Breaking News: Knecht is Awarded as the best Basketball Player of the Year…see more

 

 

KNOXVILLE, Tennessee – Dalton Knecht, a top player for the University of Tennessee, was named the Tennessee Sportswriters Association (TSWA) Men’s Basketball Player of the Year on Thursday.

Nearly unanimously, Knecht won the awa.rd with 17 of the 18 votes cast. All college basketball players from Tennessee schools are eligible to win the honor.

Knecht, a guard in his fifth year, had one of the best seasons in Tennessee state, SEC, and UT history. He shot 45.8 percent from the field, 39.7 percent from outside the arc, and 77.2 percent at the free throw line while averaging 21.7 points, 4.9 rebounds, and 1.8 assists per game.

Knecht, the SEC Player of the Year, Riley Wallace Transfer of the Year, Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year, and Knecht earned the league scoring title, completing.

 

A native of Thornton, Colo., Knecht scored 35-plus points six times, a program single-season record and the most of any Division I player in the nation. He capped his career with 37 points against third-ranked Purdue in the Elite Eight, setting a program single-game NCAA Tournament scoring record and clinching NCAA Midwest Region All-Tournament status.

The four-time SEC Player of the Week and two-time USBWA National Player of the Week, Knecht placed third among all Division I players with eight 30-point shootings and co-fifth with 13 25-point outings. His 780 total points put him fifth in Division I, as well as No. 13 on the SEC’s single-season leaderboard and second on UT’s such list.

Knecht helped Tennessee to a 27-9 (14-4 SEC) record, an outright SEC regular season championship and the second Elite Eight bid in program history.

 

The NAIA national champion Drew Stutts of Freed-Hardeman was named the TSWA Men’s Basketball Coach of the Year. Furthermore, Rick Insell of Middle Tennessee State and Rickea Jackson of Tennessee were named TSWA Women’s Basketball Coach and Player of the Year, respectively, as revealed on Wednesday morning.

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