Oklahoma’s Buddy Hield on AP’s All-America team; KU’s Perry Ellis second team

Whenever talk of the best college basketball player this season came up so did two names: Denzel Valentine of Michigan State and Buddy Hield of Oklahoma.

They were unanimous selections Tuesday to The Associated Press’ 2015-16 All-America team.

Kansas senior Perry Ellis was named to the second team, while Wichita State senior Fred VanVleet was named honorable mention.

Valentine, the Big Ten player of the year, averaged 19.4 points, 7.6 rebounds and 7.6 assists, while Hield, the player of the year in the Big 12, averaged 25 points, 5.6 rebounds and 3.0 assists.

“I don’t know many guys that have improved in every aspect of the game like he has,” Spartans coach Tom Izzo said of the 6-foot-5 Valentine, the school’s first All-America since Draymond Green in 2012. His importance to Michigan State showed when he missed four games during the season with a knee injury.

Hield, Oklahoma’s first All-America since Blake Griffin in 2009, became a highlight reel staple with his ability to shoot the ball from long range and with defenders right on him. The 6-foot-4 Hield shot 46.4 percent from 3-point range.

“He has had a fantastic year and has been very consistent,” Sooners coach Lon Kruger said of the Bahamas native who was a third team selection last season. “He worked hard and has that passion and focus that makes him what he is.”

In the age when one-and-dones usually dominate the college basketball landscape, Valentine and Hield were joined on the All-America team by fellow seniors Brice Johnson of North Carolina and Malcolm Brogdon of Virginia. Sophomore Tyler Ulis of Kentucky rounded out the team. The 2013-14 team had four seniors and a freshman.

Valentine and Hield both received 65 first-team votes from the national media panel that selects the weekly poll.

Seven-foot sophomore Jakob Poeltl of Utah led the second team with 41 first-team votes. He was joined by LSU freshman Ben Simmons, Kansas senior Perry Ellis, Providence junior Kris Dunn and Iowa State senior Georges Niang.

The third team consists of Grayson Allen of Duke, Yogi Ferrell of Indiana, Jarrod Uthoff of Iowa, Kay Felder of Oakland and Jamal Murray of Kentucky.

The voting was done before the NCAA Tournament.

Statistics through March 13

First Team

Denzel Valentine, Michigan State, 6-5, 220, senior, Lansing, Mich., 19.4 ppg, 7.6 rpg, 7.6 apg, 44.7 3pt fg pct, 85.3 ft pct (65, 325).

Buddy Hield, Oklahoma, 6-4, 214, senior, Freeport, Bahamas, 25.0 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 3.0 apg, 46.4 3pt fg pct, 89.5 ft pct, 35.0 minutes (65, 325).

Tyler Ulis, Kentucky, 5-9, 160, sophomore, Chicago, 17.2 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 7.2 apg, 85.6 ft pct, 1.5 steals, 36.9 minutes (43, 273).

Brice Johnson, North Carolina, 6-10, 230, senior, Orangeburg, S.C., 16.6 ppg, 10.6 rrpg, 61.4 fg pct, 1.3 blocks (39, 269).

Malcolm Brogdon, Virginia, 6-5, 215, senior, Atlanta, 18.7 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 2.8 apg, 40.9 3pt fg pct, 88.4 ft pct (36, 263).

Second Team

Jakob Poeltl, Utah, 7-0, 248, sophomore, Vienna, Austria, 17.6 ppg, 9.2 rpg, 64.9 fg pct, 1.6 blocks (41, 259).

Ben Simmons, LSU, 6-10, 240, freshman, Melbourne, Australia, 19.2 ppg, 11.8 rpg, 4.8 apg, 56.0 fg pct, 2.0 steals, (13, 200).

Perry Ellis, Kansas, 6-8, 225, senior, Wichita, Kan., 16.7 ppg, 5.9 rpg, 52.3 fg pct, 43.3 3pt fg pct (9, 151).

Kris Dunn, Providence, 6-4, 220, junior, New London, Conn., 16.0 ppg, 5.5 rpg, 6.4 apg, 2.5 steals (3, 150).

Georges Niang, Iowa State, 6-8, 230, senior, Methuen, Mass., 19.8 ppg, 6.2 rpg, 3.3 apg, 54.7 fg pct (5, 140).

Third Team

Grayson Allen, Duke, 6-5, 205, sophomore, Jacksonville, Fla., 21.6 ppg, 4.5 rpg, 3.6 apg, 41.7 3pt fg pct, 83.5 ft pct, 1.4 steals, 36.3 minutes (2, 130).

Kevin “Yogi” Ferrell, Indiana, 6-0, 180, senior, Indianapolis, 17.0 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 5.5 apg, 41.7 3pt fg pct (2, 123).

Jarrod Uthoff, Iowa, 6-9, 221, senior, Cedar Rapids, Iowa, 18.9 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 2.7 blocks (0, 76).

Kay Felder, Oakland, 5-9, 176, junior, Detroit, 24.2 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 9.3 apg, 84.6 ft pct, 2.0 steals, 36.8 minutes (2, 52).

Jamal Murray, Kentucky, 6-4, 207, freshman, Kitchener, Ontario, 20.1 ppg, 5.1 rpg, 2.1 apg, 42.1 3pt fg pct, 35.2 minutes (0, 47).

Honorable Mention (in alphabetical order)

Ryan Anderson, Arizona; Anthony “Cat” Barber, N.C. State; DeAndre' Bembry, Saint Joseph’s; Ben Bentil, Providence; Trevon Bluiett, Xavier; Joel Bolomboy, Weber State; Evan Bradds, Belmont; Dillon Brooks, Oregon; Cane Broome, Sacred Heart; John Brown, High Point; Antonio Campbell, Ohio; Kyle Collinsworth, BYU; Stephen Croone, Furman; James Daniel III, Howard; Juan'ya Green, Hofstra; Derrick Griffin, Texas Southern; Alex Hamilton, Louisiana Tech; A.J. Hammons, Purdue; Marvelle Harris, Fresno State; Josh Hart, Villanova; Danuel House, Texas A&M; Brandon Ingram, Duke; Stefan Jankovic, Hawaii; Tim Kempton, Lehigh; Max Landis, IPFW; Shawn Long, Louisiana-Lafayette; Dallas Moore, North Florida; Nic Moore, SMU; Gary Payton II, Oregon State; Alec Peters, Valparaiso; Justin Robinson, Monmouth (N.J.); Domantas Sabonis, Gonzaga; Justin Sears, Yale; Pascal Siakam, New Mexico State; Melo Trimble, Maryland; Fred VanVleet, Wichita State; Thomas Walkup, Stephen F. Austin; Jameel Warney, Stony Brook; Isaiah Whitehead, Seton Hall; Kyle Wiltjer, Gonzaga.

This story was originally published March 29, 2016 at 1:49 PM with the headline "Oklahoma’s Buddy Hield on AP’s All-America team; KU’s Perry Ellis second team."