Auburn basketball won the SEC regular season championship and it paved the way to an almost clean sweep in the USA TODAY Sports Network’s All-SEC awards.
Auburn senior forward Johni Broome was named the Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. Broome averaged 19.4 points, 10.6 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.6 blocks per game, and he picked up 12 out of 13 first-place votes for Player of the Year.
Broome and Alabama guard Mark Sears were the only unanimous All-SEC First Team selections. Florida guard Walter Clayton Jr., South Carolina forward Collin Murray-Boyles and Tennessee guard Zakai Zeigler were also named to the first team.
Auburn’s Bruce Pearl is the Coach of the Year after guiding the Tigers to a 27-4 overall record and a 15-3 mark in the SEC. Pearl tallied eight first-place votes.
The lone major award that did not go to an Auburn player was Newcomer of the Year, which went to Texas freshman guard Tre Johnson. He led the conference by averaging 20.2 points per game.
Here are the selections from the 13 participating writers who cover SEC basketball for the USA TODAY Sports Network:
G Mark Sears, Alabama
G Zakai Zeigler, Tennessee
G Walter Clayton Jr., Florida
F Johni Broome, Auburn
F Collin Murray-Boyles, South Carolina
G Tre Johnson, Texas
G Josh Hubbard, Mississippi State
G Chaz Lanier, Tennessee
F Alex Condon, Florida
F Amari Williams, Kentucky
*Unanimous first-team selection.
Johni Broome, Auburn
Also receiving votes: Mark Sears, Alabama.
Bruce Pearl, Auburn
Also receiving votes: Mark Byington, Vanderbilt; Dennis Gates, Missouri; Todd Golden, Florida.
Tre Johnson, Texas
Also receiving votes: Chaz Lanier, Tennessee; Alijah Martin, Florida; Amari Williams, Kentucky.
Johni Broome, Auburn
Also receiving votes: Denver Jones, Auburn; Jahmai Mashack, Tennessee; Cameron Matthews, Mississippi State; Zakai Zeigler, Tennessee.
Poll participants: Kevin Brockway, Gainesville Sun; Ryan Black, Courier Journal; Adam Cole, Montgomery Advertiser; Michael DiLullo, Daily Advertiser; Jackson Fuller, Southwest Times Record; Aria Gerson, The Tennessean; Sam Hutchens, Clarion Ledger; Callum McAndrew, Columbia Daily Tribune; Sam Sklar, Clarion Ledger; Emilee Smarr, Tuscaloosa News; Colton Sulley, The Oklahoman; Marc Weiszer, Athens Banner-Herald; Mike Wilson, Knoxville News Sentinel.
