Western Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year

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WAC Men's Basketball Player of the Year
Awarded forthe most outstanding basketball player in the Western Athletic Conference
CountryUnited States
History
First award1981
Most recentTyon Grant-Foster, Grand Canyon

The Western Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Player of the Year is an award given to the Western Athletic Conference's (WAC) most outstanding player. The award was first given following the 1980–81 season. Keith Van Horn of Utah and Nick Fazekas of Nevada are the only players to have won the award three times. Three other players—Michael Cage, Josh Grant and Melvin Ely—have won the award twice. Danny Ainge, the first ever WAC Player of the Year, was also the John R. Wooden Award winner in 1980–81.

Utah has the most all-time winners with seven. There have been four ties in the award's history, most notably in 1982–83 when there was a three-way tie. Due mainly to major membership turnover from 2010 to 2014 and further turnover in the early 2020s, only three current WAC members (California Baptist, Utah Valley, and Grand Canyon) have had a winner.

Key[edit]

† Co-Players of the Year
* Awarded a national player of the year award:
UPI College Basketball Player of the Year (1954–55 to 1995–96)
Naismith College Player of the Year (1968–69 to present)
John R. Wooden Award (1976–77 to present)
Player (X) Denotes the number of times the player has been awarded the WAC Player of the Year award at that point

Winners[edit]

Danny Ainge, BYU, 1981
Michael Cage, San Diego State, 1983 and 1984
Michael Smith, BYU, 1988
Tim Hardaway, UTEP, 1989
Keith Van Horn, Utah, 1995 through 1997
Anthony Carter, Hawaii, 1997
Andre Miller, Utah, 1999
Quinton Ross, SMU, 2003
Kirk Snyder, Nevada, 2004
Nick Fazekas, Nevada, 2005 through 2007
Jaycee Carroll, Utah State, 2008
Gary Wilkinson, Utah State, 2009
Luke Babbitt, Nevada, 2010
Kyle Barone, Idaho, 2013
Daniel Mullings, New Mexico State, 2014
Pascal Siakam, New Mexico State, 2016
Jemerrio Jones, New Mexico State, 2018
Jake Toolson, Utah Valley, 2019
Season Player School Position Class Reference
1980–81 Danny Ainge* BYU SG Senior [1]
1981–82 Bill Garnett Wyoming SF Senior [2]
1982–83† Michael Cage San Diego State C Junior [3]
Devin Durrant BYU SF Junior [3]
Pace Mannion Utah SG Senior [3]
1983–84 Michael Cage (2) San Diego State C Senior [4]
1984–85 Timo Saarelainen BYU SF Senior [5]
1985–86 Anthony Watson San Diego State F Senior [6]
1986–87 Fennis Dembo Wyoming SF Senior [7]
1987–88 Michael Smith BYU SF Junior [8]
1988–89 Tim Hardaway UTEP PG Senior [9]
1989–90 Mike Mitchell Colorado State F Senior [10]
1990–91 Josh Grant Utah PF Junior [11]
1991–92 Reggie Slater Wyoming F Senior [12]
1992–93 Josh Grant (2) Utah PF Senior [13]
1993–94 Greg Brown New Mexico PG Senior [14]
1994–95 Keith Van Horn Utah SG / SF Sophomore [15]
1995–96 Keith Van Horn (2) Utah SG / SF Junior [15]
1996–97† Anthony Carter Hawaii PG Junior [15]
Keith Van Horn (3) Utah SG / SF Senior [15]
1997–98† Lee Nailon TCU PF Junior [16]
Clayton Shields New Mexico SG / SF Senior [16]
1998–99† Andre Miller Utah PG Senior [17]
Jeryl Sasser SMU SG Sophomore [17]
1999–00 Courtney Alexander Fresno State SG Senior [18]
2000–01 Melvin Ely Fresno State C Junior [19]
2001–02 Melvin Ely (2) Fresno State C Senior [19]
2002–03 Quinton Ross SMU PF Senior [20]
2003–04 Kirk Snyder Nevada SG / SF Junior [21]
2004–05 Nick Fazekas Nevada PF / C Sophomore [22]
2005–06 Nick Fazekas (2) Nevada PF / C Junior [22]
2006–07 Nick Fazekas (3) Nevada PF / C Senior [22]
2007–08 Jaycee Carroll Utah State SG Senior [23]
2008–09 Gary Wilkinson Utah State F Senior [24]
2009–10 Luke Babbitt Nevada PF Sophomore [25]
2010–11 Tai Wesley Utah State PF Senior [26]
2011–12 Deonte Burton Nevada PG Sophomore [27]
2012–13 Kyle Barone Idaho C Senior [28]
2013–14 Daniel Mullings New Mexico State SG Junior [29]
2014–15 Martez Harrison Kansas City SG / PG Sophomore [30]
2015–16 Pascal Siakam New Mexico State PF Sophomore [31]
2016–17 Ian Baker New Mexico State PG Senior [32]
2017–18 Jemerrio Jones New Mexico State PF Senior [33]
2018–19 Jake Toolson Utah Valley SG Junior [34]
2019–20 Milan Acquaah California Baptist SG Junior [35]
2020–21 Fardaws Aimaq Utah Valley C Sophomore [36]
2021–22 Teddy Allen New Mexico State SG Junior [37]
2022–23 Qua Grant Sam Houston PG Senior [38]
2023–24 Tyon Grant-Foster Grand Canyon SG Graduate [39]

Winners by school[edit]

School (year joined) Winners Years
Utah (1962)[a] 7 1983†, 1991, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997†, 1999†
Nevada (2000)[b] 6 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2010, 2012
New Mexico State (2005)[c] 5 2014, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2022
BYU (1962)[a] 4 1981, 1983†, 1985, 1988
Fresno State (1992)[b] 3 2000, 2001, 2002
San Diego State (1978)[a] 3 1983†, 1984, 1986
Utah State (2005)[d] 3 2008, 2009, 2011
Wyoming (1962)[a] 3 1982, 1987, 1992
New Mexico (1962)[a] 2 1994, 1998†
SMU (1996)[e] 2 1999†, 2003
Utah Valley (2013) 2 2019, 2021
California Baptist (2018) 1 2020
Colorado State (1967)[a] 1 1990
Grand Canyon (2013) 1 2024
Hawaiʻi (1979)[f] 1 1997
Idaho (2005)[g] 1 2013
Kansas City (2013)[h] 1 2015
Sam Houston (2021)[c] 1 2023
TCU (1996)[i] 1 1998†
UTEP (1967)[e] 1 1989
Abilene Christian (2021) 0 —
Boise State (2001)[j] 0 —
Chicago State (2013)[k] 0 —
CSU Bakersfield (2013)[l] 0 —
Denver (2012)[d] 0 —
Lamar (2021)[m] 0 —
Louisiana Tech (2001)[d] 0 —
San Jose State (1996)[d] 0 —
Seattle (2012) 0 —
Stephen F. Austin (2021) 0 —
Tarleton (2020) 0 —
Texas State (2012)[d] 0 —
UT Arlington (2012/2022)[d] 0 —
Utah Tech[n] (2020) 0 —
UTRGV (2013)[o][p] 0 —
UTSA (2012)[d] 0 —
  1. ^ a b c d e f BYU, Colorado State, New Mexico, San Diego State, Utah and Wyoming all left in 1999 to become charter members of the Mountain West Conference (MW). Of these schools:
    • BYU is now in the Big 12 Conference.
    • Utah is now in the Pac-12, but will join the Big 12 in 2024.
    • Colorado State, New Mexico, San Diego State, and Wyoming remain in the MW.
  2. ^ a b Nevada and Fresno State left for the MW in 2012.
  3. ^ a b New Mexico State and Sam Houston left for Conference USA in 2023.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Seven schools left the WAC for other conferences in 2013:
    • Denver joined The Summit League after only one year in the WAC.
    • Louisiana Tech and UTSA joined Conference USA (C-USA), the latter after spending only one year in the WAC.
    • San Jose State and Utah State joined the MW.
    • Texas State and UT Arlington joined the Sun Belt after only one year in the WAC.
      • UT Arlington rejoined the WAC in 2022.
  5. ^ a b SMU and UTEP both left in 2005 to join C-USA. SMU joined the American Athletic Conference in 2013 and will move to the Atlantic Coast Conference in 2024, while UTEP remains in C-USA.
  6. ^ Hawaiʻi left for the Big West in 2012.
  7. ^ Idaho left the WAC in 2014 for the Big Sky.
  8. ^ The University of Missouri–Kansas City, which left the WAC after the 2019–20 season to rejoin its former conference home of the Summit League, changed its athletic brand to "Kansas City" after the 2018–19 season.
  9. ^ TCU left in 2001 for C-USA. It is now in the Big 12.
  10. ^ Boise State left in 2011 for the MW.
  11. ^ Chicago State left the WAC in 2022, becoming a Division I independent. It will join the Northeast Conference in 2024.
  12. ^ CSU Bakersfield, now in the process of an athletic rebranding as Bakersfield, left for the Big West in 2020.
  13. ^ Lamar left the WAC in 2022 after only one season, returning to its previous home of the Southland Conference.
  14. ^ Known as Dixie State before the 2022–23 season.
  15. ^ UTRGV left the WAC for the Southland Conference after the 2023–24 season.
  16. ^ The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) entered into full operation in 2015 with the merger of the University of Texas–Pan American (UTPA), which had joined the WAC in 2013, and the University of Texas at Brownsville. Because UTRGV directly inherited the UTPA athletic program. it is credited with all UTPA historic records, and maintains UTPA's WAC membership.

References[edit]

  1. ^ "Ainge, Brandenburg Claim 1980–81 WAC Hoop Honors". The Salt Lake Tribune. Salt Lake City, Utah. March 26, 1981. p. 79. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. ^ Landen, Bill (March 17, 1982). "WAC honors UW player, coach". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyoming. p. 27. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. ^ a b c "Cage, Mannion, Durrant tie for MVP". The Albuquerque Tribune. Albuquerque, New Mexico. March 15, 1983. p. 19. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "San Diego State's Cage Earns WAC Player of Year Honors". Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles, California. March 13, 1984. p. 33. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Timo WAC Player of the Year". Daily Herald. Provo, Utah. March 4, 1985. p. 1. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ "SDSU's Watson wins WAC player of year". Times-Advocate. Escondido, California. March 11, 1986. p. 21. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ^ Durband, Dennis (March 12, 1987). "Cowboys take best shot at Virginia tonight". Casper Star-Tribune. Casper, Wyoming. p. 24. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ^ Queenan, Bob (March 7, 1988). "Awards always a part of league tournament time". The Cincinnati Post. Cincinnati, Ohio. p. 20. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Eads, Derry (March 15, 1989). "Hardaway eyes road to the pros". El Paso Herald-Post. El Paso, Texas. p. 17. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ "Roll call: Colorado State". Orlando Sentinel. Orlando, Florida. March 13, 1990. p. 18. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ "Western Athletic Conference honors". The Honolulu Advertiser. Honolulu, Hawaii. March 5, 1991. p. 21. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  12. ^ "New Mexico (3) vs. Wyoming (6)". Daily Utah Chronicle. Salt Lake City, Utah. March 12, 1992. p. 9. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  13. ^ "Utah college reports". Salt Lake Tribune. Salt Lake City, Utah. March 26, 1993. p. 54. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  14. ^ "Lobos' Brown is WAC's top player". South Idaho Press. Burley, Idaho. March 8, 1994. p. 6. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  15. ^ a b c d "Utah's Van Horn nabs WAC awards". Billings Gazette. Billings, Montana. March 3, 1997. p. 15. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ a b "After 3 Years, Utah Relinquishes WAC Player of the Year Award". The Salt Lake Tribune. Salt Lake City, Utah. March 2, 1998. p. 22. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  17. ^ a b "Utah's Miller, SMU's Sasser named WAC's top players". The Honolulu Advertiser. Honolulu, Hawaii. March 1, 1999. p. 22. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  18. ^ "March Madness: Courtney Alexander". The Fresno Bee. Fresno, California. March 16, 2000. p. 64. Retrieved December 25, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  19. ^ a b Prisbell, Eric (March 4, 2002). "Ely stands above all, again". The Fresno Bee. Fresno, California. p. D1. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  20. ^ "Meeking tabbed for WAC team". The News-Star. Monroe, Louisiana. March 10, 2003. p. 20. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  21. ^ "Snyder lives up to hype". Honolulu Star-Bulletin. Honolulu, Hawaii. March 8, 2004. p. 17. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  22. ^ a b c "Kemp leads Nevada". The Sacramento Bee. Sacramento, California. March 17, 2007. p. C8. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  23. ^ "Five Players to Watch". Reno Gazette-Journal. Reno, Nevada. March 11, 2008. p. 63. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  24. ^ "Awards / Regular-season champ represented WAC well". Reno Gazette-Journal. Reno, Nevada. March 9, 2009. p. 22. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  25. ^ "WAC All-Conference". Times-News. Twin Falls, Idaho. March 9, 2010. p. 27. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  26. ^ "All-WAC Teams". Reno Gazette-Journal. Reno, Nevada. March 7, 2011. p. 21. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  27. ^ "2011–12 WAC Men's Postseason Award Winners". Albuquerque Journal. Albuquerque, New Mexico. March 6, 2012. p. 30. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  28. ^ "One goal down, one to go for senior star". Idaho Statesman. Boise, Idaho. March 13, 2013. p. 1. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  29. ^ "WAC Awards". Idaho Statesman. Boise, Idaho. March 11, 2014. p. 4. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  30. ^ Kerkhoff, Blair (March 11, 2015). "UMKC's Harrison is honored". The Kansas City Star. Kansas City, Missouri. p. B5. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  31. ^ "Aggie Siakam named WAC's player of the year". Albuquerque Journal. Albuquerque, New Mexico. March 9, 2016. p. 28. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  32. ^ "NMSU's Baker named WAC POY". Las Cruces Sun-News. Las Cruces, New Mexico. March 8, 2017. p. B1. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  33. ^ "NMSU's Jemerrio Jones named WAC Player of Year". Las Cruces Sun-News. Las Cruces, New Mexico. March 7, 2018. p. B1. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  34. ^ "GCU's Finke named first-team All-WAC". The Arizona Republic. Phoenix, Arizona. March 13, 2019. p. B3. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  35. ^ Martinez, Justin (March 11, 2020). "WAC honors athletes from NMSU". Las Cruces Sun-News. Las Cruces, New Mexico. p. B3. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  36. ^ Martinez, Justin (March 10, 2021). "Rice, Henry, McCants earn All-WAC honors for NMSU". Las Cruces Sun-News. Las Cruces, New Mexico. p. B1. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  37. ^ Keefe, Gavin (March 18, 2022). "It's another early exit for UConn". The Day. New London, Connecticut. p. D1. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  38. ^ "Hicks, Bogues earn all-WAC basketball honors". Hood County News. Hood County, Texas. March 15, 2023. p. A5. Retrieved December 26, 2023 – via Newspapers.com.
  39. ^ "Tyon Grant-Foster Selected By Head Coaches As 2023–24 WAC Men's Basketball Player of the Year". WACsports.com. Arlington, Texas: Western Athletic Conference. March 11, 2024. Retrieved March 11, 2024.
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