March 9, 2009

LONG BEACH, Calif. -

Complete Release in PDF Format

Freshman Larry Anderson has been named first-team All-Big West in a vote of the league's coaches, while senior Donovan Morris, junior Stephan Gilling and freshman T.J. Robinson all earned honorable mention All-Big West honors. Anderson also was named the Big West Freshman of the Year and is joined by Robinson and Casper Ware on the Big West All-Freshman Team.

Anderson (Long Beach, Calif./Jordan HS) is the first Long Beach State freshman to earn first-team all-league honors since Clifton Pondexter after the 1973-74 season. Anderson finished the regular season averaging 10.9 points, 4.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists per game. He scored in double digits 17 times, including nine of Long Beach State's last 10 games. He also had three 20-point games, including a career-high 25 points at UC Riverside. Anderson finished Big West play 13th in scoring (12.3 ppg), fourth in field goal percentage (51.1 percent), and sixth in assists (3.19 apg) and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.31) in league games. For the season, he finished second in field goal percentage (55.0 percent) and seventh in assists (2.72 apg).

Anderson also became the first 49er freshman to earn Big West Freshman of the Year honors since James Cotton claimed the award after the 1993-94 season, and the third overall along with Cotton and Lucious Harris (1989-90). He was joined on the all-freshman team by teammates Robinson and Ware.

Robinson (West Haven, Conn./Kolbe Cathedral HS) finished the regular season averaging 11.0 points and 6.2 rebounds per game, while Ware (Cerritos, Calif./Gahr HS) finished the year averaging 9.1 points and 4.1 assists per game. Robinson leads the league in field goal percentage (55.0 percent), while ranking 14th in scoring and eighth in rebounding. In league games he was eighth in scoring (13.5 ppg) and second in rebounding (7.8 rpg), while leading the league in field goal percentage (62.3 percent).

Ware finished the regular season with 118 assists, a LBSU freshman record. He heads to the league tournament fourth in the league in both assists and assist-to-turnover ratio (1.49), while ranking second in assists (4.26 apg) and fifth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.31) in league games.

Robinson also joined Morris (San Bernardino, Calif./Cajon HS) and Gilling (Chino Hills, Calif./Ayala HS) on the honorable mention all-league team. Morris, a first-team all-league pick as a junior, led The Beach in scoring (14.8 ppg) despite missing five games with an injury. He finished sixth in the league in scoring and third in free throw percentage (84.3 percent). Gilling finished second on the team in scoring (11.3 ppg) while making a team-high 83 3-pointers, the second most in school history. Gilling ranks second in the Big West in 3-pointers made per game in both overall games (2.86/game) and league games (2.94/game).

Click on attached .pdf for all-league teams.