Boston College Athletics
Skinner And Bell Garner BIG EAST Awards
March 06, 2001 | Men's Basketball
March 6, 2001
NEW YORK -- Forward Troy Murphy of Notre Dame and guard Troy Bell of Boston College, who led their teams to respective division titles, have been named BIG EAST Co-Players of the Year.
Boston College coach Al Skinner was named BIG EAST Coach of the Year. Seton Hall forward Eddie Griffin took BIG EAST Rookie of the Year honors. Providence guard John Linehan was chosen unanimously as BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year. Syracuse swingman Preston Shumpert and West Virginia forward Calvin Bowman shared BIG EAST Most Improved Player.
All of the awards were determined by a vote of the conference's head coaches, who were not permitted to vote for their own players. The awards were presented at the Grand Hyatt Hotel prior to the AT&T BIG EAST Championship, which will be played at Madison Square Garden on March 7-10.
Bell, a 6-1 sophomore guard from Minneapolis, Minn., was the leader behind Boston College's quantum leap in the BIG EAST standings. He finished third in the league in scoring with a 20.1 average and was third in steals at 2.6. He hit his free throws at an .854 clip, fourth best in the conference. Last season, Bell was the BIG EAST Rookie of the Year.
Skinner, in his fourth year at Boston College, guided the Eagles to the biggest turnaround in BIG EAST history. The Eagles' 3-13 conference record last season was the worst in the league. This year, BC's 13-3 record is the best and Eagles won the East Division. Now in his 13th year as a head coach, Skinner's career record is 193-186.
2000-01 BIG EAST Awards
Co-Players of the Year
Troy Bell, Boston College
Troy Murphy, Notre Dame
Coach of the Year
Al Skinner, Boston College
Rookie of the Year
Eddie Griffin, Seton Hall
Defensive Player of the Year
John Linehan, Providence
Co-Most Improved Players
Preston Shumpert, Syracuse
Calvin Bowman, West Virginia
