To The Victors Go The Spoils

UPDATE: Sometimes all you have to do is wish on a star, Chris Lowery wins Coach of the Year.

And the accolades keep rolling in for the #11 SIU Salukis men's basketball team.

• Senior guard Jamaal Tatum was voted Missouri Valley Conference player of the year in a close vote over runner-up Nate Funk (Creighton) and fellow teammate Randal Falker. Falker did take the individual award for Defensive Player of the Year.
  
• Falker also joined Tatum on the All-MVC first team. Saluki teammates Bryan Mullins and Tony Young join Falker on the All-Defensive team.
• As for the All-Centennial Team for the MVC, four Salukis made the squad. Ashraf Amaya, Darren Brooks, Mike Glenn and Kent Williams were named to the team. Brooks, a two-time MVC player of the year, was the only one I got the pleasure to see first-hand. I was here at SIU for DB's senior year.
• More on the Tatum front, he was named to the Academic All-American team. Good to see that education still matters in the NCAA. Tatum, Mullins and Matt Shaw were named to the MVC All-Academic team. Damn, this is one good all-around team.
• And finally, sixth man Wesley Clemmons was named to the MVC All-Bench team. Clemmons, may make the leap (like Tony Young did after his sophomore year) to the starting line-up in 2007-08 when two guard spots are opened up with the graduations of Tatum and Young.

I'm wondering when Coach Chris Lowery gets MVC Coach of the Year. Or how about National Coach of the Year?