Collins, Carr, And Bell Honored With America East Awards
March 1, 2002 | Men's Basketball
BOSTON - Three Boston University men's basketball players received postseason honors as the America East announced its all-conference awards on the eve of the America East Championship, set to begin on Saturday, March 2, at Northeastern's Matthews Arena.
Junior forward Billy Collins (Concord, NH / Bishop Brady) earned First Team All-Conference honors, while freshman guard Chaz Carr (Manchester, CT / Manchester) was selected Second Team All-Conference and to the All-Rookie Team. Freshman forward Rashad Bell (Queens, NY / St. Francis Prep), was also selected to the All-Rookie team. Each of the players was chosen in a vote conducted by the conference's head coaches.
The trio leads the second-seeded Terriers (19-9, 13-3) into the quarterfinals of the championship against seventh-seeded Northeastern (7-20, 5-11) in a 12 p.m. tipoff.
Collins is the first Terrier to be selected First Team All-Conference since 1997, when Tunji Awojobi, then a senior, led the team to a 25-5 record and the America East title. The award marks the first time since the 1998-99 season that any B. U. player was chosen All-Conference.
For Carr and Bell, their selections continue a string of All-Rookie Team picks dating back to the 1999 season. The Terriers' 2000 and 2001 team members, Paul Seymour (Liverpool, NY / Liverpool) and Jason Grochowalski (Shrewsbury, MA / Worcester Academy) are key components to the Terriers' success this season.
Collins, in his second season as a Terrier captain, has had a standout year. He is second on the team in scoring at 11.9 points per game, and leads the Terriers in rebounding, pulling down 8.0 rebounds per contest. He has worked his way to six point-rebound double doubles this year, and has posted career highs in every statistical category. He finished the regular season fourth in the conference in rebounding, first in three-point percentage (45.6 percent), and eighth in three-pointers (1.74 per game).
Carr emerged onto the America East scene almost immediately. He was the league's first Rookie of the Week in November, and has earned the award once each month during the season. He was only the second freshman ever to be selected as the league's Player of the Week after scoring 36 points against Northeastern on Jan. 20. Vermont's Eddie Benton was the other freshman chosen for the honor. Carr enters the America East Championship leading the Terriers in scoring at 13.4 points per game. He is in the op 10 among America East players in scoring (eighth), field goal percentage (eighth at 44.9 percent), and free throw percentage (ninth at 76.9 percent).
Bell's athleticism came to the fore during a game against Stony Brook on Jan. 12. He scored a career-high 21 points on 8-of-11 shooting and hasn't looked back since. In the Terriers' final 12 games, he averaged 11.1 points and 5.7 rebounds per game.
| FIRST TEAM | |||
| Chris Brown | New Hampshire | SR | F |
| Billy Collins | Boston Univ. | JR | F |
| Trevor Gaines | Vermont | SR | C |
| Justin Rowe | Maine | JR | C |
| T. J. Sorrentine | Vermont | SO | G |
| | | | |
| SECOND TEAM | |||
| Chaz Carr | Boston Univ. | FR | G |
| Taylor Coppenrath | Vermont | FR | F |
| Austin Ganly | New Hampshire | SR | G |
| Errick Greene | Maine | SR | G |
| D. J. Munir | Stony Brook | SO | G |
| | | | |
| THIRD TEAM | |||
| Jean Bain | Northeastern | SR | G |
| Will Brand | Albany | SR | F |
| Pierre Johnson | Hartford | JR | F |
| Jeffrey St. Fort | Binghamton | JR | F |
| Ryan Stys | Hartford | SO | G |
| | | | |
| ALL-ROOKIE | |||
| Chaz Carr | Boston Univ. | FR | G |
| Rashad Bell | Boston Univ. | FR | F |
| Nick Billings | Binghamton | FR | C |
| Taylor Coppenrath | Vermont | FR | F |
| Aaron Davis | Northeastern | FR | G |
| | | | |
| Player of the Year | T. J. Sorrentine | UVM | |
| Rookie of the Year | Taylor Coppenrath | UVM | |
| Coach of the Year | Tom Brennan | UVM | |
