BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – A trio of Aggies were honored Tuesday as the SEC men’s basketball coaches unveiled their annual awards. Junior center Tyler Davis was named First Team All-SEC, sophomore forward Robert Williams was selected Co-SEC Defensive Player of the Year, as well as to the SEC All-Defensive Team, and rookie guard TJ Starks garnered a spot on the SEC All-Freshman Team.
Davis, who garnered Second Team All-SEC honors a year ago, stood out as one of the most dominant and consistent players in the league during his junior campaign. The only Aggie to start all 31 games during the regular season, Davis has posted 11 double-double this season to bring his career total to 12, the second most among all active SEC players. During league play, Davis ranked 11th in scoring at 15.1 points per game while leading the conference in rebounding at 8.9 rebounds per contest. For the entire season, Davis leads the SEC in field goal percentage at 58.2 percent, ranks 13th in scoring (14.7 points per game) and third in rebounding (8.7 rebounds per game).
The Plano West High School product was named Co-SEC Player of the Week on Jan. 22 and has been selected to the watch lists for both the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award and the Naismith Trophy. Davis has joined both the 1,000-Point and 500-Rebound Clubs this season and enters the SEC Tournament ranked 13th in school history with 711 career boards as well as 15th with 1,300 career points.
Davis becomes the fourth Aggie to garner First Team All-SEC accolades from the league’s coaches, joining Elston Turner (2013), Danuel House (2015) and Jalen Jones (2016).
The second half of Texas A&M’s dual threat on the interior, Williams was recognized for the second consecutive season for his defensive prowess. The Oil City, La., native earned SEC Defensive Player of the Year accolades a year ago before sharing the honor with Chris Silva of South Carolina this season. While standing out as one of the league’s most disruptive defensive presences, Williams also leads the SEC in rebounding on the season at 9.0 boards per contest while maintaining an 11.9 points per game average during league play.
Williams enters the SEC tournament ranked fifth in school history with 141 career blocks and second in the SEC with a 2.5 block per game average this season.
Starks has come on strong for the Aggies during the second half of the season since drawing his first career start on Jan. 27 at Kansas. The Dallas native has started each of the Aggies’ last 11 games, averaging 14.2 points while shooting 44.3 percent from the field and 43.2 percent from beyond the 3-point arc during the stretch.
He was named the SEC Freshman of the Week on Feb. 12 after leading the Aggies in scoring during wins over No. 8 Auburn and No. 24 Kentucky.
Story courtesy of Texas A&M Athletics