Three members of the Johnson C. Smith men’s basketball team were named to the CIAA All-Conference team, and one of those players — junior forward James Dillard — was named Men’s Defensive Player of the year.
Dillard, a native of Apex, N.C., leads the conference in blocked shots (50), averaging 2.27 per game. He also is one of the CIAA’s top five rebounders, averaging 8.2 boards per game (180 total).
On the offensive side, Dillard averged 17.8 points per game and was the CIAA’s second leading scorer until late-season injuries limited his playing time.
Also named to the All-Conference team were:
Senior guard Ryan Scott, a native of Reston, Va., who was talked about as CIAA player of the year. Scott led the Golden Bulls in scorer for six of their last eight games, averaging 17.9 points per game. He ranked first in the conference in three-point field goals (2.9 per game), second in steals (1.9 per game), sixth in assists ( 2.9 per game) and sixth in free-throw percentage (76.7). This is Scott’s first all-conference selection.
Junior forward Jerry Hollis of Charlotte was JCSU’s final All-Conference player, his second selection. Hollis is ranked in the top 15 in seven offensive and defensive categories in the CIAA — 15th in points per game (11.8), 4th in blocked shots (1.1), 6th in field goal percentage (54.3) and 8th in rebounding (6.4).
The All-CIAA Teams and Players of the Year will be honored at the Women’s and Men’s Tip-Off Luncheon on February 24th in Charlotte.
