PROVO, Utah (March, 7, 2005) -- BYU senior guard Mike Hall was named to the All-Mountain West Conference Third Team and Cougar sophomore point guard Austin Ainge received All-MWC honorable mention Monday when the Mountain West Conference announced its annual postseason awards.
Selected by the league's eight men's head coaches and a selected media panel, the MWC awards recognize the accomplishments of top conference performers during the 2005 MWC regular season.
Hall led BYU in scoring at 14.3 points per game to rank eighth among MWC players. The 6-foot-3 swingman finished fourth in steals per game (1.79) and ranked fifth in three-point shots made per game (1.86). He was 12th in free-throw percentage (.767) and 15th in blocked shots per game (0.5).
A native of San Bernardino, Calif., Hall added 3.1 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game for the Cougars during league play. He was also a third-team selection last year in his first season at BYU after transferring from Dixie State College in St. George, Utah.
Ainge earned honorable-mention recognition in his first season of significant playing time. The Gilbert, Ariz., native missed half the 2003-04 season with an injury and played sparingly upon his return, but took over the starting duties early this season and became the team's second-leading scorer and top assist maker.
The 6-foot-2 sophomore ranked third among MWC players in assists per game (4.57) and was fourth in assist/turnover ratio (1.42). He was 14th in free-throw percentage (.750). Ainge averaged 10 points and 3.2 rebounds during league games for the Cougars.
Utah's Ray Giacoletti was named the MWC Coach of the Year, while Ute center Andrew Bogut garnered MWC Player of the Year honors. Wyoming's Justin Williams is the league's Defensive Player of the Year and Colorado State's Jason Smith was named Freshman of the Year.
2004-05 All-Mountain West Conference Men's Basketball Team
(Selected by media and head coaches)
Player of the Year: Andrew Bogut, Utah
Defensive Player of the Year: Justin Williams, Wyoming
Freshman of the Year: Jason Smith, Colorado State
Coach of the Year: Ray Giacoletti, Utah
First-Team All-Mountain West
Andrew Bogut, So., C, Utah
Danny Granger, Sr., F, New Mexico
Jay Straight, Sr., G, Wyoming
Odartey Blankson, Sr., F, UNLV
Marc Jackson, Sr., G, Utah
Second-Team All-Mountain West
Marcus Slaughter, So., F, San Diego St.
Brandon Heath, So., G, San Diego St.
Nick Welch, Jr., C, Air Force
Matt Nelson, Sr., C, Colorado State
Antoine Hood, Jr., G, Air Force
Third-Team All-Mountain West
Bryant Markson, Jr., F, Utah
Justin Williams, Jr., F/C, Wyoming
Mike Hall, Sr., G, BYU
David Chiotti, Jr., F, New Mexico
Troy DeVries, Sr., G, New Mexico
Honorable Mention
Air Force: Tim Keller (Sr., G), Matt McCraw (So., G), Jacob Burtschi (So., F)
BYU: Austin Ainge (So., G)
Colorado State: Jason Smith (Fr., F), Matt Williams (Sr., F)
New Mexico: Mark Walters (Jr., G), Alfred Neale (Sr., F)
San Diego State: Matt Thomas (Fr., G)
UNLV: Michael Umeh (So., G), Romel Beck (Sr., G), Louis Amundson (Jr., F)
Utah: Justin Hawkins (So., F)
Wyoming: Dion Sherrell (Sr., G)