Big 12's best: OU's Griffin

KANSAS CITY, Mo. -- Blake Griffin, Oklahoma's record-smashing sophomore, is a unanimous choice for the Associated Press Big 12 player of the year for 2008-09.

Bill Self of Kansas, who lost every starter from last year's NCAA championship team but still molded the young Jayhawks into regular-season champions, outpolled Missouri's Mike Anderson for Big 12 coach of the year.

A panel of 18 sports writers and sportscasters who regularly cover the conference also named Denis Clemente of Kansas State the Big 12's newcomer of the year and Oklahoma guard Willie Warren freshman of the year.

Griffin and Kansas guard Sherron Collins were unanimous picks for the AP's first team. Joining them on the first unit were DeMarre Carroll of Missouri, Craig Brackins of Iowa State and Cole Aldrich of Kansas.

Behind Griffin, the Sooners finished the regular season 27-4 overall and matched their best conference record ever at 13-3. Two of the conference losses came while Griffin was out at least part of the game. On Saturday against Oklahoma State, the 6-foot-10 sophomore had 33 points and 14 rebounds and set the Big 12 season record with 425 rebounds. It was his school-record 25th double-double.

** FILE ** In this Feb. 21, 2009, file photo, Kansas coach Bill Self, left, talks with guard Brady Morningstar (12) during an NCAA college basketball game in Lawrence, Kan. Self has been voted the Big 12 Coach of the Year. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner, File)

"Blake Griffin, I just told my staff, may be the best player I've ever gone against as a player or a coach," said Oklahoma State coach Travis Ford.

Griffin goes into the postseason averaging 22.1 points and 14.2 rebounds.

"He plays above the rim as well as anybody I've seen in a long time," said Texas coach Rick Barnes. "He's got great hands, great strength in his hands. Around the rim, he's got great touch."

Nobody expected Kansas to be much better than fourth. The Jayhawks had lost almost every significant contributor off last year's NCAA championship run, including more than 80 percent of their scoring. But with Collins and Aldrich providing a devastating inside-out punch and a bevy of young role players coming into their own, Self guided them to their fifth conference title in a row, and their ninth in the Big 12's 13 season.

Anderson's job at Missouri was not to be overlooked, either. The Tigers' 25 wins overall were the second-most in a regular season in school history. Their 18-0 home mark was the best ever, as was their 12 Big 12 wins.

Anderson got six votes from the media panel and Self drew 12.

Warren, a 6-4 freshman, was a unanimous selection for the league's top freshman, while Clemente, a quick 6-1 native of Puerto Rico, drew every vote but one for newcomer honors. Clemente had 20 double-figure scoring games for Kansas State and tied the Big 12 record with a 44-point outburst against Texas.

"There's no question Denis Clemente is the quickest player in this league," said Self.

While Warren may have been overshadowed by the monstrous year his famous teammate put together, his contributions were not overlooked by those who know the team best.

"He's been really good for us all year, and we anticipate him being really good the rest of the year for us and making big plays," said Oklahoma coach Jeff Capel. "One of the things about Willie is I don't judge Willie by points. A lot of people do. In my mind, Willie's a guy that makes plays."

Making plays is also the specialty of Collins, the junior guard who became Kansas' leader upon the departure of last year's NBA-bound stars. He averaged a team-leading 18.3 points for the Big 12 champions and distributed five assists per game.

Aldrich, a 6-11 sophomore, averaged 14.8 points and 10.5 points. He missed unanimous selection by only one vote.

Coming barely short of averaging a double-double was Brackins, a 6-10 sophomore who rang up 20.1 points and 9.4 rebounds. His 622 points were the second-highest by a sophomore in school history.

The 6-8 Carroll was last year's AP newcomer of the year and only got better his senior season. He averaged 17.1 points as the Tigers earned a first-round bye in the conference tourney for the first time in 10 years. He was also named to the Big 12's All-academic squad.