Young named first team all conference.Matthew McConkeyDaily Egyptian
Freshman guard Bryan Mullins has been bothering opponents all season with his stifling defense. It turns out they respect him greatly for that.
Mullins was named the Missouri Valley Conference's Freshman of the Year on Tuesday, beating out fellow point guards Josh Dotzler of Creighton and Jason Holsinger of Evansville.
The accolade was something SIU head coach Chris Lowery said he knew Mullins was capable of when he recruited the Downers Grove native to play for the Salukis.
"We thought he was going to be really good," SIU head coach Chris Lowery said. "We didn't know how soon, but we knew what he would bring to us."
Against his competition for the title, Mullins thrived.
The defensive-minded Mullins stymied Dotzler, holding him to two of his worst games of the season. Similarly, Holsinger was able to score rarely on Mullins, who was clearly the more dominant player in their match-up.
Mullins said he was attracted to SIU because of the ferocious defense the Salukis play and the way head coach Chris Lowery allows the players to make offensive plays. During summer play, junior guards Jamaal Tatum and Tony Young were relentless against him, often fouling him and getting him ready for college basketball.
"Every time we played it was competitive, and we were going at it every time, but they were also helping me get better with the little things here and there," said Mullins, who averaged 5.7 points, 3.3 assists and 2.8 steals in 29 games.
Young and Tatum also nailed down some MVC awards.
Young was honored with All-MVC first team and All-Defensive team along with Mullins, while Tatum was selected for All-MVC honorable mention and first team scholar-athlete. Young said when he broke his foot over the summer, the doctors were skeptical about him even starting the season, but he said he fought hard through his injury.
"Every chance I got I was in the (Recreation Center) shooting. ... I was pushing myself real hard to get back in shape and to get myself ready to the point where I could compete," Young said.
