Buffalo also filled two spots, with Davota Jordan earning Defensive Player of the Year honors,while Ronaldo Segu was named Sixth Man of the Year. Ball State’s Jarron Coleman picked up Freshman of the year honors.
2019-20 MAC Men’s Basketball Postseason Awards
Coach of the Year: John Groce, Akron
Player of the Year: Loren Cristian Jackson, R-Jr., G, Akron
Freshman of the Year: Jarron Coleman, G, Ball State
Defensive Player of the Year: Davonta Jordan, Sr., G, Buffalo
Sixth Man of the Year: Ronaldo Segu, So., G, Buffalo
All of the awards were . . .
Jackson started all 31 regular-season games, averaging a team-high 19.8 points per game which ranked second in league scoring and 30th in the NCAA. In the 18 conference games, Jackson averaged 22.9 points per game. He recorded double-digit points in 27 games, including a season-high 35 points three times against Ohio, Bowling Green and Buffalo. He scored 30-plus points on five occasions, adding a 33-point performance against Toledo and a 31-point effort at Central Michigan. Jackson leads the top-seeded Zips from behind the 3-point arc, draining 92 triples which ranks second in the league and 23rd in the NCAA. His 42.8 shooting percentage from deep is also a team-best and ranks first in the MAC and 14th in the NCAA. During the season, Jackson eclipsed the 1,000-point career scoring mark, becoming the 46th player in Akron history to post over 1,000 points. He currently ranks 04th on the Zips all-time scoring list with 1,075 points in 64 games played.
In his third year at the helm, Groce became the third coach to earn MAC Coach of the Year honors, joining Keith Dambrot (2013, 2016, 2017) and Dan Hipsher (1998). Groce led the 2019-20 Zips to the Mid-American Conference regular season championship after being selected fifth in the MAC East preseason poll. Akron posted a 24-7 overall record and 14-4 in conference play. In addition, the Zips were 14-2 at home and 8-4 on the road including a 7-2 league mark. In the first year under Groce (2017-18), the Zips had to find their groove again with a brand new roster, virtually starting from scratch. With the No. 1 seed, Akron received a bye for the opening round of the MAC Tournament and Zips are scheduled to play No.8 Ohio on Thursday, March 12 at noon. The quarterfinal game will be held at Rocket Mortgage FieldHouse in Cleveland, Ohio and can be seen on ESPN+ and heard on 1350-AM.
Coleman led all MAC freshmen in scoring (10.2 ppg), rebounding (5.4 rpg) and assists (3.2 apg) during conference play. The Indianapolis product was second on Ball State's team in rebounding and third in scoring from his point guard position during the MAC schedule. He took over the starting role in early December and started the final 23 games of the season.Coleman scored double figures in half of BSU's league games and had his four highest-scoring performances in the final month, including a MAC season-high 19 against Eastern Michigan. His 288 points rank 10th on Ball State's all-time freshman scoring list.
Jordan was one of the top defenders in the country this season as he led the MAC with 67 steals and added 25 blocks, which was amongst the top 10 in the league. While continuing to play strong defense, Jordan also had the best offensive season of his career as he averaged 11.5 points per game, 5.3 rebounds per contest and 5.3 assists per game. He was just one of four players nationally to average over five rebounds, five assists, and two steals per game.For his career, Jordan moved into second place in school history in career assists with 522 and fourth place in career steals with 179.
Segu came off the bench in all 32 games as he averaged 8.1 points per game this past season. Segu, who had a career high 21 points against Harvard, was playing some of his best basketball over the last week as the sophomore had 11 points at Bowling Green and finished with 20 points on Monday night against Miami. In his sophomore season, Segu set career bests for scoring, rebounding, and assists, while shattering his freshman mark for minutes played.