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March 10, 2011 (San Diego) - Steve Fisher, San Diego State men’s basketball head coach, has earned Mountain West Conference co-coach-of-the-year accolades, the league announced Monday. Fisher, in his 12th season at SDSU and 20th overall, garners his first-ever conference coach-of-the-year award and shares it with Brigham Young’s Dave Rose.
Fisher led the Aztecs to a share of the Mountain West regular-season title with a record of 14-2. He was previously named national coach of the year in 1992.
Players D.J. Gay and Kawhi Leonard were voted to the first team, Malcolm Thomas was voted to the second team and Billy White received honorable mention honors. Leonard and Thomas also earned spots on the all-defensive squad,SDSU's news center reports.
The regular-season crown was the second for SDSU and its first since 2006. The 14 victories, meanwhile, represent the most San Diego State has won in the 12-year history of the league, eclipsing the 2006 team’s 13 wins.
Entering the MWC Championship, the Aztecs lead the league standings in:
* Scoring defense
* Field-goal percentage defense
* Three-point field-goal percentage defense
* Rebounding offense
* Rebounding margin
* Blocked shots
* Offensive rebounds
* Offensive rebound percentage
Fisher is the second head coach in SDSU history to earn league coach-of-the-year honors and the first since Smokey Gaines won the Western Athletic Conference award in 1985.
All-Conference first team honors
Gay, a senior captain, was voted to the all-conference first team and earned all-league honors for the second time in his career (2010 honorable mention).
The Sun Valley, Calif., native started all 16 Mountain West games and led the league in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.87), while also ranking:
* Third in minutes played (36.4)
* Tied for fourth in steals (1.5)
* Fourth in three-point field goals made (2.0)
* Seventh in assists (3.6)
* 10th in three-point field-goal percentage (.333)
* 16th in scoring (11.6)
At one point during conference play, Gay went 177 consecutive minutes without committing a turnover while accumulating 23 assists during the same time frame.
Leonard, for the second time in as many seasons, was named to the first team after leading the Mountain West in rebounding (11.9) and offensive rebounding (8.2).
The Riverside, Calif., product also ranked:
* Second in offensive rebounds (3.7)
* Tied for fourth in steals (1.5)
* Fifth in scoring (14.8)
* Sixth in free-throw percentage (.767)
* Ninth in minutes
The sophomore recorded 12 double-doubles, which set the MWC single-season record, and posted five 15-plus rebounding efforts. SDSU’s leader in scoring, rebounding and steals also scored double-figures in 15 games. Leonard is the second Aztec in MWC history to be a two-time all-first-team choice and the first since Brandon Heath was vote to the squad in 2006 and 2007.
Other accolades
Thomas landed on the all-league second team for a second year in a row after averaging 11.4 points and 9.3 rebounds, which ranked 17th and third, respectively, in the Mountain West.
One of the premier shot blockers in the nation, Thomas also ranked second in the MWC after averaging 2.3 blocks per game. In addition to ranking in the top 10 in rebounds and steals, Thomas ranked third in both offensive (3.2) and defensive rebounds (6.1).
For the fourth time in four seasons, White earned all-league accolades after garnering honorable mention recognition.
A native of Las Vegas, White started all 16 games and averaged 8.5 points and 3.2 rebounds, while shooting a team-best 54.7 percent from the field. White is just the second Aztec to earn all-MWC honors all four seasons and the first since Heath accomplished the feat from 2004 to 2007.
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