Green Big West Player of the Year

For the second year in a row, UC Irvine senior guard Jerry Green

has been named Big West Conference Player of the Year in men’s

basketball.

“He’s Mr. Clutch,” UCI Coach Pat Douglass said after the honor was

announced Monday. “He has been remarkable with the key buckets he has

made in his four-year career. Hopefully, he has some more left in him.

Jerry has been the key man to make a free throw or a clutch shot.”

Also earning all-conference honors was sophomore center Adam Parada, a

second-team selection.

Junior forward Jordan Harris received honorable mention.

The Anteaters finished the regular season sharing the Big West

Conference title with Utah. Up next for UCI is the Big West Tournament

Thursday, when the squad takes on Long Beach State at 6 p.m.

Green will be a key factor. He led the conference in scoring this

season, averaging 20.7 points per game, and has led UCI in scoring each

of his four seasons. His 1,941 career points rank No. 1 at UCI and No. 7

in Big West history.

Green also holds UCI career records for field goals made (652),

field-goal attempts (1,384), free throws made (522), free-throw attempts

(645) and steals (160). He becomes the sixth player in conference history

to win player of the year honors in consecutive seasons since 1970.

“He basically turned this program around,” Douglass said. “We will

greatly miss him, but we’ll enjoy his presence this week.”

The Anteaters went from sixth in the Big West during Green’s first

season in 1998-99 to first in the conference last season.

One key highlight this season was a game-winning jumper at the buzzer

to hand host Utah State a 67-66 loss Jan. 10 that snapped the Aggies’

school record 31-game winning streak at home in a nationally televised

game.

In addition to Green, Parada has given the team a boost offensively

this season. He is second among Anteaters with a 12.0 scoring average

average and also averages 6.9 rebounds.

Jordan Harris, a transfer from Colgate University, is averaging 12.4

points and 7.1 rebounds this season.

Earning Coach of the Year honors was Utah State’s Stew Morrill, while

Cal State Northridge’s Ian Boylan was named Freshman of the Year.