SAN MATEO, Calif. – BYU seniors Brandon Averette, Alex Barcello and Matt Haarms earned All-West Coast Conference recognition Tuesday, with Barcello being named to the first team and Averette and Haarms being named to the second team. Haarms was also named the WCC Defensive Player of the Year. Freshman Caleb Lohner was named to the All-WCC freshman team.
The four starters combined to lead BYU to a 19-5 regular season record, helping the Cougars to the No. 2 seed in the WCC Tournament for the second season in a row.
Haarms is the first BYU men's basketball player to win the WCC Defensive Player of the Year award. He is the first to be named a conference defensive player of the year since Jackson Emery won the Mountain West Conference honor in 2011.
The Cougars have had 15 players named to WCC all-conference teams since 2012.
Alex Barcello
Barcello has led the Cougars in scoring this season, averaging 15.7 points per game. He scored in double figures a team-high 19 times in 24 games this season. His season-high, and career-high, scoring performance came last week against San Francisco, when he dropped 29 points. He set a new BYU record in that game, going 7-for-7 from beyond the arc. That's the most 3-pointers in a game without a miss in BYU history. Barcello is shooting 48.9 percent from three-point range this season. That's the ninth-best percentage in the nation.
Brandon Averette
Averette had the season's highest single-game scoring total for the Cougars, pouring in 30 points against Texas Southern. He's the only Cougar to reach the 30-point plateau in a game this season. He's averaged 11.4 points, 3.7 assists and 2.8 rebounds this season. Averette has been a clutch performer down the stretch in some key moments this season, including big shots at San Diego State and Saint Mary's late. Averette has scored in double figures in seven consecutive games and nine of his last 10.
Matt Haarms
Haarms has averaged 11 points and 4.7 rebounds this season. He's been a constant, shot-altering presence at the rim, averaging two blocks per game. He's racked up a season-high five blocks per game in two of his last three games. Haarms entered the BYU record books earlier this season, shooting 9-for-9 from the field in a game. The only player in BYU history to have more consecutive makes in a game without a miss was Kresmir Cosic in 1971.
Caleb Lohner
Lohner worked his way into a starting position in this, his freshman season. Even when he was coming off the bench, Lohner has led the team in rebounding all season, at 6.8 boards per game. He's poured it on offensively as of late, scoring a career-high 19 points four games ago against Pacific. He followed that up with 18 points two nights later. Lohner is averaging 7.6 points per game. He was named WCC Freshman of the Week twice this season.
The Cougars will play in the semifinals of the 2021 University Credit Union West Coast Conference Basketball Tournament in Las Vegas on Monday, March 8, at 9 p.m. PST. BYU — the No. 2 seed — will play the winner of Saturday's quarterfinal between No. 3 Pepperdine and the the winner of No. 6 Pacific vs. No. 7 Santa Clara/No. 10 Portland.
2020-21 All-WCC Men’s Basketball Major Individual Honors
Player of the Year: Corey Kispert, GonzagaCoach of the Year: Mark Few, GonzagaDefensive Player of the Year: Matt Haarms, BYUNewcomer of the Year: Jalen Suggs, Gonzaga
2020-21 All-WCC Men’s Basketball First Team
NameYr.Pos.SchoolJoel AyayiJr.GGonzagaAlex BarcelloSr.GBYUJamaree BouyeaSr.GSan FranciscoKessler EdwardsJr.FPepperdineCorey KispertSr.FGonzagaColbey RossSr.GPepperdineEli ScottSr.G/FLMUJalen SuggsFr.GGonzagaDrew TimmeSr.FGonzagaJosip VrankicSr.FSanta Clara
2020-21 All-WCC Men’s Basketball Second Team
NameYr.Pos.SchoolBrandon AveretteSr.GBYUMatt HaarmsSr.FBYULogan JohnsonJr.GSaint Mary'sAndrew NembhardJr.GGonzagaKhalil ShabazzJr.GSan Francisco
2020-21 All-WCC Men’s Basketball Freshman Team
NamePos.SchoolJalin AndersonGLMUOumar BalloCGonzagaCaleb LohnerFBYUMitchell SaxenCSaint Mary'sJalen SuggsGGonzaga
2020-21 WCC Men’s Basketball Honorable Mention Selections
LMU: Dameane Douglas, Kelli LeaupepePacific: Jeremiah Bailey, Daniss JenkinsPortland: Ahmed AliSan Diego: Joey CalcaterraSan Francisco: Dzmitry RyunySanta Clara: Jalen Williams