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College Football

B1G names Player of the Year, other individual award winners from 2021-22 men’s basketball season

Dustin Schutte

By Dustin Schutte

Published:

The individual honors are being handed out in the B1G.

Wisconsin’s Johnny Davis was named the B1G Player of the Year after an incredible 2021-22 season with the Badgers, leading his team to a share of the conference’s regular season title.

Davis was a do-it-all guard for the Badgers this season, averaging 20 points, 8.1 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.1 steals per game. He proved to be an effective player in multiple phases offensively, shooting better than 44% from the floor, 33.3% from the 3-point line and 78.2% from the free throw line.

In close-game situations this year, Davis was the go-to guy for Wisconsin. He pulled off late-game heroics in multiple contests, leading the Badgers to a 24-6 record, a 15-5 mark in B1G play and the No. 11 ranking at the end of the regular season.

The B1G Defensive Player of the Year honor went to Rutgers’ Caleb McConnell, who regularly drew the task of defending the league’s best players.

McConnell was a gritty defender all season long, averaging 2.2 steals and 5.2 rebounds per contest. He played a critical role in Rutgers’ late surge when it won 4 straight games over ranked opponents in February.

Purdue senior big man Trevion Williams was tabbed as the league’s Sixth Man of the Year, coming off the bench behind 7-foot-4 center Zach Edey. His willingness to come in off the bench rather than start served the Boilermakers well this year.

Williams was Purdue’s third-leading scorer off the bench at 11.6 points per game and was also the team’s second-best rebounder at 7.3 boards per game. He also averaged 3 assists for the year.

Leading the Badgers to a B1G regular season title earned head coach Greg Gard B1G Coach of the Year honors. After being selected to finish in the bottom half of the conference, Wisconsin surprised everyone this season.

It’s the second time in three seasons Gard has received the honor.

Wisconsin will head into the B1G Tournament with the No. 2 seed and a chance to secure a No. 2 seed in the upcoming NCAA Tournament.

Ohio State newcomer Malaki Branham was named the B1G Freshman of the Year after posting a tremendous stat line in his first year in Columbus. He was a key part of the Buckeyes’ success throughout the year.

Branham averaged 13.2 points, 3.6 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game as a freshman. He also shot better than 43% from 3-point range and was nearly a 50% shooter from the floor.

Along with the individual honors, the B1G also announced the All-B1G teams. You can view those selections here.

Dustin Schutte

Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB