Long Beach State junior Casper Ware added to his awards haul after being named the Big West Defensive Player of the Year, spearheading the 2010-11 Men's Basketball All-Specialty Team. Cal State Fullerton freshman Isiah Umipig was hailed the Best Sixth Player and UC Davis senior Joe Harden repeated as Best Hustle Player.
The conference's nine head coaches voted on the awards, but were not allowed to cast votes for their own players. This is the 11th straight year that the Big West has named an All-Specialty Team.
Ware, the 2010-11 Big West Player of the Year, added another piece of hardware to his collection as the coaches acknowledged his role in turning Long Beach State into a much improved defensive squad. The 49er point guard, Ware compiled 53 steals and ranked fourth in the Big West with 1.8 steals per game. In Big West games, he helped limit the opponent to 60 points or less on seven occasions, all resulting in 49er victories. The 49ers were 12-0 in conference play when they held the opponent under 70 points. Ware’s defensive abilities also created numerous fast break opportunities that resulted in penetration to the bucket and trips to the free throw line. Ware led all Big West guards with 181 free throw attempts in the regular season. Ware becomes the first LBSU recipient of the top defensive player award.
Umipig made six starts in his 30 appearances as a Cal State Fullerton freshman, ranking sixth on the team with 7.6 points per game in earning the Big West’s Best Sixth Player award. The guard scored in double figures 10 times, including a career-high 23 points in the regular season finale against UC Davis. He ranked seventh in the Big West in three-point field goal percentage (.386), converting 39 of 101 attempts. The native of Federal Way, Wash. drained 19 of his 39 threes in the final nine games of the campaign. Umipig is the third Titan in the last six seasons to garner top sixth man plaudits, joining Frank Robinson (2005-06) and Marcus Crenshaw (2006-07).
Harden was recognized as the Best Hustle Player for the second straight season. The UC Davis senior ranked 11th in the Big West in scoring (14.9 ppg), tied for 13th in rebounding (5.6 rpg), seventh in steals (1.4) and eighth in free throw percentage (.800). The 6-8 guard scored in double-digits in 22 of 28 games, including six contests of 20 or more points. The Acampo, Calif. native sustained an unfortunate season-ending knee injury against UC Riverside on Feb. 26, finishing his collegiate career with 1,326 points.
The Big West head coaches also voted to recognize Cal State Northridge senior Michael Lizarraga with a special Inspirational Award as the nation’s only deaf Division I men’s basketball student-athlete. The remarkable story of Lizarraga’s courage on and off the court has been well documented by national media outlets such as ESPN.com and the New York Times. Lizarrraga, a 6-7 forward, has started 10 of 30 games this season, averaging 5.9 points and 4.1 rebounds per game.
2010-11 BIG WEST DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Casper Ware, Long Beach State
2010-11 BIG WEST BEST SIXTH PLAYER
Isiah Umipig, Cal State Fullerton
2010-11 BIG WEST BEST HUSTLE PLAYER
Joe Harden, UC Davis