knew they would get overlooked in this popularity contest nonsense.
I'm not taking anything away from the guys who made the A-10 All Conference First Team. But, if Xavier has the best team, put the five most regular starters, or the best five from Xavier, on the First Team. Why not be straight up instead of just making sure no one's feelings get hurt?
Way to go, Stanley! It takes a man to be a man.
Now it's time for the Muskies to win the the A-10 tournament and ride a 2, 3 or 4 seed as far as it will take them in the Big Show.
