Lawson named AAC Co-Player of the Year
Lawson named AAC Co-Player of the Year
Special to The Times PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – University of Memphis sophomore Dedric Lawson has been named the American Athletic Conference Preseason Co-Player of the Year, as the Tigers were picked to finish fifth in the preseason coaches' poll.
Lawson claims Preseason Co-Player of the Year honors along with Cincinnati's Troy Caupain. Lawson and Caupain join three others: Gary Clark of Cincinnati, Ben Moore of SMU, and Damyean Dotson of Houston on the Preseason All-Conference First Team. Memphis earned 63 points in the preseason poll. Cincinnati earned six firstplace votes and 95 total points to be picked first in the Conference, while UConn received the remaining five first-place votes for 94 total points and a second place predicted finish.
Lawson was recently named to the watch list for the 2017 Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year. He earned 2015-16 American Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year honors after averaging 15.8 points per game and leading the conference with a 9.3 rebound per game average. He was named to the Kyle Macy Freshman All-America Team, and Second Team All-District by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC).
Lawson's 17 double-doubles last season tied a Memphis freshman record that he now shares with Keith Lee, and was 19th best in all of NCAA Division I. His 307 rebounds last season are the third-most by a freshman in program history, and his 9.3 rebound per game average ranks fourth in school history for a freshman. He was the only freshman in the country last season with at least 500 points, 300 rebounds, 60 assists, 50 blocked shots, and 20 three-pointers made.
Memphis went 19-15 last season, and fell in the championship game of the 2016 American Athletic Conference Tournament.
The Tigers open their 2016-17 season on November 7 with an exhibition game against Christian Brothers University, and open the regular season a week later on November 14 against UTRGV at 7 p.m. at FedExForum.
Season tickets for the 2016-17 season can be purchased by calling the University of Memphis ticket office at 901-6782331.
2016-17 American Athletic Conference Preseason Coaches Poll Team (First Place Votes) Pts.
Cincinnati (6) 95 UConn (5) 94 SMU 76 Houston 75 Memphis 63 Temple 56 East Carolina 39 UCF 37 Tulsa 34 USF 25 Tulane 11 2016-17 American Athletic Conference Preseason Individual Honors Preseason Co-Players of the Year Dedric Lawson, F, So., Memphis Troy Caupain, G, Sr., Cincinnati Preseason Rookie of the Year Alterique Gilberg, G, Fr., UConn Preseason All-Conference Teams First Team Troy Caupain, G, Cincinnati Gary Clark, F, Cincinnati Dedric Lawson, F, Memphis Ben Moore, F, SMU Damyean Dotson, G, Houston Second Team Shake Milton, G, SMU Jalen Adams, G, UConn Jahmal McMurray, G, USF Rob Gray, G, Houston B.J. Tyson, G, East Carolina
By UM Media Relations
