MELBOURNE, Fla. – The Sunshine State Conference handed out its annual awards on Thursday with a pair of Nova Southeastern guards among the forefront. Prominent factors in the Sharks' 11-win improvement from a year ago,
David Dennis has been named the 2017-18 SSC Newcomer of the Year while
Malik Hardy has been tabbed the SSC Freshman of the Year.
Also recognized as a First Team All-SSC member, Dennis becomes the first-ever Newcomer of the Year in Nova Southeastern program history. Hardy's Freshman of the Year honor marks the first for a Shark player since 2010 and third overall.
Joining head coach
Jim Crutchfield in the move from West Liberty, Dennis wasted no time making an impact for the Sharks. The do-it-all point guard led the team in points (19.6 ppg), rebounds (6.3 rpg) and assists (6.8 apg) in 26 regular season starts this season. His steal numbers (3.6 spg) were even second-best in all of NCAA Division II. Dennis was twice named the SSC Player of the Week along with being awarded SSC Defensive Player of the Week on Nov. 20. Most notably, though, he was selected to the Bevo Francis Award Watch List, acknowledging 50 of the finest men's basketball players across the country, spanning both NCAA Division II and Division III, as well as the NAIA, USCAA and NCCAA.
Hardy, meanwhile, made a smooth transition after signing with the Sharks out of nearby Pembroke Pines Charter High School. Selected to the All-SSC Newcomer Team along with Dennis, the 6-foot-2 guard finished 2017-18 as the third-highest scoring freshman in Division II, averaging 17.1 points to go along with 4.5 rebounds per game. Hardy topped the 20-point mark 12 times for the league's No. 1 scoring offense, including a season-high, 32-point effort against Florida Tech on Dec. 9. His 50 three-point makes were most on the team, with his 86.6 percent free throw percentage ranking third among league members.
Barry point guard Elvar Fridriksson collected SSC Player of the Years honors for the second consecutive season, while Buccaneers' head coach Butch Estes was recognized by his peers as Coach of the Year for the second time. The SSC Defensive Player of the Year award belonged to Duke Shelton of Tampa.
The complete list of All-SSC men's basketball teams are listed below.
Player of the Year = Elvar Fridriksson, Barry
Defensive Player of the Year = Duke Shelton, Tampa
Newcomer of the Year =
David Dennis, Nova Southeastern
Freshman of the Year =
Malik Hardy, Nova Southeastern
Coach of the Year = Butch Estes, Barry
2017-18 ALL-SSC Men's Basketball Honors
| 2017-18 ALL-SSC First Team |
| Pos. |
Name |
School |
Yr. |
Hometown |
| G |
Elvar Fridriksson*$^% |
Barry |
Sr. |
Njardvik, Iceland |
| G |
David Dennis |
Nova Southeastern |
Jr. |
Canal Winchester, Ohio |
| G |
Jonathan Lawton |
Florida Southern |
Jr. |
Williamstown, New Jersey |
| F |
Drushaun McLaurn*^ |
Eckerd |
Jr. |
Jacksonville, Florida |
| F/C |
Trevon Young |
Eckerd |
Sr. |
Wimauma, Florida |
|
|
|
|
|
| 2017-18 ALL-SSC Second Team |
| Pos. |
Name |
School |
Yr. |
Hometown |
| F |
Sam Daniel* |
Florida Tech |
Sr. |
Kingsland, Georgia |
| F |
Sam Philpott |
Rollins |
Sr. |
Noblesville, Indiana |
| F |
Jeff Merton~+ |
Rollins |
Sr. |
Naples, Florida |
| F |
Nashad Mackey |
Embry-Riddle |
Jr. |
Nassau, Bahamas |
| G |
Brett Hanson |
Florida Southern |
So. |
Manchester, New Hampshire |
|
|
|
|
|
| 2017-18 ALL-SSC Honorable Mention |
| Pos. |
Name |
School |
Yr. |
Hometown |
| G |
Jordan Majors~@ |
Florida Tech |
Sr. |
Hopkinsville, Kentucky |
|
|
|
|
|
| 2017-18 ALL-SSC Newcomer Team |
| Pos. |
Name |
School |
Yr. |
Hometown |
| G |
David Dennis |
Nova Southeastern |
Jr. |
Canal Winchester, Ohio |
| G |
Jonathan Lawton |
Florida Southern |
Jr. |
Williamstown, New Jersey |
| F |
Nashad Mackey |
Embry-Riddle |
Jr. |
Nassau, Bahamas |
| G |
Sunday Dech |
Barry |
Sr. |
Perth, Australia |
| G |
Malik Hardy |
Nova Southeastern |
Fr. |
Miramar, Florida |
