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From LaGrange College Athletics

ATLANTA, Ga. – LaGrange men’s basketball has produced a league-high four All-Collegiate Conference of the South (CCS) selections and landed the Defensive Player of the Year in senior guard Bershard Edwards (Lehigh Acres, Fla.) as announced by the league with its first ever end-of-year awards on Thursday, February 23.

In addition to Edwards earning top defensive honors he was named to the All-CCS First-Team along with senior forward Zac Hill (Senoia, Ga.) while junior guard Camerin Lyons (Peachtree City, Ga.) and sophomore forward Kyle Smith (Titusville, Fla.) were each named to the Second-Team. Additionally, junior guard Gabe Cofield (LaGrange, Ga.) was named to the All-Sportsmanship Team.

For Edwards it is the second All-Conference honor of his career as he adds to his 2021-22 USA South West Division First-Team selection. It is the first such honor for Lyons, Smith and Hill.

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR/FIRST-TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE – BERSHARD EDWARDS

Edwards delivered a tremendous season that saw him average 16.3 points, 4.8 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.6 steals over the course of 25 games. He also shot .420 from the field and an impressive .832 at the foul line.

On the year he hit double figures in 21 of those games, including 11 of at least 20 points. Of those he dropped 30 points at Birmingham-Southern (11/30) and surpassed 20 points in four straight games from November 13-21, putting up 21 against Millsaps (11/13), 24 vs. BSC (11/18), 22 against Sewanee (11/19) and 24 vs. Pensacola Christian (11/21).

He would also come away with multiple steals 11 times, including four on four occasions, and dish out at least three assists 21 times. A multi-talented player, Edwards hit the boards as well, hauling in four or more 18 times with a season-high of 12 in that Pensacola Christian game.

FIRST-TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE – ZAC HILL

Hill came into his own in 2022-23 as he averaged 14.1 points, 5.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists and nearly a steal per game while shooting .582 from the field.

An offensive force, Hill would register 18 games of double-digit scoring, including six of 20 or better. He would deliver four of those consecutively from January 17 through February 3, highlighted by 28 points and 11 rebounds against eventually league champion Maryville (2/3). That would also be one of 18 times that he had at least five boards in a game.

He also scored 28 points against Eastern Nazarene (12/19) and 24 vs. Huntingdon (1/31) while also posting a double-double of 20 points and 12 caroms against Birmingham-Southern (11/18).

On February 6 Hill would make program history as he was named the first ever CCS Player of the Week after averaging 26.0 points and 9.5 rebounds.

SECOND-TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE – CAMERIN LYONS

Lyons produced a strong season with averages of 11.6 points, 3.5 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.0 steals while shooting .416 from the field and .779 at the foul line over 21 games.

A dangerous scorer, he hit double-digits 12 times with a season-high of 23 points vs. Berry (11/12) and had 20 points against Birmingham-Southern (11/18). The latter kicked off five straight games in double-figures, ending with 14 at BSC (11/30). He also dropped 19 in a CCS Quarterfinal victory over Covenant (2/21) and pulled down 12 boards to go with eight points against Eastern Nazarene (12/19).

A playmaker, Lyons would also dish out at least three assists 13 times and record three or more assists 12 times.

SECOND-TEAM ALL-CONFERENCE – KYLE SMITH

Smith made a major leap from his freshman campaign as he posted averages of 11.9 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.2 assists and shot .449 from the floor and .781 at the charity stripe.

On the year he hit double-figures in scoring 14 times and dropped a season-high 23 points with nine boards at eventual CCS champion Maryville (1/6). That was the first of five straight in double-digits (January 6-17), a stretch he would match from February 7-21.

In the latter he dropped 19 against Piedmont (2/7) and Berea (2/10), 16 vs. Belhaven (2/11) and 18 at Covenant (2/15). He would be even more impressive in the next meeting with Covenant (2/21) in the CCS Quarterfinals as he scored 13 and ripped down 13 boards in 36 minutes of action. The latter matched his season-high set against Eastern Nazarene.

UP NEXT

LaGrange won their CCS Tournament Quarterfinal over Covenant (2/21) and fell to No. 2 Seed Belhaven 85-68 on Friday, February 24 to close out the season.

2022-23 ALL-CCS MAJOR HONORS

Player of the Year – Myles Rasnick, Maryville
Defensive Player of the Year – Bershard Edwards, LaGrange
Rookie of the Year – Malcolm Noel, Covenant
Sixth Man of the Year – Chase Morgan, Maryville
Coach of the Year – Austin Newton, Berea

2022-23 All-CCS First-Team

Luke Couch, Belhaven
Jordan Marshall, Belhaven
Isaac Caudill, Berea
Trey Minter, Berea
Promise Igbanu, Covenant
Malcolm Noel, Covenant
Bershard Edwards, LaGrange
Zac Hill, LaGrange
Myles Rasnick, Maryville
Ryan Jolly, Piedmont

2022-23 All-CCS Second-Team

Judah Jordan, Belhaven
Jonathan Gernatt, Covenant
Max Gardner, Huntingdon
Nate Johns, Huntingdon
Camerin Lyons, LaGrange
Kyle Smith, LaGrange
Charlie Cochran, Maryville
Chase Morgan, Maryville
Devin Dean, Piedmont
Noah Reardon, Piedmont

2022-23 CCS All-Sportsmanship Team

Judah Jordan, Belhaven
Isaac Caudill, Berea
Fisher Mitchell, Covenant
Sam Page, Huntingdon
Gabe Cofield, LaGrange
Hayden Treadwell, Maryville
Logan Cranford, Piedmont