IOWA CITY, Iowa — University of Iowa sophomore forward Keegan Murray, sixth year senior Jordan Bohannon, and redshirt sophomore Patrick McCaffery have earned postseason recognition by the league head coaches and selected media panel, the Big Ten Conference announced on Tuesday.
Murray was a unanimous first team selection by both the media and coaches, marking the third straight season a Hawkeye has been a unanimous first team selection (Luka Garza in 2020 and 2021). Murray was also tabbed a unanimous first-team all-conference honoree by the Associated Press. Bohannon earned honorable mention recognition, while McCaffery is the recipient of Iowa’s Big Ten Men’s Basketball Sportsmanship Award.
Head coach Fran McCaffery has coached a first-team All-Big Ten honoree in seven of the last nine seasons, the most over a nine-year span since 1944-52. Murray joins Devyn Marble (2014), Aaron White (2015), Jarrod Uthoff (2016), Peter Jok (2017), and Garza (2020 and 2021) as first team selections.
Murray (6-foot-8, 225 pounds) ranks first in the country in Player Efficiency Rating (37.8); fourth in points per game (23.3); 29th in field goal percentage (.554); 39th in blocks per contest (2.1); and 46th in double-doubles (9). His 23.3 points per game average is tops among players from a major conference.
Murray is the only player nationally to average 23+ points, 8+ rebounds, and 2+ blocks this season and one of three players from a major conference with those averages over the last decade.
The Cedar Rapids, Iowa, native averaged 7.2 points per game last year and is averaging 23.3 this season (+16.1). The last Big Ten player to increase his scoring by 16 points per game from one season to the next was Illinois’ Rick Schmidt, who went from 3.8 ppg in 1972-73 to 21.4 ppg in 1973-74 (+17.6).
Murray, who was voted to the five-player All-Big Ten Freshman Team a year ago, has tallied 20+ points 22 times and 25+ points 13 times this season, both of which rank first among players from major conferences. He has scored 30 points or more four times, the most ever by a Hawkeye underclassman (freshman or sophomore) in a single season.
Bohannon has earned postseason conference recognition for a fifth time, earning third team accolades as a junior, honorable mention honors three times, and voted to the All-Freshman Team in 2017.
The native of Marion, Iowa, ranks second on the team in points per game (10.9) and assists (1.7), and first in 3-pointers per game (2.45).