Blacksburg, VA -- Virginia Tech senior guard Erick Green had one of the greatest seasons ever by a Hokie basketball player, and the college basketball world took notice.
Green was named the Atlantic Coast Conference men's basketball Player of the Year, the first Virginia Tech player to receive the award. He is only the third Hokie to ever earn a conference player of the year award, joining Virginia Tech legends Dell Curry (1986) and Bimbo Coles (1988), who earned Metro Conference Player of the Year honors.
During a down season for the Hokies (13-18, 4-14) under first-year head coach James Johnson, Green became the first ACC player since 1957 to lead the nation in scoring. The senior, known to die-hard Hokie basketball fans as "The Winchester Rifle" because of his hometown and his clutch shooting, averaged 25.4 points a game this season.
Not only did Green lead the nation in scoring, but he averaged more than 8 points a game more than the second-leading scorer in the conference. He dominated the opposition all season and scored at least 20 point in 28 of his 31 games.
He also broke the single-season scoring record for the Hokies, notching 786 points in his senior campaign.
Heading into the final regular season game of the year, Green needed 34 points to tie Coles' record of 785 points in a season, set during the 1989-90 season. The Winchester Rifle scored 36 to break the record.
For Virginia Tech basketball fans, Green's Player of the Year award and being named to the ACC first-team, were the lone bright spots in an otherwise forgettable season. And he won it in a landslide, taking 38 of the 76 first-place votes. Miami's Shane Larkin finished second with 23 votes.
His supporting cast, which played well a season ago, disappeared this year under a completely new coaching staff. Other teams double- and triple-teamed Green all season long, but they still couldn't stop him.
Green finished his career cracking the top 10 in career scoring at Virginia Tech, surpassing Ace Custis (1993-97) for 10th place. Interestingly enough, Custis was the last player, and only the fourth Hokie ever, to have his jersey retired and hung from the rafters at Cassell Coliseum.
Fans are already talking about how Green deserves to join Custis, Curry, Coles and Allan Bristow in the rafters of the Coliseum. While that honor may be debated, no one is questioning Green's worthiness when it comes to being the ACC's best player.
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