Senior forward Austen Powers (), the leading scorer on a team that posted the best record in the program in 45 years, has been voted Second Team All-Independent, announced Wednesday by the organizers of the voting among the head coaches and sports information directors of the 14 Division I independent schools.
Powers started all 29 games for Seattle University, which posted a 21-8 record for the most wins since the 1984-85 season and the highest winning percentage since the 1963-64 campaign. He led the team in scoring with 12.9 points per game and was second in rebounding with 6.4 rebounds per contest. Powers scored in double figures 17 times and pulled down ten or more rebounds in four games. He scored a season-high 28 points on 11-of-17 shooting from the field, including four three-pointers, in a four-point loss to postseason participant on Jan. 4.
This is the third honor for Powers this season, as he was also named to the All-Tournament Team at the Great Alaska Shootout after leading SeattleU with 16 points in the team’s historic first win as a Division I program over a Division I school in 28 years by defeating Louisiana Tech on Thanksgiving night. Powers also was named Second Team Academic All-District by the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) earlier this season.
Fellow senior Michael Wright () earned honorable mention status during the voting process. He started 27 of the 28 games he appeared in, finishing third on the team in scoring and first in rebounding with 10.7 points and 7.1 rebounds per game. During SeattleU’s ten-game winning streak from Jan. 13 to Feb. 24, Wright averaged 15.3 points and 10.5 rebounds per game, notching five double-doubles during the streak.
David Holston of was named Independent Player of the Year after averaging 25.9 points, 6.4 assists, and 3.0 steals per game. ’s Tyler Cain earned Independent Defensive Player of the Year honors by averaging 15.4 points, 11.0 rebounds, and 2.8 blocks per game, while Jamar Briscoe of North Carolina Central was named Independent Newcomer of the Year after averaging 17.8 points per game, the second-leading scoring freshman in the country. Benjy Taylor of earned Independent Coach of the Year honors after leading the Cougars to a 19-13 record, the school’s first winning season in 23 years.
The All-Independent Team features players from the 14 Division I schools not in a conference during the 2008-09 season: Bryant University, Cal State Bakersfield, Chicago State, Houston Baptist, Longwood University, New Jersey Institute of Technology (NJIT), North Carolina Central, North Dakota, Savannah State, Seattle University, South Dakota, Southern Illinois Edwardsville, Texas-Pan American, and Utah Valley University.