Bearcats' players, coach Davis honored at banquet
UC Athletics Blog
David Clark, dclark2@cincinna.gannett.com 3:13 p.m. EDT April 10, 2015


Cincinnati associate head coach Larry Davis watches the Bearcats as they practice in Louisville on March 18 during the NCAA tournament.(Photo: The Enquirer/Kareem Elgazzar)

Sophomore Troy Caupain and junior Octavius Ellis received four awards each and associate head coach Larry Davis earned the Most Valuable Person Award on Wednesday at the UC men's basketball banquet at Montgomery Inn in Montgomery.

More from a release from UC sports communications:

The event celebrated the accomplishments of the 2014-15 Bearcats squad that overcame the absence of head coach Mick Cronin, sidelined for most of the season due to health reasons, won 23 games and made the program's fifth consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.

Caupain was recognized with the Assists Award (3.6 per game), Free-Throw Shooting Award (78.8 percent), Most Improved Player Award and All-Conference Honors Award. Caupain was named Honorable Mention All-American Athletic Conference by the league coaches at the end of the regular season. He ranked second on the team in scoring (9.6 points) and was 10th in the league with 3.6 assists.

Ellis shared the Rebounding Award with freshman Gary Clark and the Defensive Player of the Year Award with Kevin Johnson while also claiming the High Deflections Award and All-Conference Honors Award. The forward was named Second Team All-American Athletic Conference by the league coaches and was tabbed a Riley Wallace All-American as one of the top transfers in the nation. He averaged a team-high 9.9 points and was the only player in The American to be listed among the top four leaders in field goal percentage (third at .557), blocks (third at 2.0), and rebounding (fourth at 7.2). He compiled a team-high 150 deflections on the year.

Along with sharing the Rebounding Award with Ellis, Clark also received the All-Conference Honors Award at the banquet after earning All-Rookie Team accolades from The American's coaches at the end of the regular season. Clark was the only freshman in the league rank among the top 10 leaders for rebounds (third at 7.2), field goal percentage (sixth at .524), and blocks (sixth at 1.3). He finished fourth on the team in scoring, averaging 7.8 points.

UC's lone senior, Jermaine Sanders, received the Bearcats Award for Character and Leadership. He is the third UC player during the Cronin coaching era to play in four NCAA tournaments, along with Justin Jackson and Sean Kilpatrick. He started 12 games during the 2014-15 season, scoring a season-high 15 points with six rebounds against Temple (Jan. 17). He finished the season averaging 4.6 points in 20.9 minutes.

Sophomore Kevin Johnson shared the Defensive Player of the Year with Ellis. Johnson recorded 28 steals on the season and had at least one steal in 13 of 18 conference games.

Junior Farad Cobb took home the Three-Point Shooting Award. He made a team-high 53 three-pointers and ranked 13th in the league, averaging 1.3 three-pointers. He made four threes apiece at No. 23 SMU (Feb. 5) and also at then-league leader Tulsa (March 4).

Davis was recognized with the Most Valuable Person Award. One of 10 finalists for the Sporting News National Coach of the Year, Davis compiled a 16-9 record during Cronin's absence this season, helping the Bearcats to a 23-11 overall record. He is believed to be the first non-head coach to lead a team through multiple games of a regular season and into the NCAA Tournament since 1961 (Jack McCandless at Princeton).

2014-15 Cincinnati Basketball Banquet Awards

Assists Award – Troy Caupain

Rebounding Award – Gary Clark and Octavius Ellis

Defensive Player of the Year Award – Octavius Ellis and Kevin Johnson

Three-Point Shooting Award – Farad Cobb

Free-Throw Shooting Award – Troy Caupain

Most Improved Player Award – Troy Caupain

Bearcat Award for Character and Leadership – Jermaine Sanders

High Deflections Award – Octavius Ellis

All-Conference Honors – Octavius Ellis, Troy Caupain, Gary Clark

Most Valuable Person Award – Larry Davis

Also, Caupain's buzzer-beater against Purdue ranks third among the Top 10 Plays of March Madness.

HAPP HONORS: UC baseball junior Ian Happ earned another midseason honor on Friday after being named to the Midseason All-America Team by D1Baseball.com.

From UC sports communications:

Happ was one of 15 players named to the team, representing one of three outfield spots.

Through 30 games of the season, Happ is leading the team with a .394 batting average, good for second in the American Athletic Conference. He leads the league with a .519 on base percentage and sits in third with a .673 slugging percentage. He has recorded 41 hits with seven homeruns and 70 total bases while leading the American with 29 walks.

Happ and the Bearcats will are back in action on April 11, 12 and 13 when they host American foe Memphis for a three-game series at Marge Schott Stadium. First pitch of the series is scheduled for 6 p.m. on Friday.

http://www.cincinnati.com/story/ucathlet.../25587535/