Horizon League Reveals 2019-20 #HLMBB All-League Awards
INDIANAPOLIS - After helping Wright State to its first outright #HLMBB regular season title in program history and the No. 1 seed for the Horizon League Men’s Basketball Championship, Loudon Love has been named the Horizon League Player of the Year, as the League announced its men’s basketball All-League honors on Monday. Amari Davis of Green Bay was selected Freshman of the Year, Northern Kentucky’s Jalen Tate earned Defensive Player of the Year and Devin Morgan of Youngstown State was named Sixth Man of the Year. In addition, Cleveland State's Dennis Gates and Wright State’s Scott Nagy were picked Co-Coaches of the Year.
League awards are voted on by head coaches, sports information directors and select media representative from each school. All-Defensive Team and Defensive Player of the Year honors are voted on by head coaches only.
Love finished Horizon League play averaging a double-double ranking sixth in scoring at 17.8 points per game, while also finishing third in rebounds at 10.2 per game including a 20-rebound effort against Detroit Mercy. In addition, the junior is 37th in the country in rebounds and 11th in the nation in offensive rebounds per game at 3.88. Overall this season, he registered nine 20-point games and tallied 11 double-doubles, good for second in the League. Love also ranked sixth during #HLMBB play shooting 47.5 percent from the floor and also got in done defensively tied for first at 1.78 blocks per game. This also marks the second-straight season Love will be a member of the All-Horizon League first team.
Green Bay’s Davis set a Horizon League record for the most Freshman of the Week honors in a single season en route to being named Freshman of the Year. The Trotwood, Ohio native finished the season top-10 in scoring at 15.8 points per game and second in field-goal percentage shooting 51.4 percent from the floor. Davis ended the regular season with eight 20-point performances including tying his career-high of 28 points on three different occasions with two coming against in-state rival Milwaukee.
Morgan came off the bench in all but two games for Youngstown State this season to earn Sixth Man of the Year. He finished HL play averaging 7.1 points, playing just under 17 minutes per game and concluded the season top-15 in 3-pointers made per game at 1.8. The senior recorded a pair of 20-point games during #HLMBB play including a 26-point performance against Green Bay.
NKU’s Tate was voted Defensive Player of the Year after finishing second during Horizon League play in steals at 1.8 and tied for the most steals in a single game by a HL player this year with six against IUPUI. Tate and was the primary defender on a Norse team that finished tops during Horizon League play in scoring defense, allowing just 65.3 points per game, and top-three in field-goal percent defense, 3-point field-goal percent defense and steals.
Cleveland State’s Gates and Wright State’s Nagy claim Co-Coach of the Year with Nagy earning the honor for the third consecutive season, while Gates picks up his first after completing year one with the Vikings. Nagy helped the Raiders finish the season with a 15-3 mark in Horizon League play to claim the outright regular season championship and the No. 1 seed at the Horizon League Men’s Basketball Championship for the second-straight season. Nagy becomes the first coach in Horizon League history to be named Coach of the Year in three-straight seasons. Gates guided the Vikings to a 7-11 record during Horizon League play and the No. 7 seed at the Horizon League Basketball Championships after being selected to finish 10th in the #HLMBB preseason poll. The seven HL wins are the most by a CSU team since the 2014-15 season. He becomes the first Horizon League coach to earn Coach of the Year in his debut season with a team since Bryce Drew did it at Valparaiso following the 2011-12 season.
Love is joined on the All-Horizon League first team by Detroit Mercy’s Antoine Davis, Green Bay’s JayQuan McCloud, Xavier Hill-Mais of Oakland and Youngstown State’s Darius Quisenberry. Davis, last season’s Freshman of the Year, ended this year as the Horizon League’s leading scorer and ranks third in the nation at 24.3 points per game, while also ranking top-10 in the country in 3-pointers made per game and free-throw percentage. McCloud finished fourth during #HLMBB play with 18.7 points and second in assists with 5.0 by amassing eight 20-point performances and the lone 10-assist performance of Horizon League play against Detroit Mercy. Hill-Mais ended League play as one of just two players to finish top-10 in points (17.5) and top-5 in rebounds (8.6) with seven 20-point games and seven double-doubles in HL play. Quisenberry, an All-League second team selection from last season, moves up to first team in 2020 after scoring 18.2 points in HL play and finishing fourth in assists, while also totaling seven 20-point games, including a 41-point performance at home against Wright State.
The All-Horizon League second team is comprised of IUPUI’s Marcus Burk, Milwaukee’s Te’Jon Lucas, Tyler Sharpe of Northern Kentucky, Tarkus Ferguson of UIC and Wright State’s Bill Wampler. The All-Horizon League third team includes Algevon Eichelberger of Cleveland State, Green Bay’s Davis, Northern Kentucky’s Tate and Dantez Walton and Cole Gentry of Wright State.
Amari Davis is joined on the All-Freshman Team by C.J. Wilbourn of Milwaukee, Blake Lampman of Oakland and Wright State’s Grant Basile and Tanner Holden. Joining Tate on the All-Defensive Team are Chris Brandon of Detroit Mercy, IUPUI’s Elyjah Goss, Marcus Ottey of UIC and Youngstown State’s Garrett Covington.
The 2020 Horizon League Basketball Championships will begin March 3 and 5 at campus sites and eight teams – four men and four women – will look to advance to Indianapolis and #REACHtheHORIZON on March 9-10 at the Indiana Farmers Coliseum.
Tickets for the semifinals and championship games in Indianapolis are on sale now at HorizonLeague.com, the Indiana Farmers Coliseum Box Office, or by calling 317-927-7601. Each host school will separately announce their ticket plans for the first round and quarterfinals.
For complete information on the 2020 Horizon League Basketball Championships, please go to HorizonLeague.com/Indy.
2019-20 Horizon League Men’s Basketball Award Winners
Player of the Year: Loudon Love, Wright State
Defensive Player of the Year: Jalen Tate, Northern Kentucky
Freshman of the Year: Amari Davis, Green Bay
Sixth Man of the Year: Devin Morgan, Youngstown State
Coach of the Year: Dennis Gates, Cleveland State & Scott Nagy, Wright State
All-Horizon League First Team (alphabetical by school)
Antoine Davis, Detroit Mercy
JayQuan McCloud, Green Bay
Xavier Hill-Mais, Oakland
Loudon Love, Wright State
Darius Quisenberry, Youngstown State
All-Horizon League Second Team (alphabetical by school)
Marcus Burk, IUPUI
Te’Jon Lucas, Milwaukee
Tyler Sharpe, Northern Kentucky
Tarkus Ferguson, UIC
Bill Wampler, Wright State
All-Horizon League Third Team (alphabetical by school)
Algevon Eichelberger, Cleveland State
Amari Davis, Green Bay
Jalen Tate, Northern Kentucky
Dantez Walton, Northern Kentucky
Cole Gentry, Wright State
Horizon League All-Freshman Team (alphabetical by school)
Amari Davis, Green Bay
C.J. Wilbourn, Milwaukee
Blake Lampman, Oakland
Grant Basile, Wright State
Tanner Holden, Wright State
Horizon League All-Defensive Team (alphabetical by school)
Chris Brandon, Detroit Mercy
Elyjah Goss, IUPUI
Jalen Tate, Northern Kentucky
Marcus Ottey, UIC
Garrett Covington, Youngstown State