NEW ORLEANS – James Madison swingman Terrence Edwards Jr. was named Player of the Year to headline the 2023-24 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 2024 Hercules Tires Sun Belt Conference Men’s Basketball Championship, set to take place March 5-11 at the Pensacola Bay Center in Pensacola, Fla. For complete championship information, click here.
 
Player of the Year: Terrence Edwards Jr., James Madison
After earning the Sun Belt’s Sixth Man of the Year Award one year prior, Edwards fueled the Dukes to a program-record 28 wins during the regular season by leading the conference in scoring at 17.6 points per game. He scored in double figures in 28 of James Madison’s 31 contests while registering at least 20 points on 10 different occasions. The Atlanta native also ranked seventh in free throw percentage (.819), eighth in field goal percentage (.431) and ninth in assists per game (3.3). A three-time Sun Belt Player of the Week honoree, Edwards was named to the 2023-24 Oscar Robertson Trophy and All-America Watch List by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) and was recognized as the National Player of the Week on Nov. 13 by the USBWA, the Associated Press and the Lou Henson Award.


 
Defensive Player of the Year: Justin Abson, App State
A shot-altering presence in the middle of the Mountaineers’ defense, Abson’s 87 total blocks and 2.8 blocks per game led all Sun Belt players while his per game average ranks third nationally and the total stands fifth. He is the only NCAA Division I player to record at least six blocks five different times this season, including a career-high eight rejections in a win over James Madison on Jan. 27. Abson registered at least four blocks in nine different contests and his 6.9 rebounds contributed to an App State defense that ranks first nationally in blocks per game (6.8), second in defensive rebounds (31.1) and fourth in both total rebounds per game (42.3) and field goal percentage defense (.385).



Newcomer of the Year: T.J. Bickerstaff, James Madison
A two-time Sun Belt Player of the Week selection, Bickerstaff led the Dukes with 8.4 rebounds per game and was second in scoring at 13.9 points per contest in his first year with a JMU team that ranks first in the Sun Belt and among the top 10 scoring offenses nationally. He tallied 10 double-doubles and scored in double figures 24 times while achieving at least 20 points on five occasions and double-digit boards 12 times. Among his best performances was a 21-point, 14-rebound effort in James Madison’s historic upset of No. 4 Michigan State in the team’s first game of the season. Bickerstaff’s field goal percentage (.628) ranks second in the Sun Belt and 12th nationally and stands fifth in the conference in rebounding and seventh in scoring. The Atlanta native was also named Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week on Jan. 3.



Freshman of the Year: Myles Rigsby, Troy
Rigsby tied for second on the Trojans in scoring at 11.6 points per game and grabbed 4.3 rebounds per game while scoring in double-figures in 17 games while making 24 starts in his debut season. He shot 44.1 percent from the field, 41.1 percent from 3-point range and 82.8 percent at the free throw line and improved those numbers against Sun Belt opponents to the tune of 13.4 points per game while shooting 49.3 percent overall, 50 percent beyond the arc and 84.4 percent at the foul stripe to go with 5.1 rebounds per contest. At the defensive end, Rigsby averaged 1.5 steals per game and finished the regular season with 48 total steals which ranks fifth in the Sun Belt.


 
Sixth Man of the Year: Tayton Conerway, Troy
A junior, Conerway made just two starts during the season and is tied for second on the team in scoring with 11.6 points, 2.5 assists and a Sun Belt-leading 2.1 steals per game while shooting 47.6 percent from the field. He has scored in double-figures 21 times and led a Trojans team that leads the Sun Belt in scoring and ranks 15th in NCAA Division I at 29.3 points per game. Conerway’s 64 total steals this season ranks in the top-25 nationally for a Trojan defense that recorded 10.3 steals per contest which ranks seventh nationally. His efforts aided Troy’s efforts to force opponents into 15.3 turnovers per game which is first in the conference and a top-20 mark nationally.



Joe Gottfried Coach of the Year: Dustin Kerns, App State
In his fifth season at the helm of the program, Kerns guided the Mountaineers to a program record 26 wins and App State’s first outright conference championship since 1978-79. App State’s 16 conference wins were also the most in program history. Kerns led the Mountaineers to eight wins against teams ranked inside the top 150 of the NET rankings, including a win over Auburn in December who currently stands as a top-10 team in the NET rankings. Under Kerns’ direction, the Mountaineers secured an undefeated home record for the first time since 1966-67 with a 15-0 mark, defeating teams by an average of 20 points per game within their friendly confines. Additionally, the Mountaineers posted their best road record in Kerns’ tenure and the first winning season on the road since the 2006-07 campaign at 8-4. App State boasted the Sun Belt’s top scoring defense in the league (66.1) and the No. 4 scoring offense (78.7). Defensively, the Mountaineers finished in the top 10 in NCAA Division I in blocks (first), blocks per game (first), field-goal percentage defense (fourth), fouls per game (fourth) and rebounds per game (fourth).

2023-24 Sun Belt Conference Men’s Basketball Postseason Awards
 
Player of the Year: Terrence Edwards Jr., James Madison (R-Jr., G/F – Atlanta, Ga.)
Defensive Player of the Year: Justin Abson, App State (So., F, - Pompano Beach, Fla.)
Newcomer of the Year: T.J. Bickerstaff, James Madison (Gr., F –Atlanta, Ga.)
Freshman of the Year: Myles Rigsby, Troy (Fr., F – Fort Worth, Texas)
Sixth Man of the Year: Tayton Conerway, Troy (Jr., G – Burleson, Texas)
Joe Gottfried Coach of the Year: Dustin Kerns, App State

All-Sun Belt First Team
Terrence Edwards Jr., James Madison (R-Jr., G/F – Atlanta, Ga.)
Christyon Eugene, Troy (Sr., G – Spring, Texas)
Caleb Fields, Arkansas State (Sr., G – Lewisburg, Tenn.)
Donovan Gregory, App State (Gr., F – Charlotte, N.C.)
Tre’Von Spillers, App State (Jr., F – Charleston, S.C.)
 
All-Sun Belt Second Team
T.J. Bickerstaff, James Madison (Gr., F –Atlanta, Ga.)
Austin Crowley, Southern Miss (Sr., G – West Point, Miss.)
Chaunce Jenkins, Old Dominion (Jr., G – Newport News, Va.)
Kobe Julien, Louisiana (R-Jr., F – Baton Rouge, La.)
Tyren Moore, Georgia Southern (Sr., G – Louisville, Ky.)
 
All-Sun Belt Third Team
Joe Charles, Louisiana (Jr., F – Carencro, La.)
Noah Freidel, James Madison (R-Sr., G – Tea, S.D.)
Terence Harcum, App State (Jr., G – Butner, N.C.)
Hosana Kitenge, Louisiana (Jr., F – Crawley, England)
Nika Metskhvarishvili, ULM (Sr., F – Tbilisi, Georgia)
John Ojiako, Coastal Carolina (Gr., C – Lagos, Nigeria)
Taryn Todd, Arkansas State (Jr., G – Vaughan, Ontario)
 
Ties were not broken.