League's Basketball Coaches Vote Hendrix All-SEC 1st Team
3/11/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
TUSCALOOSA ?? Richard Hendrix is the only player in the Southeastern Conference to average a double-double in points and rebounds as the league’s players head into the 2008 SEC Tournament in Atlanta. And it’s feats like that that earned the attention of the SEC’s head coaches. The 6-foot-9, 250 pound junior power forward from Athens has been voted to the SEC Coaches All-SEC 1st Team. The team was announced on Tuesday.
Last season Hendrix was 2nd team Associated Press and Coaches All-SEC and in 2006 he was SEC Coaches Freshman All-SEC. His 1st team status Tuesday is the third honor he’s received in the past week. Last week the National Association of Basketball Coaches named him to its All-District team and on Monday Rivals.com named him to its All-SEC 1st Team.
Hendrix leads Alabama with his averages of 17.7 points and 10.1 rebounds. Those averages find him leading the SEC in rebounding after 31 games and ranking fourth in scoring. He ranks 13th in the nation in field goal percentages at .602%.
Joining him on the Coaches’ 1st Team are Sonny Weems of Arkansas, Kentucky’s Ramel Bradley, a pair of Mississippi State players Jamont Gordon and Charles Rhodes, South Carolina’s Devan Downey, Tennessee’s Chris Lofton and Tyler Smith and Vanderbilt’s Shan Foster. Foster was also the coaches’ choice for SEC Player of the Year. Kentucky’s Billy Gillispie and Tennessee’s Bruce Pearl tied in the voting for SEC Coach of the Year. Florida's Nick Calathes and Kentucky's Patrick Patterson shared the SEC Freshman of the Year award and Georgia's Dave Bliss earned SEC Scholar-Athlete of the Year honors. Jarvis Varnado of Mississippi State was a unanimous pick as SEC Defensive Player of the Year and Tennessee's J.P. Prince earned SEC's Sixth Man of the Year honors.
Named to the Southeastern Conference’s Coaches’ 1st Team All-SEC Tuesday morning, Hendrix received a second honor Tuesday afternoon. He was named to the United States Basketball Writer’s Association’s All-District IV team. The district includes players from the states of Alabama, Kentucky, Tennessee, Mississippi, Georgia and Florida. Chris Douglas-Roberts of Memphis was named Player of the Year for the district while Tennessee’s Bruce Pearl was voted Coach of the Year. The USBWA All-District IV team consists of:
Hendrix and his Tide teammates are headed to the Georgia Dome in Atlanta where they will play Florida in the first round of the 2008 SEC Tournament on Thursday, March 13 at 6:30 p.m. CT.
Following is a list of the 2008 SEC Coaches All-SEC selections:
SEC Coaches’ Postseason Awards (*-Ties; #-Unanimous)
FIRST TEAM ALL-SEC
Richard Hendrix, Alabama*
Sonny Weems, Arkansas
Ramel Bradley, Kentucky
Jamont Gordon, Mississippi State#
Charles Rhodes, Mississippi State
Devan Downey, South Carolina
Chris Lofton, Tennessee*
Tyler Smith, Tennessee
Shan Foster, Vanderbilt#
SECOND TEAM ALL-SEC
Nick Calathes, Florida
Sundiata Gaines, Georgia
Joe Crawford, Kentucky
Patrick Patterson, Kentucky
Marcus Thornton, LSU
Dwayne Curtis, Ole Miss
JaJuan Smith, Tennessee
A.J. Ogilvy, Vanderbilt
SEC ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
Nick Calathes, Florida#
Jai Lucas, Florida#
Chandler Parsons, Florida*
Jeremy Price, Georgia
Patrick Patterson, Kentucky#
Anthony Randolph, LSU#
Trevor Gaskins, Ole Miss*
Chris Warren, Ole Miss#
Mike Holmes, South Carolina*
A.J. Ogilvy, Vanderbilt#
SEC ALL-DEFENSIVE TEAM
Steven Hill, Arkansas*
Sundiata Gaines, Georgia*
Ramel Bradley, Kentucky*
Garrett Temple, LSU
Jarvis Varnado, Mississippi State#
JaJuan Smith, Tennessee
SEC COACH OF THE YEAR
Billy Gillispie, Kentucky*
Bruce Pearl, Tennessee*
SEC PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Shan Foster, Vanderbilt
SEC SCHOLAR-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR
Dave Bliss, Georgia
SEC FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR
Nick Calathes, Florida*
Patrick Patterson, Kentucky*
SEC SIXTH MAN OF THE YEAR
J.P. Prince, Tennessee
SEC DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Jarvis Varnado, Mississippi State#
USBWA All-District
Ramel Bradley, Kentucky
Chris Douglas-Roberts, Memphis
Shan Foster, Vanderbilt
Jamont Gordon, Mississippi State
Richard Hendrix, Alabama
Chris Lofton, Tennessee
David Padgett, Louisville
Derrick Rose, Memphis
Tyler Smith, Tennessee
Robert Vaden, UAB