Longhorns' Tucker voted Big 12 Player of the Year

DALLAS -- Texas forward P.J. Tucker, who helped lead the Longhorns to a share of the Big 12 Conference title, was named Player of the Year by the conference's coaches on Monday.

Tucker, who was declared ineligible and forced to miss the final 14 games of last season, returned to lead the team in scoring, averaging 16.1 points per game. He led the league in rebounding with nine per game and was fourth in field goal percentage with .531.

Tucker's teammate, LaMarcus Aldridge, was named Defensive Player of the Year. Bill Self, whose Kansas team shared the Big 12 title with Texas, was named Coach of the Year. Brandon Rush of Kansas was named Freshman of the Year and Michael Neal of Oklahoma was selected as Newcomer of the Year.

Aldridge leads the league with 59 blocks, including 27 in conference games. He ranks third in the league with 81 defensive rebounds.

Self is in his third season as Jayhawk coach. The Coach of the Year award is his first with Kansas. The team finished the regular season 22-7, the 18th straight season with at least 22 victories.

Neal leads the conference in 3-point field goal percentage (.495) and 3-point field goals per game (3.86). He leads the team in scoring with 14.8 points per game.

Rush is the leading freshman scorer in the conference, averaging 15.1 points.