Pig Trail Nation & Hogville.net 2020-21 SEC Men’s Basketball postseason awards: Moody Player & Freshman of the Year

LITTLE ROCK — We’ve spent the 2020-21 season deep-diving into SEC basketball — game-by-game, team-by-team, player-by-player — while framing the highs and lows each week in our SEC Power Rankings, and with the season’s final rankings just published (linked here: https://forums.hogville.net/index.php?topic=722959.0) we turn our attention to handing out the first annual Pig Trail Nation / Hogville.net SEC men’s basketball postseason awards.

The top two teams in the league — first-place Alabama and second-place Arkansas — finished tied atop the league’s final power rankings, so it should come as no surprise that players from each team dominate the following individual awards.

SEC Player of the Year: Arkansas’ Moses Moody (6-6 guard, Little Rock native) … a day-one starter and the team’s leader in minutes per game (33.0), Moody was not only the Razorbacks’ best player wire-to-wire since stepping foot on campus, but he’s been the driving force behind the Hogs’ current 11-game SEC winning streak that matches the program’s only other such run through the league 27 years ago when the 1993-94 Hoop Hogs did the same on their way to winning a national championship. Arkansas coach Eric Musselman recently compared his star rookie to a “veteran at the next level.” Moody’s numbers are elite when looked at collectively: his 17.5 points per game ranks 3rd in the SEC and his 5.7 rebounds ranks 16th (3rd among guards), and the combination of the two makes him 1 of only 3 freshman nationally to average 15-plus points and 5-plus rebounds per game; he’s 5th in the league in field goals made (139) and 10th in field goal percentage (44.1%); he’s tied for 7th in the league in three-point field goals made (51) and 10th in three-point field goal percentage (38.6%); he’s 2nd in the league in both free throws made (125) and free throws attempted (151), and he’s 6th in free-throw percentage (82.8%). That’s a lot of top 5’s and top 10’s, but production is only part of the story as Moody has been clutch at both ends of the floor while displaying big-play flash, poise, and leadership all while playing the game the right way, which translates to winning. Projected as a likely lottery-to-mid-first-round selection if he comes out early for the 2021 NBA Draft, Moody has stamped a legacy of excellence at Arkansas if he indeed becomes the first one-and-done in school history.

SEC Coach of the Year: Alabama’s Nate Oats … in his second season in Tuscaloosa, Ala., Oats brilliantly blended together a talented trio of returning players recruited by the previous Tide staff (Herbert Jones, John Petty, Jr., and Alex Reese) with his own high school recruits (Jaden Shackleford, Joshua Primo, and Juwan Gary) and transfer additions (Jahvon Quinerly and Jordan Bruner) to forge the Tide’s first SEC regular-season championship in 19 seasons (’01-02). Oats’ nuanced offensive philosophy that starts with high-volume and efficient three-point shooting was complemented in ’20-21 by a defense that is ranked No. 3 nationally in KenPom.com’s adjusted defensive rating. Oats challenged his team in the non-conference with away games against quality opponents, and though the Tide suffered some lumps in November and December they emereged with a dominant 16-2 run through the SEC while also putting together the best road record in the league (7-3).

First Team All SEC

Moses Moody, Arkansas

Herbert Jones, Alabama

Scotty Pippen, Jr., Vanderbilt

Cam Thomas, LSU

Tre Mann, Florida

Dru Smith, Missouri

Justin Smith, Arkansas

Javonte Smart, LSU

John Petty, Jr., Alabama

Second Team All SEC

Davontae Shuler, Ole Miss