After dominating play much of the season, the University of Utah also dominated the 1992-93 all-Western Athletic Conference basketball team, which was released Monday.
Utah's Josh Grant, Jimmy Soto and Byron Wilson were voted to the all-WAC first team by the league's coaches; Grant was voted the conference's Most Valuable Player for the second time (see sidebar); Ute coach Rick Majerus was selected Coach of the Year, also for the second time; and Grant and Wilson were included on the league's all-defensive team.It marked the first time in the history of the league that three players were voted to the first team; then again, it marked the first time that the WAC, which expanded from nine teams to 10 this season, increased its first-team selections from five players to 10.
The other first-team selections were BYU's Gary Trost, San Diego State's Joe McNaull, Colorado State's Keith Bonds, New Mexico's Ike Williams and Khari Jaxon, Air Force's Otis Jones and UTEP's Eddie Rivera. Grant and Trost were the only repeat selections on the first team.
With the expansion of its first team, the WAC did not select a second team. Three BYU players earned honorable mention honors - Jared Miller, Nick Sanderson and Russell Larson. The other honorable mention selections were Phil Dixon, Utah; George Irvin, Air Force; Ryan Yoder, Colorado State; Travis Stel, Fresno State; Chris Walz and Fabio Ribeiro, Hawaii; Ralph Davis and Johnny Melvin, UTEP; Theo Ratliff and David Murray, Wyoming.
San Diego State guard Jason Hamilton was chosen freshman of the year.
Besides Grant and Wilson, the all-defensive team consisted of Ratliff, Jaxon and Davis.
The all-newcomer team consisted of Murray, Stel, Hamilton, Greg Brown of New Mexico and Trevor Ruffin of Hawaii.
The Utes, who are 22-5 overall and 15-3 in WAC play, ranked as high as ninth in the national polls last week, but they lost their last two regular-season games and wound up tied with BYU for the WAC championship.
The Utes were led by the senior trio of Grant, Wilson and Soto. Grant, a 6-foot-9 forward from Salt Lake City's East High, led the WAC in scoring (17 points per game), rebounding (11.1) and free throw shooting (91.5 percent). Wilson, a 6-foot-2 swingman from Indiana who dazzled crowds with his leaping ability and explosive dunks, averaged 12.6 points and 5.7 rebounds per game. Soto, a 5-foot-8 point guard from Salt Lake's Judge Memorial High, averaged 12.8 points per game and an assistant-to-turnover ratio of 4.3 to 1.7. Soto is a nominee for the Naismith Award (presented to the nation's top player under six feet).
"It's a great honor for those players," said Majerus, "but I'm really sad that Phil Dixon didn't make the all-defensive team. I was shocked. He's the best defensive player in the league."
BYU has been eagerly awaiting the return of 7-foot-6 center Shawn Bradley from a mission in Australia, but in the meantime Trost has done more than hold his own at the center position. He earned first-team, all-WAC honors as a junior and senior. A graduate of Salt Lake's Granite High, Trost averaged 11.5 points per game during the first half of WAC play this season - and 20.5 during the second half.
For his part, Majerus, who was voted the national and WAC Coach of the Year two years ago, continued to build his growing reputation as one of the nation's top collegiate coaches. In a little more than three seasons at Utah, he has produced records of 80-22 overall and 39-11 in WAC play. His Ute teams have finished with season marks of 30-4, 24-11 and 22-5.
*****
(Additional information)
All-WAC teams
MEN
First Team
Josh Grant, 6-9, Sr., Utah
Khari Jaxon, 6-8, Sr., N.M.
Gary Trost, 6-10, Sr., BYU
Ike Williams, 6-5, Sr., N.M.
Eddie Rivera, 5-8, Sr., UTEP
Byron Wilson, 6-2, Sr., Utah
Joe McNaull, 6-10, Jr., SDSU
Keith Bonds, 6-2, Sr., CSU
Otis Jones, 6-0, Soph., A.F.
Jimmy Soto, 5-9, Sr., Utah
Individual Honors
Coach of the Year Rick Majerus, Utah
Player of the Year Josh Grant, Utah
Freshman of the Year Jason Hamilton, San Diego State
WOMEN
First Team Amy Burnett, Soph., Wyoming
Debbie Dimond, Soph., BYU
Scarlett Gustin, Sr., Wyoming
Mikki Kane Barton, Sr., Utah
Thais Kidd, Soph., BYU
Monica Ramirez, Jr., UTEP
Susana Tauteoli, Sr., Utah
Shenita Waddell, Jr., UTEP
Falisha Wright, Soph., SDSU
Tomika Young, Sr., BYU
Individual Honors
Coach of the Year Jeanie Wilson, BYU
Player of the Year Mikki Kane Barton, Utah
Freshman of the Year Staci Oddo, Fresno State