Feb. 28, 2006

ST. LOUIS, Mo. - After helping Wichita State win its first regular-season title in 23 years, Paul Miller was named the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year by a vote of league coaches, media and sports information directors.

Southern Illinois point guard Bryan Mullins was named the league's freshman of the year. He became the fifth player in school history to win MVC Freshman of the Year honors. The others were Tony Harvey (1989), Ashraf Amaya (1990), Marcus Timmons (1992) and Kent Williams (2000).

Mullins, who averages 5.7 ppg and 3.3 apg, was also named to the all-newcomer and all-defensive teams. He leads the MVC and ranks 9th in the nation in steals (2.86 spg). Mullins needs nine steals to tie Darren Brooks' single-season record of 92.

Saluki guard Tony Young entered the season with a reputation as a defensive specialist. But last year's MVC Sixth Man of the Year blossomed on offense this season and was rewarded with First-Team All-MVC honors. Young ranked third in scoring in conference games (14.8 ppg).

Young scored a career-high 30 against Bradley on Jan. 8. A clutch player, he made the game-winning shots against Drake (Jan. 14) and Northern Iowa (Feb. 25). In both games, Young had to hurry back on defense and defend the shooter on the game's final play.

SIU guard Jamaal Tatum also earned conference honors. He was named all-conference honorable mention and all-academic first team. The junior guard leads Southern Illinois in scoring and has a 3.70 GPA in speech communications.

PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Paul Miller, WSU
NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR: Nick Porter, CU
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: Bryan Mullins, SIU
DEFENSIVE MVP: Patrick O'Bryant, Bradley
SIXTH-MAN OF THE YEAR: Kellen Easley, MSU
PRAIRIE FARMS SCHOLAR-ATHLETE OF THE YEAR: Neil Plank, Illinois State

2006 All-MVC Men's Basketball First Team
Blake Ahearn, Missouri State, Jr., Gd.
Ben Jacobson, UNI, Sr., Gd.
Paul Miller, Wichita State, Sr., Ctr.
Grant Stout, UNI, Jr., Fwd.
Tony Young, Southern Illinois, Jr., Gd.

Second Team
Johnny Mathies, Creighton, Sr., Gd.
David Moss, Indiana State, Sr., Gd.
Patrick O'Bryant, Bradley, So., Ctr.
Marcellus Sommerville, Bradley, Sr., Fwd.
Anthony Tolliver, Creighton, Jr., Ctr.

Honorable-Mention Selections
Eric Coleman, UNI, So., Ctr.
PJ Couisnard, Wichita State, So., G/F
Jamaal Tatum, Southern Illinois, Jr., Gd.
Matt Webster, Evansville, Jr., Fwd.
Kyle Wilson, Wichita State, Jr., Fwd.

All-Newcomer Team
Karon Bradley, Wichita State, Jr., Gd.
Jason Holsinger, Evansville, Fr., Gd.
Bryan Mullins, Southern Illinois, Fr., Gd.
Nick Porter, Creighton, Jr., Gd.
Al Stewart, Drake, Jr., Gd.

All-Freshman Team
Josh Dotzler, Creighton, Gd.
Shy Ely, Evansville, G/F
Jason Holsinger, Evansville, Gd.
Bryan Mullins, Southern Illinois, Gd.
Jay Tunnell, Indiana State, F/C

All-Defensive Team (selected by coaches)
PJ Couisnard, Wichita State, So., G/F
Bryan Mullins, Southern Illinois, Fr., Gd.
Patrick O'Bryant, Bradley, So., Ctr.
Grant Stout, UNI, Jr., Fwd.
Tony Young, Southern Illinois, Jr., Gd.

Scholar-Athlete First Team
Paul Miller, Wichita State, Sr., 3.03 Entrepreneurship
Neil Plank, Illinois State, Sr., 3.93 Finance/MBA
Jamaal Tatum, S. Illinois, Jr., 3.70 Speech Communications
Anthony Tolliver, Creighton, Jr., 3.54 Finance
Trent Wurtz, Indiana State, Jr., 3.80 Communications

Scholar-Athlete Second Team
Chaun Brooks, Drake, Sr., 3.25 Political Science
Erik Crawford, UNI, Sr., 3.26 Leisure Services
Brooks McKowen, UNI, Jr., 3.56 Physical Education
David Moss, Indiana State, Sr., 3.07 Sports Studies
Tyson Schnitker, Indiana St., Jr., 3.30 Business
Matt Shaw, Southern Illinois, So., 3.56 Undeclared Major
Grant Stout, UNI, Jr., 3.06 Geography

The league will announce its all-bench and all-newcomer teams on Wednesday. The coach-of-the-year award will be issued at the pre-tournament banquet on Thursday at the Sheraton Hotel in St. Louis.