RENO, Nev. - Nevada sophomore forward Luke Babbitt has been named to the all-district first teams by both the National Association of Basketball Coaches and the United States Basketball Writers Association, while junior guard Armon Johnson has earned NABC first-team all-district honors.
Babbitt and Johnson are two of five players on the NABC's District 6 first team, joining Western Athletic Conference honorees Kyle Gibson of Louisiana Tech, Adrian Oliver of San Jose State and Jahmar Young of New Mexico State on the first team. Babbitt was also one of 10 selections by the USBWA in District VIII, which encompasses the states of Wyoming, Utah, Idaho, New Mexico, Colorado, Nevada and Montana. Utah State's Jared Quayle and Young were the other WAC honorees on the District VIII team.
This year marks the second year in a row that Babbitt and Johnson have earned all-district honors.
A total of 240 players from 24 districts were honored by the NABC's member coaches, and the all-district honorees are now eligible for the State Farm Coaches' Division I All-America teams to be announced on Saturday, April 3 as part of the 2009 NABC Convention and NCAA Final Four in Indianapolis. The USBWA selected a Player and Coach of the Year as well as a 10-team all-district team from nine regions.
The 2010 WAC Player of the Year and a first-team All-WAC selection, Babbitt leads the Wolf Pack and checks in at second in the WAC and eighth in the nation in scoring at 22.1 points per game. He also paces the WAC with 9.2 rebounds per game and ranks fifth in the nation in free throw shooting at 90.9 percent. Babbitt has already broken the Nevada sophomore single-season scoring record with 706 points and ranks second on Nevada's single-season scoring charts.
Johnson earned second-team All-WAC honors this season and is second on the team and eighth in the conference with 15.8 points per contest. He leads the WAC and ranks 19th in the nation with 5.7 assists per game and is just the sixth player in Wolf Pack history to turn in 1,000 points and 250 assists in his career. Johnson is tied for fifth on the Nevada career charts with 437 assists in his three years at Nevada.
