Park Ridge, IL – For the third time in five
years, an Illinois standout collected the Big Ten’s highest honor as junior Dee Brown was chosen as the Conference Player of the Year in voting by both the
coaches and the media. He joins Brian Cook (2003) and Frank Williams (2001) as
just the third player in program history to earn Player of the Year accolades.
Brown, one of two unanimous All-Big Ten First Team picks by the coaches, led
Illinois to its second consecutive outright Big Ten title for the first time
since 1951-52 and its fourth in five seasons. The 6-0 guard led the Big Ten in
three-point field goal percentage (.515) and three-point field goals made with
3.19 per game in League contests only. He also rated among the top 10 in
assist-to-turnover ratio (2nd at 2.91), assists (4th at 4.0), steals (5th
at 1.75) and scoring (10th at 15.0).
Brown also was named the Conference Defensive Player of the Year, becoming
only the second player in Big Ten history to earn Player of the Year honors and
defensive accolades in the same season. In 1988, Michigan’s Gary Grant became
the first Conference standout to earn both awards. Brown is just the third
Illinois player to collect defensive laurels, joining Bruce Douglas (1985-86)
and Stephen Bardo (1989).
Illinois’ Bruce Weber was tabbed as the
Big Ten Coach of the Year by the media after becoming the first mentor in League
history to lead his team to back-to-back outright championships in his first two
years at the helm. The Illini finished the regular season with a 15-1 record,
tying the 1999 Michigan State squad for the most victories in Big Ten play since
the League went to a 16-game schedule. Illinois also set a school record,
posting 25 consecutive victories in Big Ten play, breaking the previous school
mark of 17 set during the 1914-1915 season.
In other individual honors, Indiana’s D.J. White earned Freshman of
the Year honors from both the coaches and media. He became the seventh Hoosier
to nab Freshman of the Year honors after tying for first place in League games
only with 2.12 blocks per contest, while ranking third in field goal percentage
(.603) and 16th in scoring (13.9 ppg). White was joined by four other first-year
standouts on the Big Ten All-Freshman Team, as the five-man squad also included
teammate Robert Vaden, Michigan State’s Drew Neitzel, Minnesota’s
Dan Coleman and Penn State’s Geary Claxton.
The 2005 All-Big Ten teams were dominated by underclassmen for the second
consecutive year, as 12 of the 15 selections have a chance to return to their
teams next season. Both First Team All-Big Ten squads included Illinois’
Brown, Luther Head and Deron Williams and Wisconsin’s Mike Wilkinson. Indiana’s Bracey Wright was the fifth choice of the
media, while the coaches picked Minnesota’s Vincent Grier. Williams was
the only returning First Team honoree, while Brown and Wilkinson were unanimous
picks. In addition, it marks only the fourth time in League history that three
or more players from the same squad earned First Team accolades. Indiana had
four players named to the 1975 All-Big Ten First Team (Kent Benson, Quinn
Buckner, Steve Green and Scott May), while Ohio State had three standouts
honored in 1961 (John Havlicek, Jerry Lucas and Larry Siegfried) and 1971 (Jim
Cleamons, Allan Hornyak and Luke Witte). Illinois also had three players named
to the 1956 All-Big Ten First Team (George Bon Salle, Paul Judson and Bill
Ridley).
The Conference office also announced honorees from each team for the Big Ten
Sportsmanship Award. The student-athletes chosen are individuals who have
distinguished themselves through sportsmanship and ethical behavior. In
addition, the student-athletes must be in good academic standing and have
demonstrated good citizenship outside of the sports-competition setting.
Honorees for men’s basketball are Illinois’
Roger Powell Jr., Indiana’s Mike Roberts, Iowa’s Greg Brunner,
Michigan’s Graham Brown, Michigan State’s Chris Hill,
Minnesota’s Brent Lawson, Northwestern’s Davor Duvancic, Ohio
State’s Matt Marinchick, Penn State’s Kevin Fellows, Purdue’s
Andrew Ford and Wisconsin’s Wilkinson. These 11 student-athletes are
now candidates for the Big Ten Sportsmanship Award, as the Conference office
will honor one male and one female student-athlete from each institution at the
end of the school year.
2004-05 All-Big Ten Men’s Basketball Team
As selected by Big Ten coaches
(players names in ALL CAPS have 2005-06 eligibility)
FIRST TEAM
DEE BROWN, Illinois*
VINCENT GRIER, Minnesota
Luther Head, Illinois
Mike Wilkinson, Wisconsin*
DERON WILLIAMS, Illinois
SECOND TEAM
MAURICE AGER, Michigan State
GREG BRUNNER, Iowa
TERENCE DIALS, Ohio State
CARL LANDRY, Purdue
BRACEY WRIGHT, Indiana
THIRD TEAM
Alan Anderson, Michigan State
JAMES AUGUSTINE, Illinois
PAUL DAVIS, Michigan State
ALANDO TUCKER, Wisconsin
VEDRAN VUKUSIC, Northwestern
HONORABLE MENTION
SHANNON BROWN, Michigan St.
Jeff Hagen, Minnesota
ADAM HALUSKA, Iowa
DION HARRIS, Michigan
JEFF HORNER, Iowa
Roger Powell, Jr., Illinois
D.J. WHITE, Indiana
ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
GEARY CLAXTON, Penn State
DAN COLEMAN, Minnesota
DREW NEITZEL, Michigan State
ROBERT VADEN, Indiana
D.J. WHITE, Indiana
PLAYER OF THE YEAR:
DEE BROWN, Illinois
DEFENSIVE PLAYER
OF THE YEAR:
DEE BROWN, Illinois
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR:
D.J. WHITE, Indiana
* unanimous
As selected by Big Ten media
(players names in ALL CAPS have 2005-06 eligibility)
FIRST TEAM
DEE BROWN, Illinois
Luther Head, Illinois
Mike Wilkinson, Wisconsin
DERON WILLIAMS, Illinois
BRACEY WRIGHT, Indiana
SECOND TEAM
Alan Anderson, Michigan State
GREG BRUNNER, Iowa
TERENCE DIALS, Ohio State
VINCENT GRIER, Minnesota
CARL LANDRY, Purdue
THIRD TEAM
MAURICE AGER, Michigan State
JAMES AUGUSTINE, Illinois
PAUL DAVIS, Michigan State
ALANDO TUCKER, Wisconsin
VEDRAN VUKUSIC, Northwestern
HONORABLE MENTION
Jeff Hagen, Minnesota
ADAM HALUSKA, Iowa
DION HARRIS, Michigan
JEFF HORNER, Iowa
AARON JOHNSON, Penn State
Roger Powell, Jr., Illinois
D.J. WHITE, Indiana
PLAYER OF THE YEAR:
DEE BROWN, Illinois
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR:
D.J. WHITE, Indiana
COACH OF THE YEAR:
Bruce Weber, Illinois
* unanimous
Big Ten Sportsmanship Award Honorees
Roger Powell, Jr., Illinois; Mike Roberts, Indiana; Greg Brunner, Iowa;
Graham Brown, Michigan;
Chris Hill, Michigan State; Brent Lawson, Minnesota; Davor Duvancic,
Northwestern; Matt Marinchick, Ohio State; Kevin Fellows, Penn State; Andrew
Ford, Purdue; Mike Wilkinson, Wisconsin.