APPLETON, Wis. -- Three Lawrence University men’s basketball players
and head coach John Tharp were all honored on the All-Midwest Conference team,
as selected by league coaches.
Chris Braier was chosen for the first team, Jason Holinbeck made the second
team, and Dan Evans received honorable mention. Tharp was named Coach of the
Year for the second consecutive season.
Braier, a junior forward from Wauwatosa, was a first-team selection for the
third consecutive season.
The 6-foot-5 former star at Wauwatosa East High School led the team in scoring
at 15.0 points per game and paced the league in rebounding at 11.5 per contest.
Braier, who was the 2004 MWC Player of the Year, also led the team in steals
(1.7 spg) and blocks (0.5 bpg) and was second in assists (3.0 apg). Braier shot
a very good 51 percent (150-294) from the floor.
Braier, who was named to All-America teams by D3hoops.com and DIII News in 2004,
had a league-high 13 double-doubles this season.
Holinbeck, a senior guard from Neenah, was honored on the all-conference team
for the second time after receiving honorable mention as a sophomore.
The former Neenah High School star was second on the team in scoring at 12.7
points per game. Holinbeck was the team’s top outside threat, hitting
38.7 (55-142) of his shots from beyond the 3-point line. He shot 47.8 percent
from the floor overall and hit 83.7 percent from the free-throw line.
Holinbeck broke the school record for points in a game when he scored 47 in
Lawrence’s 112-85 win at Grinnell College. He also holds the record with
eight 3-pointers in a game.
Evans, a senior point guard from Cary, Ill., was truly Lawrence’s floor
leader. The former standout at Cary Grove High School did everything for the
Vikings, averaging 9.4 points, 3.5 rebounds, and a team-high 3.2 assists per
game.
Evans, who ranks eighth on Lawrence’s career list with 198 assists, shot
43.4 percent from the floor, including 37 percent from beyond the arc and 75.9
percent from the free-throw line. Evans tied for second on the squad at 1.2
steals per game.
Tharp was named Coach of the Year after leading his team to the Midwest Conference
championship for the second consecutive season. Lawrence finished 12-4 in conference
play and won the Midwest Conference Tournament for the second straight year.
Tharp, who was the NABC Midwest Region Coach of the Year in 2004, guided his
team to a 20-6 overall record, the third-most victories in a season in school
history. The Vikings qualified for the NCAA Division III Tournament for the
second consecutive season and won a first-round game at Gustavus Adolphus College
before being eliminated by the defending national champions in the second round
at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.