April 15, 2008
Columbia, Mo. - Leo Lyons and DeMarre Carroll shared Most Outstanding Player honors as Missouri Basketball looked back on the 2007-08 campaign Tuesday evening at its annual awards banquet held the Holiday Inn Select Executive Center in Columbia.
Lyons and Carroll paced the club in both scoring and rebounding, helping the Tigers develop one of the league's more versatile frontline tandems towards the end of the season. Also named the team's Most Improved Player, Lyons showed a dramatic increase in scoring and rebounding as a junior to share the M.O.P. Award with Carroll. Lyons led the club with 13.1 points per game and paced the Big 12 Conference with 58.3 percent shooting from the floor (No. 23 nationally). In Big 12 play Lyons averaged an improved 14.3 points and 6.5 rebounds to earn a spot on the Big 12's All-Improved Team by the league media. The team leader with six 20-point games last year, Lyons averaged 16.1 points and 8.0 rebounds over his final 16 games, which included a career-best effort of 27 points and 18 rebounds against Oklahoma State. Lyons hit 12-of-13 shots vs. the Cowboys, breaking the Mizzou Arena record for field goal accuracy, while also setting the standard for single-game boards. The 18 rebounds also tied for the most in a Big 12 game this year. Overall Lyons saw his statistical averages improve 5.7 points and 1.4 rebounds from his sophomore season, making him the most improved player on the team and one of the most improved players in the Big 12 Conference.
Carroll was equally impactful for the Tigers as a junior, pacing the team with 6.7 rebounds per game and ranking second with 13.0 points. Named the Big 12's Newcomer of the Year by the media and the Big 12 Coaches, Carroll ranked among league leaders in a number of statistical categories, finishing fourth in field goal percentage (.536), seventh in double-doubles (four), ninth in rebounding and 17th in scoring. Carroll was the team's most consistent low-post scorer, reaching double figures 22 times, including four 20-point efforts. In a double-overtime win against Iowa State, the Birmingham, Ala., native recorded a career high 26 points, six of which came in the deciding second overtime to lead Mizzou to the thrilling win. Carroll also proved to be an outstanding all-around threat, finishing second on the club with 36 steals, while tying for the team lead with 21 blocked shots. For his team-leading 6.7 rebounds, Carroll was also named the team's Chairman of the Boards. A junior on the hardwood, Carroll will graduate from Missouri in May and will begin work on his graduate degree coursework this summer as he prepares for his senior campaign at Mizzou.
J.T. Tiller joined Carroll and Lyons as the only Tigers to win multiple awards on Tuesday. The sophomore won the team's Best Defender Award for his outstanding effort and desire on defense and the Iron Tiger Award for his work in the strength and conditioning program. Tiller recorded 26 steals on the year, but was Missouri's top on-ball defender throughout the season. A native of Marietta, Ga., Tiller's relentless effort on defense earned him consideration for the Big 12's All-Defensive Team as he finished the year averaging career highs of 6.8 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.8 assists. Tiller played some of his best basketball late in the year, when he made 11 starts in the final 12 contests, including a Feb. 2 game against Kansas State where he scored a career high 20 points in the upset win over the No. 22 Wildcats. Tiller hit 7-of-13 shots and played outstanding defense to help Mizzou to the thrilling victory. For his efforts he was named the Big 12's Co-Player of the Week, which included a 14-point effort against Nebraska.
Senior Jason Horton claimed the Tiger Assist Award after leading the team with 3.3 dimes per game. Horton finished his Missouri career fifth in school history with 513 assists and led the Big 12 Conference with a 2.85-to-1 assist-to-turnover ratio. That outstanding ratio also ranked No. 6 nationally. A steady point guard throughout his Tiger tenure, Horton also finished his career No. 10 in steals (150), becoming just the fourth player in school history to finish their career among the Top 10 in both assists and steals. Only Horton, Anthony Peeler, Mike Sandbothe and Lynn Hardy have accomplished the feat. With Horton taking the lead, Missouri averaged just 12.9 turnovers per game on the year, the fewest in school history, while ranking No. 2 in the Big 12 and No. 23 nationally with 16.7 assists per game. Horton will graduate in may with a degree in personal finance.
Fellow senior Vaidotas Volkus won the Tiger Coaches Award for his commitment to attaining team goals. An unselfish performer throughout his two-year career, Volkus played in 28 games, making 10 starts in his final year. The Lithuania native scored a career high 12 points on Jan. 30 vs. Nebraska and scored a then career high eight points in his first career start on Jan. 19 against Kansas. Volkus will graduate this summer with a degree agriculture.
Darryl Butterfield and Keon Lawrence shared the Tiger Pride Award. Butterfield earned the award for leading the team with 21 charges drawn, while Lawrence earned the nod by averaging a team-leading 29.2 minutes pre game. While it's not an official statistic, Butterfield ranked among the nation's leaders in charges taken last season, which included an incredible three charges drawn in the 84-70 win over Maryland in the consolation game of the CBE Classic in Kansas City. He also took a pair of charges at California and averaged 4.0 points and 2.0 rebounds on the year in 30 games. Butterfield will graduate from Missouri this May.
Lawrence was one of Missouri's most driven athletes last season and was noted for the countless hours he spent shooting in the Mizzou Arena practice gym. A native of Newark, N.J., Lawrence averaged career highs of 11.0 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.4 assists in 32 games last season. Lawrence paced the club with 29.2 minutes per game and topped the 30-minute plateau 17 times, including 10 of his final 11 games played. The 6-foot-2 guard played his best basketball in Big 12 play, where he averaged 11.9 points and shot 42.0 percent from three-point range. He also turned in some outstanding efforts on the road, including 25 points at Kansas on 10-of-13 shooting and 24 at Texas Tech.
Senior Marshall Brown earned the Tiger Service Award for the second consecutive year, and rightfully so. No Tiger has been more visible in the Columbia community than Brown. A 2008 Missouri graduate come May, Brown interned at the Yellow Door Preschool in Columbia and was a nominee for the Lowe's Senior Class Award. On the court, Brown was named team captain in 2007-08 and finished his career with 881 points. The Austin, Texas, native played in 122 career games in a Missouri uniform, starting 65. He scored a season high 14 points in Missouri's 97-84 win over No. 12 Texas, hitting 6-of-9 shots while grabbing four rebounds. Brown will complete his coursework from Missouri this May.
Matt Lawrence also earned some hardware, claiming the Tiger Free Throw Award. Lawrence hit 21-of-23 free throws on the year for a 91.3 percent accuracy rate. On the year, Lawrence ranked fourth on the club with 8.8 points per game, hitting a team-leading 72 three-pointers. For his career, Lawrence has 162 three-point makes which ranks No. 8 all-time and is just 65 triples shy of Kareem Rush for second place. An Academic All-Big 12 pick as well, Lawrence scored a career high 28 points at Mississippi State and recorded double figure scoring numbers 12 times on the year.
Although Mizzou spent Tuesday evening looking back on the 2007-08 season, work towards the future is underway. Returning Tigers are currently going through individual workouts with members of the Missouri coaching staff and seven new Tigers (including Delaware transfer Zaire Taylor) will join the fray next season. It's been a busy off-season for a number of Tiger newcomers, including Kansas City native Marcus Denmon who recently earned the prestigious DiRenna Award as the top player in Kansas City. Miguel Paul was recently named the Lakeland Ledger's Player of the Year and Kim English led his Baltimore team to an Charm City Classic All-Star win with 18 points on 7-of-13 shooting.
For more information on the University of Missouri Basketball program, please visit our website at mutigers.com.
2008 Mizzou Basketball Awards Banquet Honorees
Iron Tiger Award: J.T. Tiller
(For outstanding effort and performance in strength training)
Most Improved Player Award: Leo Lyons
(For dedication to improving his basketball skill level)
Chairman of the Boards Award: DeMarre Carroll
(Team-leader in rebounding)
Best Defender Award: J.T. Tiller
(For outstanding effort and desire on defense)
Tiger Assist Award: Jason Horton
(For unselfish play and leading the team in assists)
Tiger Coaches Award: Vaidotas Volkus
(For commitment to attaining team goals and displaying the intangible qualities that build teamwork)
Tiger Pride Award: Darryl Butterfield / Keon Lawrence
(For sacrificing his body and leading the team in charges taken and minutes played)
Tiger Service Award: Marshall Brown
(For commitment to serving and giving to the community)
Tiger Free Throw Award: Matt Lawrence
(For excellence in free throw shooting and leading the team free throw percentage)
Most Outstanding Player Award: DeMarre Carroll / Leo Lyons
(For overall performance and being a team leader on the floor)
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