BEAVERTON, Ore. ? Alaska Anchorage senior point guard Luke Cooper added to his list of honors this week when he was named a First Team All-American by Division II Bulletin. The same publication recognized fellow UAA senior Carl Arts as an honorable mention All-American as well.
Cooper ? who had previously been named a second-team All-American by Basketball Times ? led D-II with 8.9 assists per game and was second nationally in assist-to-turnover ratio (3.56-1). Also averaging a career-best 7.7 points per game, he helped the Seawolves finish 29-6 and advance to the NCAA Div. II Final Four for second time in school history.
Cooper's 310 total assists in 2007-08 and his 880 career assists both rank No. 4 on the single-season and all-time lists for NCAA Div. II. In terms of career assists per game, Cooper finished No. 11 with 7.3 apg.
In 2007-08, he dished double-digit assists on 15 occasions ? including school records of 18 against Saint Martin's and 17 against Montana State Billings ? and 32 times in his 4-year career.
Last month Cooper was named the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player of the Year and a first-team all-region selection in both the Daktronics (sports information directors) and NABC (coaches) balloting.
He is also one of 16 finalists ? one of just two at the D-II level ? to vie for the Bob Cousy Award as the nation's top point guard.
Arts ? previously announced as an All-America selection on the NABC State Farm squad ? added his D-II Bulletin honor to his long list of accolades.
The 6-6, 210-pound forward averaged team-leading numbers of 18.5 points, 7.9 rebounds, 1.3 steals and 0.5 blocks per game for the Seawolves, who finished No. 4 in the final NABC national poll.
Last month, Arts gained first-team all-region accolades in both the NABC and Daktronics (sports information directors) voting. He was also a first-team All-Great Northwest Athletic Conference pick and earned a spot on the All-Tournament Team in UAA's West Regional title run.
The Valdez, Alaska, native led the GNAC in rebounding and double-doubles (10), and was the league's third-leading scorer. He was also second in the GNAC in minutes played (35.2), behind only Cooper's 36.3 mpg. A three-time GNAC Player of the Week, Arts has score in double digits in 32 of 35 games, including 18 outings of 20 or more.
With 1,544 points and 762 rebounds, he finished No. 3 on both UAA career lists; in all, Arts ranked in the top 10 in 12 UAA career categories, including 3FG% (5th, .439), blocks (5th, 70), FT% (10th, .824), games started (t-4th, 90), games played (t-2nd, 121) and double-doubles (6th, 16).
2007-08 DIVISION II BULLETIN ALL-AMERICA TEAMS
Player of the Year: John Smith, Winona State
First Team
John Smith Winona State Senior Center
Callistus Eziukwu Grand Valley St. Senior Center
Steve Dagostino St. Rose Senior Guard
Luke Cooper Alaska Anchorage Senior Guard
Atila Santos Minnesota State Senior Center
Second Team
Sean Barnette Wingate Senior Guard
Nate Frisch Bentley Senior Forward
Jonte Flowers Winona State Senior Forward
Tyrekus Bowman Augusta State Senior Forward
Chris Gilliam Pitt-Johnstown Senior Forward
Third Team
Matt Hall Harding Senior Forward
Devin Peal Humboldt State Senior Forward
Cory Abercrombie Pittsburg State Senior Center
Michael Sturns Holy Family Senior Guard
Jeff Fahnbulleh Kentucky Wesleyan Senior Center
Fourth Team
Brian Stammer Colo. Christian Senior Forward
Brandon Streeter Mount Olive Senior Forward
Sam Belt Central Oklahoma Senior Guard
Anthony Hilliard Elizabeth City St. Junior Forward
Ryan McLemore Edinboro Senior Forward
Honorable Mention
Larry Gordon, Cal Poly, Jr.; Casey Holt, No. Alabama, Sr.; Brad Byerson, Va. Union, Sr.; Robert Lee, West Texas A&M, Sr.; Carl Arts, Alaska Anchorage, Sr.; Jonathan Schmidt, C.W. Post, Jr.; Norman Plummer, So. Indiana (Pa.), Sr.; Pierce Caldwell, Incarnate Word, So.; Matthew Rogers, SW Baptist, So.; Collins Harris, Drury, Sr.; David Drees, St. Cloud St., Sr.; Kenny Jones, Kentucky St., Sr.; Chris Commons, USC Aiken, Jr.; Charlie Parker, Millersville, Sr.; Avery Patterson, Tarleton, Sr.; Ryan Williams, Pace, Sr.; Devon Manning, Fort Lewis, Sr.; Jeremy Black, Tampa, Sr.; Stan Hall, Alderson-Broaddus, Jr.; Marlon Pierce, CSU San Bernardino, Sr.; Jonny Reibel, Rollins, Sr.; Lucas Alves, BYU-Hawaii, So.; Kendrick Easley, Mt. Olive, So.; Damone Morris, Eckerd, Sr.; Scooby Johnson, Texas A&M Commerce, Sr.; Josh Bostic, Findlay, Jr.; Darren Duncan, Merrimack, So.; Dylan Grimsley, South Dakota, Jr.; Jason Jamerson, Grand Valley St., Sr.
