March 9, 2009
SAN DIEGO - After earning a share of its first league title in 12 seasons, San Diego State women's basketball's Beth Burns was named Mountain West Conference Coach of the Year and junior guard Jené Morris garnered Defensive Player-of-the-Year honors, the league office announced Monday afternoon. Morris joined sophomore Paris Johnson as the first two Aztecs ever to be named first-team all-MWC, while junior point guard Quenese Davis was tabbed to the six-player second team. All three players were also picked to the league's first-ever all-defensive team.
In her fourth year of her second stint as head coach of the Aztecs, Burns has led SDSU to a conference-best 22-6 overall record, including a 13-3 mark in league action. San Diego State earned a share of its first conference crown since 1997 by concluding the regular season with five straight wins and victories in nine of its last 10 outings. The first-place finish comes just one year after tying for fifth place with a 7-9 MWC record and three years after going winless in league play.
Burns helped SDSU go undefeated at home for just the second time in program history, notching a perfect 14-0 record at Cox Arena. The Aztecs have won 16 in a row overall on their home court, a streak that currently ranks eighth-best in the nation. Also included among the team's other accomplishments thus far in 2008-09 is its first win over a ranked team in 14 years, as San Diego State upset previously undefeated and fourth-ranked Texas, before picking up a victory at No. 23 New Mexico.
This is Burns' fourth career league coach-of-the-year honor, having garnered the same award in 1994, 1995 and 1997, during her first stint with the Aztecs, who were then members of the Western Athletic Conference.
Morris (San Francisco, Calif.) was named the MWC Defensive Player of the Year, after leading the league in steals in both overall (3.27/g) and conference-only (2.94/g) contests. She has three or more steals in 17 of her 26 games, including a league-high eight on two occasions, which are the most by an Aztec since 2002. Morris has 177 takeaways in her short two-year stay on The Mesa, including 85 as a junior.
A second-team all-league selection a year ago, Morris is fifth in the league and first on the team in scoring average with 14.8 points per outing. She earned MWC player-of-the-week honors four times in 2008-09 and was MVP of the San Diego Surf `N Slam after pouring in 24 points and eight steals in the upset of No. 4 Texas. Morris has led the squad in scoring 13 times, tallying double-figures in 20 games, including 34 vs. Iowa State and 31 last week at Colorado State.
Johnson (San Diego, Calif.) is one of two sophomores on this year's first team. The San Diego High graduate led the league in blocked shots with 83, including 52 in conference games to easily eclipse the MWC single-season record. Johnson also ranks second in offensive rebounds (2.96/g), third in rebounding (8.5 rpg.) and field-goal percentage (53.8), and seventh in scoring (14.3 ppg.). Her nine double-doubles are third in the conference, while the 6-4 center has posted 20 double-figure scoring outings and has 11 contests with at least 10 rebounds.
Johnson, a 2008 MWC honorable mention pick, was named the league's player-of-the-week on four occasions in 2008-09 and has twice garnered all-tournament accolades.
Davis (Sacramento, Calif.) is San Diego State's all-time career assists leader, compiling 475, including 163 this season to lead the Mountain West Conference (5.8/g). She enters this week ranked 14th nationally in assists after tallying five or more helpers in 23 of 28 contests, including in 20 of the last 23 games. The point guard is 10th in the league in scoring average (11.6 ppg.) and ranks in the top seven in the MWC in five other categories, including free-throw percentage (85.3), which is third-best in SDSU single-season history. Davis received third-team all-MWC honors as a freshman in 2007.
The second-seeded Aztecs earned a bye into the Mountain West Conference semifinals at this week's league championships at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nev. SDSU will play on Friday, March 13, at 2:30 p.m. PT against either No. 2 seed TCU, No. 6 seed BYU or No. 7 seed UNLV. The game will be televised live on The Mtn. and will also feature a live audio call, with Chris Ello, and live stats on SDSU's official website, www.goaztecs.com.
2009 Mountain West Conference Postseason Awards
Player of the Year: Morgan Warburton, Utah
Newcomer of the Year: TK LaFleur, TCU
Freshman of the Year: Jamie Smith, UNLV
Defensive Player of the Year: Jené Morris, San Diego State
6th Player of the Year: Emma Langford, Wyoming
Coach of the Year: Beth Burns, San Diego State
First Team All-Mountain West Conference
Paris Johnson, San Diego State, So., 6-4, C
Jené Morris, San Diego State, Jr., 5-9, G
Morgan Warburton, Utah, Sr., 5-11, G
Kalee Whipple, Utah, Jr., 6-0, F
Helena Sverrisdottir, TCU, So., 6-2, G
Second Team All-Mountain West Conference
Quenese Davis, San Diego State, Jr., 5-9, G
Amy Beggin, New Mexico, Jr., 5-6, G
TK LaFleur, TCU, Jr., 5-8, G
Hillary Carlson, Wyoming, So., 6-3, F
Emily Carter, TCU, So., 6-1, G
Katie King, Utah, Sr., 6-1, F
Third Team All-Mountain West Conference
Shamela Hampton, UNLV, Sr., 6-3, C
Angela Hartill, New Mexico, Sr., 6-3, C
Mindy Nielson, BYU, So., 5-10, G
Megan McGuffey, Wyoming, Sr., 5-11, F
Honorable Mention All-Mountain West Conference
Jamie Smith, UNLV, Fr., 6-0, G/F;
Raimee Beck, Air Force, Jr., 5-8, G;
Cassie King, BYU, Sr., 6-3, C;
Shawnee Slade, BYU, Sr., 5-11, G/F;
Kristen Scheffler, Wyoming, Fr., 5-11, G
All-Defensive Team
Jené Morris, San Diego State
Paris Johnson, San Diego State
Quenese Davis, San Diego State
Mindy Nielson, BYU
Amy Beggin, New Mexico