Texas Tech star Toppin named Big 12’s leading player

Mar 10, 2025, 08:34 PM ET

IRVING, Texas– Texas Tech sophomore forward JT Toppin was selected by Huge 12 coaches as the league’s best player and newcomer of the year in a vote exposed Monday, a day before the start of the 16-team league’s postseason tournament.Toppin, a transfer from New Mexico, has 14 double-doubles and is the only Big 12 player who ranks top three in scoring (18.1 PPG)and rebounding(9.3 RPG ). He is the very first Big 12 player in the league’s 29 seasons to be voted by coaches as the top player and leading newbie in the very same season.Houston’s Kelvin Sampson was selected by his peers as the

Big 12’s top coach. The second-ranked Cougars(27-4, 19-1 Huge 12)have actually won the conference title in both seasons given that signing up with the league, becoming the first program to join a significant conference and win back-to-back regular-season titles considering that Idaho won the Pacific Coast Conference in the 1921-22 and 1922-23 seasons.Houston forward Joseph Tugler was voted protective player of the year and guard LJ Cryer the

leading scholar-athlete. Baylor’s VJ Edgecombe was voted the Huge 12’s leading freshman, BYU’s Richie Saunders was picked as the league’s most improved player, and Curtis Jones of fifth-seeded Iowa State was voted the top 6th man.Cryer, Jones, Saunders and Toppin signed up with Caleb Love of Arizona, Norchad Omier of Baylor, J’Wan Roberts of Houston, Hunter Dickinson of Kansas, Darrion Williams of Texas Tech and Javon Small of West Virginia on the coaches ‘All-Big 12 first team.The Big 12 Competition starts Tuesday with 4 opening-round games. The championship game is Saturday.