— By Bill Cornwell
HUNTINGTON, W.Va. — Marshall made a major haul of postseason awards announced by the Sun Belt Conference.
Herd senior Taevion Kinsey was named Sun Belt Player of the Year. He scored 688 points (22.2 per game) to lead the conference, which ranks third in the nation. Kinsey’s 20 games of 20 or more points and his 266 made field goals also lead the Sun Belt, while ranking second among all Division I players.
In addition to his scoring prowess, Kinsey ranks second in total assists (162) and assists per game (5.4) in the conference. He became the program’s all-time leader in made field goals last Friday at Old Dominion, passing Skip Henderson’s mark of 1,000. Kinsey sits at 2,623 career points, just 15 shy of Jon Elmore’s mark of 2,638 that is tops in Marshall history.
Kinsey was also a first team all-conference selection, and he was joined on the first team by teammate and senior guard Andrew Taylor.
Taylor finished the regular season with 626 points (20.2 per game) on 246 field goals, both second in the SBC.
A native of Corbin, Kentucky, Taylor had 14 games of 20 or more points and accumulated 66 steals to lead the Sun Belt and rank 12th in Division I men’s basketball. Taylor’s 148 assists and 4.8 assists per game are both third in the conference.
Freshman center Micah Handlogten was also a major award winner as he was named the Sun Belt Freshman of the Year. Handlogten was a force on the boards, averaging 9.9 rebounds per game. He had a total of 308 rebounds and 3.5 offensive rebounds per game to lead the league. Each of those marks also rank in the top 15 in the country.
The Huntersville, N.C., native also recorded eight double-doubles and blocked 72 shots to rank 10th in the NCAA.
— — —
Marshall’s women’s team also had an award-winner as junior guard Roshala Scott was named a second-team all-Sun Belt pick.
Scott is first in the Sun Belt Conference with 196 field goals. The junior is making 44.5 percent of her shots and her 17.7 points per game ranks fourth in the conference.
Scott scored in double figures in 27 of Marshall’s 29 games.