Ohio Valley Conference

Murray State's Cuthbert Victor

TTU's Willie Jenkins

TSU's Bruce Price

APSU's Dave Loos

Murray State senior forward Cuthbert Victor, who leads the league and ranks among national leaders in rebounding, was selected as the OVC men's basketball Player of the Year for 2003-04 in voting by the league's head coaches and sports information directors.

The conference's other top honors went to Tennessee Tech junior forward Willie Jenkins as the OVC Newcomer of the Year, Tennessee State guard Bruce Price as the OVC Freshman of the Year, and Austin Peay's Dave Loos as OVC Coach of the Year. The awards were announced Thursday evening in Nashville on the eve of the semifinals and finals of the 2004 OVC Basketball Tournament Presented by Aeropostale.

Victor has had an outstanding senior season, ranking among league leaders in five statistical categories while helping Murray State top the 20-win mark en route to a runner-up OVC regular-season finish at 14-2 (26-5 overall). The 6-foot-5 forward from St. Croix, Virgin Islands, is averaging a conference-high 10.4 rebounds per game this season, which is the fourth-best effort in NCAA Division I action. Victor, who ranks second in the conference and is among the Top 5 nationally in field goal percentage (62.5%), has shot 54 percent or better from the floor in each of his four years at Murray State, boasting a 58.6 career conversion rate thus far. He also ranks second in the OVC in blocked shots (54) and eighth in scoring (14.6 ppg) and steals (45) this season. Moving up to 1st team All-OVC after earning 2nd team honors a year ago, Victor has scored in double-figures in 22 of 31 outings and gone over 20 points on six occasions during the 2003-04 campaign.

Jenkins made a big impact in his first season in the league, helping Tennessee Tech to a fifth-place OVC tie at 7-9 (13-15 overall). After collecting 17 points and seven rebounds in his Tennessee Tech debut, the 6-foot-6 junior forward went on to score in double figures in all but one of Tech's 28 games, including 23 straight to open the season. He collected seven double-doubles over the course of the year, ranking second and fifth in the league, respectively, in scoring (19.5 ppg) and rebounding (7.2 rpg). A native of Memphis, Tenn., he also finished among league leaders in field goal shooting with a 47.4 percent effort and scored 20 or more points in 16 contests, including a run of nine straight midway through the season.

Price had an impressive rookie season, ranking among league leaders in four statistical categories while helping Tennessee State overcome an 11th-place preseason nod to finish eighth with a 6-10 mark (7-21 overall). The 6-foot-3 guard is the only freshman listed among the league’s Top 15 scorers, ranking third with 17.6 points per game. A 2nd-team All-OVC pick, Price tallied double figures in 22 contests this season, netting 20 or more points on 11 occasions, including two outings where he topped the 30-point plateau. He is also second in the OVC in 3-point field goal average (2.6 pg), seventh in steals (46), eighth in assists (108) and 10th in 3-point field goal percentage (34.1%). The Minneapolis, Minn., native, who clocked 38 minutes of action in his collegiate debut, started 25 of the 27 games in which he played, averaging 35 minutes per game.

Loos picks up his fourth OVC Coach of the Year honor after guiding his squad to an unprecedented 16-0 conference record en route to its sixth OVC regular-season title and second straight 20-win season (20-8). The Govs' school-record 16 wins tied a conference mark and their undefeated effort, the fourth in league history, was the first since former member Western Kentucky posted a 14-0 OVC record in 1969-70. Now in his 18th season at the helm of Governor basketball, Loos registered his 200th Austin Peay coaching victory last December, and with Tuesday night's first-round win over Tennessee State, collected his 300th all-time victory. Loos is just the second person to earn four OVC Coach of the Year awards, and is the first to do so at one school.

FIRST TEAM
Cuthbert Victor, Murray State
Adrian Henning, Austin Peay
Ricky Minard, Morehead State
Willie Jenkins, Tennessee Tech
Josh Lewis, Austin Peay

SECOND TEAM
Matt Witt, Eastern Kentucky
Jon Bentley, Eastern Kentucky
Chez Marks, Morehead State
Chris Shumate, Murray State
Bruce Price, Tennessee State

THIRD TEAM
Phillip Ramelli, Samford
Anthony Davis, Austin Peay
Cameron Crisp, Tennessee Tech
Jared Newson, Tennessee-Martin
Trent Eager, Jacksonville State


OVC PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Cuthbert Victor, Murray State

OVC NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR: Willie Jenkins, Tennessee Tech

OVC FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: Bruce Price, Tennessee State

OVC COACH OF THE YEAR: Dave Loos, Austin Peay