Liberty's McGhee Tabbed Player of the Year; 2020-21 @ASUN_MBB Awards Announced
Liberty's McGhee Tabbed Player of the Year; 2020-21 @ASUN_MBB Awards Announced
All-Conference Teams/Awards | Championship Page | Bracket | Championship Program
ATLANTA, Ga. - Liberty landed three of the top ASUN Conference Men's Basketball Postseason All-Conference accolades, as voted on by the league's head coaches. The Flames' Darius McGhee was named Player of the Year, Elijah Cuffee earned Defensive Player of the Year honors and Ritchie McKay captured the Coach of the Year award. Lipscomb's Romeao Ferguson was tabbed as the Newcomer of the Year while the Freshman of the Year nod was awarded to Stetson's Chase Johnston.
McGhee becomes the second-consecutive Liberty player to be recognized as Player of the Year after leading the Flames to their third-straight ASUN Regular Season title with an 11-2 conference record. On the year, the junior averaged 15.5 points per contest, ranking fourth in the league. Entering the ASUN Championship, he has connected on 84 three-pointers which ranks fourth in the nation and is first in the ASUN by making 3.4 three-point field goals per game. The guard from Roxboro, N.C., also sits fourth in the conference for three-point field goal percentage at 41.4 percent (84-of-203). McGhee tallied a career-high 34 points with eight made treys in the regular season finale at Bellarmine on Feb. 27 which clinched the title.
Cuffee takes home the Defensive Player of the Year honor after being named the Preseason Defensive Player of the Year in November and becomes the first Liberty player to capture the award. The senior from Poca, W. Va., was the captain of a Flames defense that ranked first in the conference allowing only 58.9 points per game from their opponent, which is also third in the nation. In addition, he ranked third in the ASUN with a 43.0 percent (46-of-107) clip from three-point range while adding 10.0 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game.
McKay captures his second-consecutive Coach of the Year accolade after leading his Liberty squad to an 11-2 ASUN record and its third-straight regular season title. The Flames are the No. 1 seed in the upcoming ASUN Championship for the second year in a row and have won 20 or more games in five-straight seasons (20-5). Liberty's nine-game winning streak is the fifth-longest in the nation.
Ferguson becomes the first-ever Lipscomb student-athlete to be named Newcomer of the Year. The senior transfer is second on his Bisons team and 10th in the ASUN with a 13.6 points per game average while grabbing 5.4 rebounds per outing which is 15th in the league. His 1.4 steals per game are fifth in the ASUN and he recorded four 20-point scoring games this season with one double-double.
Johnston is the second-straight Stetson Hatter and fourth all-time to capture Freshman of the Year honors after leading all ASUN freshmen in scoring with a 14.3 average which ranks eighth overall. His 72 made three-pointers this season is second in the conference he also ranks third in steals per game at 1.5. A prolific shooter from deep, Johnston connects on 38.9 percent (72-of-185) of his attempts this season.
Player of the Year: Darius McGhee, Liberty
Defensive Player of the Year: Elijah Cuffee, Liberty
Newcomer of the Year: Romeao Ferguson, Lipscomb
Freshman of the Year: Chase Johnston, Stetson
Coach of the Year: Ritchie McKay, Liberty
ASUN All-Conference First Team
*Darius McGhee, Liberty, Jr., G
*Ahsan Asadullah, Lipscomb, Jr., C
*Pedro Bradshaw, Bellarmine, Jr., G
Dylan Penn, Bellarmine, Jr., G
Carter Hendricksen, North Florida, Jr., F
ASUN All-Conference Second Team
Dontarius James, Jacksonville, Jr., F
Elijah Cuffee, Liberty, Sr., G
Romeao Ferguson, Lipscomb, Gr., G
Mervin James, North Alabama, So., F
Jose Placer, North Florida, Jr., G
ASUN All-Freshmen Team
*Chase Johnston, Stetson, Fr., G
*Chris Youngblood, Kennesaw State, Fr., G
Detalian Brown, North Alabama, Fr., G
Jonathan Aybar, North Florida, Fr., F
Josh Smith, Stetson, Fr., F
* - Denotes unanimous selection
The 2021 ASUN Men's Basketball Championship begins on Thursday, March 4, at UNF Arena and Swisher Gymnasium in Jacksonville, Fla. The semifinals take place on Friday, March 5, while the ASUN Final tips on Sunday, March 7, at 2 PM ET on ESPN.
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The ASUN, a Division I conference member of the NCAA, boasts a membership of institutions that share visionary leadership, bold ambition and creative innovation. As a nimble adaptive conference, unafraid to blaze a national pathway for better service to our student-athletes, teams, and institutions, the ASUN has a proud history of firsts, national academic and athletic achievements and a conference culture that walks the walk with its four ASUN Beams. Students First! Rise. Connect. Impact. #ASUNBuilt by Bellarmine (Louisville), Central Arkansas (Conway), Eastern Kentucky (Richmond), FGCU (Fort Myers), Jacksonville (Fla.), Jacksonville State (Jacksonville, Ala.), Kennesaw State (Ga.), Liberty (Lynchburg, Va.), Lipscomb (Nashville), North Alabama (Florence), North Florida (Jacksonville, Fla.), and Stetson (DeLand, Fla.).