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 All-WAC selections
Advertiser Staff
Cool weather and mixed feelings greeted University of Hawai‘i men’s basketball coach Riley Wallace yesterday upon the team’s arrival in Tulsa, Okla.
The Rainbows are in town for the Western Athletic Conference Tournament. They open against Texas Christian on Thursday.
Yesterday, the WAC announced its all-conference team and Wallace was left both pleased and disappointed. Junior guard Predrag Savovic was named to the First Team and freshman forward Phil Martin was selected to the all-Newcomer Team, but senior center Troy Ostler did not receive any recognition by the league’s coaches.
"Savo’s had a very good year," Wallace said. "He’s been able to stay away from injuries, which is something that hurt Troy. Troy’s an all-league player, too, but he’s never fully recovered (from an ankle injury suffered in December)."
Savovic is averaging 17.7 points and 4.9 rebounds and leads the team with 51 3-pointers.
"He’s been consistent," Wallace said. "And all the other coaches say he’s a tough matchup for them defensively. He’s 6-6, 225 playing at the two guard. At his size, he’s awfully tough to match up inside and he’s one of the best perimeter shooters in the league."
Savovic called it "an honor, but I don’t look at titles as a big thing because you can’t get it without your teammates." Besides, he said, "I would trade it for the WAC championship."
Martin’s development was a "pleasant surprise for us this year," said Wallace. Martin worked his way into the starting lineup after providing valuable post help when Bosko Radovic suffered a season-ending injury, Ostler was slowed by his left-ankle sprain and Haim Shimonovich waited to become eligible.
"I didn’t expect to do as well as I did," said Martin, who is averaging 9.2 points and 4.0 rebounds. His .633 field-goal percentage led the league.
"He is well ahead of schedule from where we thought he would be," Wallace said. "He’s a good defender · always draws one of the other team’s best players because he’s got quick feet and good hands. And his offense is coming around. He’s a lot more confident (in his shooting) now."
The 6-foot-10 Ostler is averaging 15.5 points and 6.2 rebounds with 46 blocks, but those numbers weren’t enough to earn him any honors.
"I’m disappointed for Troy because he worked really hard to get ready for this year," Wallace said. "He was off to a great start, averaging 20 (points) and 9 (rebounds) when he got hurt. He never really recovered from that. He doesn’t elevate as much as he did before, but we’re hoping he gets it back going now. We’ll need him to go hard this week."
All-WAC
First Team
Predrag Savovic, Hawai‘i, G/F, 6-6, 225, Jr., Herceg Novi, Yugoslavia (UAB)
Melvin Ely, Fresno State, C, 6-10, 256, Jr., Harvey, Ill. (Thornton Township)
Brandon Wolfram, UTEP, F, 6-9, 230, Sr., Amarillo, Texas (Amarillo)
Mike Wilks, Rice, G, 5-11, 180, Sr., Milwaukee (Rufus King)
Chris Jefferies, Fresno State, G/F, 6-8, 216, So., Fresno, Calif. (Arkansas)
Second Team
Jeryl Sasser, SMU, G, 6-6, 200, Sr., Dallas, Texas (Kimball)
Kevin Johnson, Tulsa, F, 6-7, 215, So., Missouri City, Texas (HCYA)
Tito Maddox, Fresno State, G, 6-4, 190, Fr., Compton, Calif. (Compton)
Damon Hancock, SMU, G, 6-3, 195, Jr., Lancaster, Texas (Lancaster)
Eugene Costello, UTEP, G, 5-10, 165, Jr., New Orleans (Midland College)
Player of the Year: Melvin Ely, Fresno State
Freshman of the Year: Tito Maddox, Fresno State
Don Haskins Coach of the Year: Jerry Tarkanian, Fresno State
All-Newcomer Team
Phil Martin, Hawai‘i, F, 6-7, 198, Fr., Ontario, Canada (Cathedral HS)
Chris Jefferies, Fresno State, G/F, 6-8, 216, So., Fresno, Calif. (Arkansas)
Tito Maddox, Fresno State, G, 6-4, 190, Fr., Compton, Calif. (Compton)
Eugene Costello, UTEP, G, 5-10, 165, Jr., New Orleans (Midland College)
Andre Hazel, Nevada, G, 5-11, 175, Fr., Garden Grove, Calif. (Artesia HS)
All-Defensive Team
Melvin Ely, Fresno State, C, 6-10, 256, Jr., Harvey, Ill. (Thornton Township)
Chris Jefferies, Fresno State, G/F, 6-8, 216, So., Fresno, Calif. (Arkansas)
Derrick Davenport, TCU, C, 6-10, 184, Sr., Indianapolis (Florida CC)
Mike Wilks, Rice, G, 5-11, 180, Sr., Milwaukee (Rufus King)
Dante Swanson, Tulsa, G, 5-10, 170, So., Wagoner, Okla. (Wagoner)
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