BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Auburn Head Coach Bruce Pearl, freshman forward Jabari Smith and sophomore center Walker Kessler were honored as the Southeastern Conference Coach of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, in a vote by the ...
– Auburn Head Coach Bruce Pearl, freshman forward Jabari Smith and sophomore center Walker Kessler were honored as the Southeastern Conference Coach of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, in a vote by the league’s head coaches released on Tuesday.
Smith, a 6-foot-10 freshman from Fayetteville, Ga., and Kessler, a 7-foot-1 sophomore from Newnan, Ga., made history as the first Auburn players in program history to win SEC Freshman and Defensive Player of the Year respectively. They were both named to the All-SEC First Team. The program’s single-season record holder in blocked shots , Kessler had an equally impressive year as part of the nation’s top front court duo from Auburn. He currently is the NCAA Division I and SEC leader in blocked shots averaging 4.5 a game. He also leads the team in rebounding and is fourth in steals .
Meanwhile, Ellis represents Alabama as one of the SEC’s top defenders as a UA player picked up the honor for the fifth straight year after Donta Hall and Herbert Jones were each honored in back-to-back seasons, with Jones also earned the program’s lone SEC Defensive Player of the Year last season.