Smith Captures NABC and USBWA All-District Accolades

by Matt Dunaway, Director/Communications

DAYTON, Ohio – On the day Mississippi State men's basketball is set to return to the NCAA Tournament stage, the awards continue to come in for Tolu Smith who earned NABC and USBWA All-District First-Team honors announced Tuesday.

Smith etches his name alongside State's most recent recipients which include Quinndary Weatherspoon (2018-19), Reggie Perry (2019-20) and Iverson Molinar (2021-22) to secure accolades from the National Basketball Coaches Association (NABC) and United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA).

Last week, Smith was a consensus All-SEC First-Team pick and won the Bailey Howell Trophy which is awarded to the state of Mississippi's top collegiate player.

Smith is one of five Power 5 players to average at least 15.5 points, 8.5 rebounds and 1.5 assists per game while shooting 55.0 percent from the field. The prestigious list includes Purdue's Zach Edey, Indiana's Trayce Jackson-Davis, Kentucky's Oscar Tshiebwe and Arizona's Azuolas Tubelis.

Smith has ripped off double figures in 17 consecutive games fueled by 10 double doubles and five 20-10 outings. He has boosted his average to 17.9 points and 9.4 rebounds per game during the 17-game run.

For the season, Smith and Tshiebwe are the only SEC players to rank among the league's top 10 in points (15.82 – 8th) followed by top 3 marks in field goal percentage (57.6 – 1st), double-doubles (11 – 2nd) and rebounds (8.52 – 2nd).

Smith became the sixth MSU player since 2017-18 and 42nd player overall in program history to surpass 1,000 career points. He sits 30th in career points (1,197), 19th in career rebounds (671) and 5th in field goal percentage (57.4) among players who have made at least 400 field goals at State.

2022-23 USBWA All-District IV Team
Johni Broome – Auburn
Colin Castleton – Florida
Kendric Davis, Memphis
Brandon Miller – Alabama
Liam Robbins – Vanderbilt
Tolu Smith – Mississippi State
Oscar Tshiebwe – Kentucky
Santiago Vescovi – Tennessee
Isaiah Wong, Miami
Zakai Zeigler – Tennessee

USBWA District IV Player of the Year: Brandon Miller, Alabama
USBWA District IV Coach of the Year: Dusty May, Florida Atlantic

2022-23 NABC All-District 20 First Team
Kobe Brown – Missouri
Colin Castleton – Florida
Brandon Miller – Alabama
Tolu Smith – Mississippi State
Oscar Tshiebwe – Kentucky

2022-23 NABC All-District 20 Second Team
Anthony Black, Arkansas
Mark Sears, Alabama
Wade Taylor IV – Texas A&M
Santiago Vescovi – Tennessee
Zakai Zeigler – Tennessee

NABC District 20 Coach of the Year: Buzz Williams, Texas A&M

UP NEXT
The Bulldogs have the national stage with a standalone game versus Pittsburgh on the NCAA Tournament's opening day. Tuesday's tip time is scheduled for 8:10 p.m. CT televised by tru TV and available on the NCAA March Madness app.

Visit www.HailState.com for the latest news and information on the men's basketball program. Fans also can follow the program on its social media outlets by searching 'HailStateMBK' on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

Smith Captures NABC and USBWA All-District Accolades

Players Mentioned

Iverson Molinar

Tolu Smith III

Mississippi State University Athletics