By Christopher Dela Rosa/DFP Staff
The Patriot League announced Monday that three players from the Boston University men’s basketball team were awarded All-Conference accolades for their stellar play throughout the regular season.
Sophomore guard Maurice Watson Jr., senior guard and tri-captain D.J. Irving and freshman guard Cedric Hankerson were chosen to represent the Terriers (22-9, 15-3 Patriot League).
“I was really happy for those guys,” said BU coach Joe Jones. “It is well deserved, they worked hard, and it’s a nice accomplishment for them.”
Watson, after a solid sophomore campaign, was the only Terrier selected to the All-Patriot League First Team. Despite standing at just 5-foot-10, Watson used his crafty ball-handling skills and speed to either elude defenders or dish the ball to his teammates. For this reason he led the team with 13.4 points per game and led the entire Patriot League with 6.6 assists per game.
Meanwhile, Watson’s senior counterpart in Irving, the Patriot League Preseason Player of the Year, was named to the conference second team. Irving has been a staple of the BU offense, making big shots down the stretch. During his last year in the scarlet and white, Irving has tallied 12.3 points per game to go along with an impressive 80.7 percent shooting from the charity stripe.
In the Terriers’ last game, Irving hit two free throws in the closing seconds on the road against College of the Holy Cross Saturday to give BU a four-point lead. Irving’s makes would not only seal the game, but the Patriot League regular-season title. After the game ended, Irving became only the second-ever player at BU to log over 4,000 career minutes.
“Mo [Watson] and D.J. are one of the best backcourts in the country, they’ve been the primary ball-handlers on our team and we’ve been successful,” said BU senior guard Travis Robinson. “It’s well-deserved, their first and second team selections.”
Hankerson, a first-year player, was named to the All-Rookie Team. During conference play, he made a name for himself, hitting a number of contested 3-pointers that either kept BU in close games or was the spark the team needed to get a run going. Coming off of the bench, he averaged 6.1 points per game. One of Hankerson’s biggest contributions came in the Terriers’ win over the University of Maryland on Dec. 21. In that game, he tallied 14 points and seven rebounds.
Senior forward Dom Morris said the awards for the three players were well-deserved after the solid seasons they had.
“I’m extremely happy for them,” said senior forward Dom Morris. “It’s a big accomplishment. It says something about our program to have three guys on there. They credit the team, but we credit them too because without them, we wouldn’t be where we are
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