Big Ten Release | Cockburn for Player of the Year

Champaign, ILL.– The All-Big Ten teams and individual award winners were announced Tuesday by the conference office, with the Big Ten champion Fighting Illini program well represented on the list of league honors. Illinois had three players claim spots on the All-Big Ten teams, the most for the program since 2005.

Junior Kofi Cockburn is a unanimous first-team All-Big Ten selection, earning first-team honors for the second year in a row. The only player in the country averaging at least 20 points and 10 rebounds, Cockburn ranks 11th in the NCAA in scoring at 21.0 ppg and leads the conference while ranking eighth nationally in rebounding at 10.6 rpg. He leads the Big Ten in double-doubles with 15 and also in 20-point/10-rebound games with 10.

Senior Trent Frazier is a second-team All-Big Ten pick and was voted to the coaches' Big Ten All-Defensive Team for the second straight season. He is third on the Illini in scoring at 12.1 ppg and leads the Illini in assists (4.0 apg) and steals (1.4 spg). Frazier is the No. 1 ranked guard nationally in ball screen defense by Synergy. 

Graduate transfer Alfonso Plummer garnered third-team All-Big Ten honors after ranking second on the team and 12th in the league in scoring at 15.1 ppg. Plummer leads the Big Ten in 3-point field goals, averaging 3.0 makes on 41.7% shooting (91-218), with his total of 91 triples ranking fourth on the UI all-time single-season list. 

In addition, graduate student Jacob Grandison (10.3 ppg, 4.0 rpg) was recognized as Illinois' Big Ten Sportsmanship Award honoree.

These players have helped lead Illinois to a 22-8 record and 15-5 Big Ten mark to win a share of the conference title. Illinois is the winningest team in the Big Ten over the last three seasons, going 44-16 (.733) in league play.

No. 1 seed Illinois opens Big Ten Tournament play in the quarterfinal round on Friday at 10:30 a.m. CT on BTN.