Trio of Razorbacks earn SEC accolades
FAYETTEVILLE — SEC coaches recognized the contributions of University of Arkansas guards Anthony Black, Ricky Council and Davonte “Devo” Davis when conference awards were announced on Monday.
Black was voted by coaches second team AllSEC and to the SEC AllFreshman team; Council also was on the second team; and Davis made the SEC All-Defensive team.
Among the SEC's major awards:
— Alabama freshman forward Brandon Miller was Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year.
— Kentucky senior guard Antonio Reeves and Alabama senior guard Jahvon Quinerly shared Sixth Man of the Year.
— Texas A&M's Buzz Williams and Vanderbilt's Jerry Stackhouse shared Coach of the Year.
— Vanderbilt senior center Liam Robbins was Defensive Player of the Year.
— Missouri senior forward Kobe Brown was Scholarship-Athlete of the Year.
Black, a 6-7 point guard, is the only Razorback to start all 31 games this season and he consistently filled up the boxscore with averages of 12.8 points, 5.1 rebounds, 4.2 assists and 2.0 steals.
In SEC play, Black's averages were even better at 13.2 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 2.1 steals.
“I think Anthony's one of the best players in the country,” Arkansas Coach Eric Musselman said. “We've played him exclusively at the point guard position. I think he can play anywhere on the floor. I think he can play the 1, the 2, the 3, the 4.”
Black is projected as an NBA Draft lottery pick.
“He's got an incredibly bright future,” said Musselman, a former NBA head coach with Golden State and Sacramento. “We hope that he feels like he's improved greatly playing in this system and I hope that he feels — like all of our players — that they've been given a lot of offensive freedom to grow their game.”
Black is averaging an SEC-high 34.6 minutes.
“It's hard for me to take Anthony off the floor,” Musselman said earlier this season on his radio show. “A tired Anthony Black, to me, is still really good.
“And I feel comfortable with him out there because of his basketball IQ, because of his competitive nature, because of his ability to do so many different things on the floor.”
Black's highest-scoring games came at the Maui Invitational when he had 26 points against Louisville and Creighton. His high for assists is eight against Ole Miss, Texas A&M and Georgia; his high for rebounds is eight against Troy, LSU, Missouri and Kentucky; and his high for steals is
five against Ole Miss and Kentucky.
Black has adjusted his game with the return of Arkansas freshman guard Nick Smith from a knee management issue. Over the last four games, Smith has averaged 21.8 points.
“I just try to do a good job of doing what the team needs me to do to help us win,” Black said. “Some days, scoring might be a little low, so I might need to be more aggressive and try to get to the rim. Now we have Nick back, so I need to focus on defense and rebounding because Nick's a great scorer.
“I've just been trying to adapt every game to the situation and what we really need.”
Black turned 19 years old on Jan. 20. “When a kid's that young, you kind of worry,” Arkansas senior forward Kamani Johnson said. “But with him, I think he's answered all the questions, all the big tests.
“With all the challenges thrown at him, he's stepped up to the plate and knocked it out of the park. Whatever [NBA] team gets Anthony Black is getting a dog for sure.”
Council, a 6-6 junior who transferred from Wichita State, is averaging 16.5 points to lead the Razorbacks and his 34.3 minutes per game average is second in the SEC behind Black.
After starting 25 of the first 26 games, Council has come off the bench the last five games, but averaged 16.8 points
“I think he's doing good for us coming off the bench, because it's like a spark,” Black said. “You don't ever want to sub and then go downhill.”
Council has scored 20 or more points in 10 games this season — including 27 against Troy, 26 against Oklahoma and 25 against Missouri and Baylor — and is 2 shy of 1,000 for his career.
Some of Council's dunks have been featured on ESPN SportsCenter's top 10 plays, and he leads the Razorbacks with free throws made and attempted, hitting 138 of 177 for 78.0%.
“Ricky, he's an electric player,” Smith said. “He's gets downhill quick, fast, in a hurry.
“He can also shoot the mid-range, shoot the spot-up three.”
Davis, a 6-4 junior, is shooting 44.2% (34 of 77) his last 16 games after shooting 23.5% (29 of 126) in his first 81 games, but his most valuable attribute continues to be defending an opposing team's top perimeter player.
“Devo's got an incredible competitive nature,” Musselman said. “The guys in the locker room all feed off his defense.
“It's hard not to defend when you're playing with Devo, because he's putting forth so much effort.”
The Associated Press will announce its media voting for All-SEC teams and selections for the conference's top player, coach and newcomer today.