PHOENIX, AZ – BYU-Hawaii senior men’s basketball player Marques Whippy (Bua, Fiji/Woods Cross, UT) has been selected the 2010-11 Pacific West Conference Men’s Athlete of the Year.

 

The PacWest made the announcement on Thursday, May 26, 2011, from its media office in Phoenix, AZ, following a vote by the sports information directors of the league.

 

Whippy was selected from among the six players of the year named in the PacWest this season – Hawai‘i Pacific’s Blake Amaral (baseball), Academy of Art’s Amos Maru (cross country), Hawai‘i Hilo’s Blake Snyder (golf), and Grand Canyon’s Matt Pridey (golf) and Kyle Ciliento (soccer).

 

Whippy was selected to the Basketball Times All-America Third Team this season after leading the Seasiders to their first NCAA Division II National Championship Game appearance on March 26. BYU-Hawaii fell to Bellarmine (KY) 71-68 in a game broadcast nationally on CBS.

 

The PacWest Player of the Year finished the season ranked in the Top 10 in seven major conference statistical categories, including leading the league in rebounding (11.5 per game) and in steals per contest (2.8). He was an All-PacWest selection for the third straight year, including two consecutive First Team choices.

 

Whippy finished the year sixth in scoring after posting 14.2 points per contest, while he shot 52.0% (179 for 344) from the floor to rank fifth. He also averaged 3.5 assists per game to stand sixth and generated 1.3 blocks per contest to wind up fourth. His assist/turnover ratio of 1.0 landed him eighth for the season.

 

The Seasiders finished the year with a 22-9 overall record and a 12-4 PacWest mark that landed BYU-Hawaii in third place.