NEW ORLEANS – Marshall guard Taevion Kinsey was named Player of the Year to headline the 2022-23 Sun Belt Conference Men’s Basketball Awards and All-Conference Teams, announced Monday. The awards were voted upon by the league’s 14 head coaches.
The annual awards precede the 2023 Hercules Tires Sun Belt Conference Men’s Basketball Championship, set to take place February 28 through March 6 at the Pensacola Bay Center in Pensacola, Fla. For complete championship information,
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Player of the Year: Taevion Kinsey, Marshall
Kinsey leads the Sun Belt and ranks seventh in the nation in points per game with 22.2. He also averages 5.4 assists per game, which is 26th in the country. In conference games only, Kinsey led the league with 22.9 points per game. Kinsey has totaled 20 games of 20 or more points on the year and three contests with 30 or more points. Twelve of his 20-point games came in Sun Belt Conference play. He has made 266 field goals on the year, which is second-best in the nation. Kinsey’s 37 points at Georgia State were the most scored by a Sun Belt men’s basketball player this season against a conference foe. He averages 37:42 minutes per game, which is third-most of any player in the country. Kinsey was a three-time Sun Belt Player of the Week honoree during the 2022-23 campaign.
Defensive Player of the Year: Kevin Samuel, South Alabama
Samuel is the Sun Belt’s leading shot blocker, ranking eighth nationally with 2.50 blocks per game both overall and in conference play. He also ranks top-40 nationally in rebounds per game with 8.9. In league contests, Samuel ranked second in the Sun Belt with a field-goal percentage of 64.4. He directs a South Alabama defense that led the Sun Belt (in conference games) in both scoring defense (61.4) and three-point field-goal percentage defense (.253). Samuel has been an effective defender without fouling, averaging just 1.9 fouls per game. He has brought down double-figure rebounds in 14 contests, including eight conference games. He is the NCAA’s active career leader in both rebounds and blocks.
Newcomer of the Year: Austin Crowley, Southern Miss
Crowley, a transfer from Ole Miss, has started all 31 games this season for Southern Miss, averaging 16.2 points per game, 4.2 rebounds per game, 2.6 assists per game and 2.0 steals per game. His 62 total steals on the year rank 22nd nationally and are nine shy of the most in a single season by a Golden Eagles player. In Sun Belt Conference games only, Crowley was fifth in the Sun Belt with 16.2 points per game and fifth in steals with 1.6 per contest. He has scored in double figures in 24 of Southern Miss’ 31 games. Crowley went for a season-high 30 points against App State on December 29.
Freshman of the Year: Micah Handlogten, Marshall
Handlogten has started all 31 of Marshall’s games as a freshman and ranked in the top-10 nationally in both rebounds (7th, 308) and blocks (10th, 72). He recorded eight double-doubles on the year, including four during conference play. He has tallied 14 games of 10 or more rebounds. In Sun Belt Conference games only, Handlogten led the league in field-goal percentage at 72 percent, was tied for third in blocks per game (2.1) and was fourth in rebounds per game (9.2). He averaged 7.7 points per game on the year and 7.9 points per game in conference play. Handlogten leads freshmen in the Sun Belt in all major statistical categories except for points per game, assists per game and three-point statistics.
Sixth Man of the Year: Terrence Edwards, James Madison
Edwards leads James Madison in both scoring (12.8 ppg) and three-point percentage (.441) and is second on the team in rebounding (4.9 rpg). In Sun Belt Conference play only, Edwards topped his team in both scoring (13.8 ppg) and rebounding (5.3 rpg). He has recorded four 20-plus-point performances this season and tied for the team lead with two double-doubles. Edwards charted 13 games with six or more rebounds.
Joe Gottfried Coach of the Year: Jay Ladner, Southern Miss
Ladner has guided Southern Miss to the Sun Belt Conference regular-season championship with a 14-4 league record. Ladner’s Golden Eagles have improved their win total from a year ago by 18 victories. Southern Miss, which was picked No. 13 in the Sun Belt Preseason Coaches Poll, is two victories away from tying the best single-season turnaround in NCAA history. Ladner’s team finished the year a perfect 15-0 at Reed Green Coliseum, which marks the best home record in program history. Southern Miss has ranked among the top-100 in the NCAA NET Rankings the entire season.
2022-22 SUN BELT CONFERENCE MEN’S BASKETBALL POSTSEASON AWARDS
Player of the Year
Taevion Kinsey, Marshall (Sr., G – Columbus, Ohio)
Defensive Player of the Year
Kevin Samuel, South Alabama (Gr., C - Codrington Village, Barbuda)
Newcomer of the Year
Austin Crowley, Southern Miss (Jr., G – West Point, Miss.)
Freshman of the Year
Micah Handlogten, Marshall (Fr., C – Huntersville, N.C.)
Sixth Man of the Year
Terrence Edwards, James Madison (R-So., G/F – Atlanta, Ga.)
Joe Gottfried Coach of the Year
Jay Ladner, Southern Miss (4th season)
All-Sun Belt First Team
Jordan Brown, Louisiana (Jr., F – Roseville, Calif.)
Taevion Kinsey, Marshall (Sr., G – Columbus, Ohio)
Andrew Taylor, Marshall (Sr., G – Corbin, Ky.)
Isaiah Moore, South Alabama (Gr., G – Temple Hills, Md.)
Austin Crowley, Southern Miss (Jr., G – West Point, Miss.)
All-Sun Belt Second Team
Andrei Savrasov, Georgia Southern (Sr., F – St. Petersburg, Russia)
Terrence Edwards, James Madison (R-So., G/F – Atlanta, Ga.)
Greg Williams, Jr., Louisiana (Sr., G – Lafayette, La.)
Felipe Haase, Southern Miss (Gr., F - Osorno, Chile)
Zay Williams, Troy (Sr., F – Birmingham, Ala.)
All-Sun Belt Third Team
Donovan Gregory, App State (Sr., F – Charlotte, N.C.)
Jamari Blackmon, ULM (Sr., G – Hoover, Ala.)
Chaunce Jenkins, Old Dominion (So., G – Newport News, Va.)
Kevin Samuel, South Alabama (Gr., C - Codrington Village, Barbuda)
DeAndre Pinckney, Southern Miss (Sr., F – Carol City, Fla.)
Mason Harrell, Texas State (Sr., G – Midwest City, Okla.)
Ties were not broken.