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Bailey, Maxson Named First-Team All-Americans Following an outstanding winter sports season at UW-Stevens Point, the individual postseason awards are beginning to roll in with a pair of All-American selections. After the greatest individual season in Pointers’ men’s basketball history, Brant Bailey has been named a first-team All-American by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, while also capturing West Region Player of the Year honors. Hockey player Ryan Maxson also earned first-team West Region All-American honors by the American Hockey Coaches Association after leading the Pointers to their fifth Northern Collegiate Hockey Association regular season title. UW-Stevens Point goalie Bob Gould was a second-team All-American selection. Bailey, a Wisconsin Dells, Wis. native, scored a school-record 723 points this past season and averaged 24.1 points per game as the Pointers finished 25-5 and claimed both the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference regular season and tournament titles. UW-Stevens Point advanced to the quarterfinals of the NCAA Division III tournament before falling to UW-Eau Claire 60-58 in the sectional finals. "Brant Bailey had a dream season – an All-American season," UW-Stevens Point coach Jack Bennett said. "Brant’s combination of strength, quickness and touch were matchless. As a senior, he became a more complete player and, consequently, a much better team player." Bailey set eight school records and moved into fifth place on the school’s all-time scoring list with 1,506 points, despite entering the season with 783 points in his first three years combined. He was the lone WIAC player on the first or second All-American teams. Bailey was joined on the All-Region team by UW-Platteville’s Merrill Brunson and UW-Eau Claire’s Sherm Carstensen. Bailey also was accompanied by Brunson and UW-Eau Claire’s Jon Wallenfelsz on the five-player All-American first-team by D3hoops.com. "His single-season scoring record of 723 points surpassed Terry Porter’s record of 600 points, putting Brant in some very rarified air," Bennett said. "Brant Bailey is one of the most deserving All-American peformers UW-Stevens Point and this league has ever produced." Bailey, the WIAC Player of the Year, scored double figures in every game and over 20 points in 23 of the Pointers’ 30 games, including 14 of their 16 WIAC contests. He averaged 24.9 points per game in the WIAC, which was the highest scoring average by any conference player since John Williams of UW-River Falls averaged 25.9 points per game in 1984. Bailey set single-game and single-season WIAC records for free throws made and attempted by connecting on 132 of 172 attempts in league play. He was 25-for-31 from the line in a win over UW-La Crosse on Dec. 11. He also set school records for single-season field goals made with 252. His 307 free throw attempts are also a single-season school mark and finished 19 short of the NCAA Division III record. Bailey’s 219 free throws made were 89 more than his school record from last season. His 444-for-641 career free throw shooting also sets UW-Stevens Point career records for free throws made and attempted. Maxson, a Bloomington, Minn. native and Jefferson High School graduate, scored 23 goals and added 17 assists for 40 points as the Pointers finished 23-7-1 overall and advanced to the NCHA championship series, tying UW-Superior 4-4 and losing 6-3. Maxson, a junior forward who earned first-team All-NCHA honors this past season, had never earned any All-Conference mention prior to this season. In fact, Maxson had a total of 38 points in his first two seasons before exceeding that total this season and emerging as one of the nation’s top goal scorers. "I think a lot of teams underestimated Ryan’s ability," UW-Stevens Point coach Joe Baldarotta said. "He is an outstanding scorer who can put the puck in the back of the net. This is a big feather in his cap to be recognized as an All-American." Maxson also led the team and ranked seventh in Division III with nine power play goals for the season. He recorded hat tricks in wins over UW-Eau Claire and Bethel (Minn.) and scored the game-winning goal in the third period of a 3-2 win at UW-Superior Jan. 22 that propelled the Pointers to the NCHA title. Maxson was the lone WIAC player on the first team and was joined by St. Norbert’s Tommy Cianflone as the only NCHA selections on the six-player squad. Gould, a sophomore from Eagle River, Wis. and Northland Pines High School, was the only underclassman honored on the first or second team in either the East or West Region. Gould was just the fourth goalie and fourth underclassman to be named the NCHA Player of the Year after leading the league in goals against average at 1.75 and save percentage at .929. Overall, Gould had the second-highest single-season win total in school history and ranked second in Division III in victories with a 20-3-1 record. He ranked sixth in the country in save percentage at .916 and third in goals against average at 2.21. Gould had an incredible run during the final stretch of the season, allowing just six goals in six games, spanning the final regular season weekend and the first two rounds of the NCHA playoffs. He finished the year with two shutouts and allowed one goal in a game nine times. |
Bailey, Maxson Named All-Americans