Adam Zagoria covers basketball at all levels. He is the author of two books and an award-winning journalist whose articles have appeared in ESPN The Magazine, SLAM, Sheridan Hoops, Sports Illustrated, Basketball Times and in newspapers nationwide.
Cade Cunningham, Luka Garza highlight AP First-Team All-American Selections
By JACOB POLACHECK
Iowa senior center Luka Garza and Oklahoma State freshman guard Cade Cunningham highlighted the AP All-American First-Team on Tuesday.
Garza and Cunningham were joined by Gonzaga senior forward Corey Kispert, Baylor junior guard Jared Butler and Illinois junior guard Ayo Dosunmu.
Garza, a two-time selection, was a unanimous pick for the All-American First-Team, earning all 63 of the possible votes.
“He’s the focal point of every defense every time we take the floor. The more tape that’s on him, the tougher that gets for him,” Hawkeyes coach Fran McCaffery said in a press release. “So I just have been really impressed with his relentlessness to continue to improve and to handle anything that comes his way.”
BREAKING: Gonzaga's Corey Kispert and Baylor’s Jared Butler named AP All-Americans, joined on first team by unanimous pick Luka Garza of Iowa, Ayo Dosunmu of Illinois and dynamic freshman Cade Cunningham of Oklahoma State.
Garza averaged 23.7 points, 8.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 1.7 blocks and 0.6 steals per game, leading Iowa to a 21-8 record and a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
Cunningham was the lone freshman selected to the first-team, becoming the first Oklahoma State player to ever earn First Team honors.
He led the Big 12 in scoring at 20.2 points per game, while posting 6.3 rebounds, 3.6 assists, 1.4 steals and 0.8 blocks per game as Oklahoma State finished with a 20-8 record and a No. 4 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
“Oklahoma State, last year wasn’t the year that they were proud of,” Cunningham said in a release, “but I know there’s a bunch of guys that wanted to win and we’re going to do everything that it took to win. So having a group of guys like that, with the coach we have and staff we have, that’s what I want to surround myself with.”
Butler became the first player in Baylor program history to earn a first-team All-American selection after averaging 17.1 points, 3.3 rebounds and 4.8 assists, leading Baylor to a 22-2 record and a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
“These awards are just team awards,” said Butler, who withdrew from the NBA draft to return for his junior year. “I wouldn’t be here without my teammates just playing with me and giving me confidence. It’s been nice.”
Kispert was a major piece for Gonzaga this season, averaging 19.2 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game, leading the Zags to a perfect 26-0 record and the No. 1 overall seed in the NCAA Tournament.
“He’s the epitome of a college athlete. He’s a poster child for the term student-athlete, great student, great ambassador for the program, our school and college athletics in general,” Gonzaga coach Mark Few said. “It’s all been because of the work, the time he’s put in, and his growth physically and mentally. He’s just an unbelievable guy.”
Dosunmu averaged 20.7 points, 6.3 rebounds and 5.3 assists this season for Illinois, leading the Illini to a 23-6 record and a No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
The full AP All-American Teams are provided below:
First Team
Luka Garza – Iowa
Cade Cunningham – Oklahoma State
Corey Kispert – Gonzaga
Jared Butler – Baylor
Ayo Dosunmu – Illinois
Second Team
Jalen Suggs – Gonzaga
Evan Mobley – USC
Kofi Cockburn – Illinois
Hunter Dickinson – Michigan
Drew Timme – Gonzaga
Third Team
Davion Mitchell – Baylor
Quentin Grimes – Houston
Herb Jones – Alabama
Cameron Krutwig – Loyola Chicago
Chris Duarte – Oregon
Follow Jacob Polacheck on TwitterFollow Adam Zagoria on TwitterFollow ZAGSBLOGHoops on InstagramAnd Like ZAGS on Facebook
