Redick, Williams continue to garner honors

Despite Duke's exit from the NCAA Tournament in the Sweet 16, J.J. Redick and Shelden Williams continued to draw headlines during Final Four weekend.

Redick was named the Naismith Trophy Men's College Player of the Year Sunday, becoming the fourth Duke player to win the award in the last eight seasons. Meanwhile, Williams was named the National Defensive Player of the Year for the second consecutive season, making him just the fifth player to receive the distinction two years in a row.

In winning the Naismith Trophy, Redick joins Johnny Dawkins, Danny Ferry, Christian Laettner, Elton Brand, Shane Battier and Jason Williams as the seventh Blue Devil to win the award.

The award is presented annually to the men's and women's college players of the year by the Atlanta Tipoff Club's Board of Selectors-a collection of journalists, coaches and administrators-and fans, who account for 25 percent of the vote. The Naismith Trophy is widely considered to be the most prestigious personal award in college basketball.

"When you consider all aspects of his game and everything he brings to the floor, there is no doubt Redick is the best player in the country," said Gray Stokan, president of the Atlanta Tipoff Club. "He helped lead Duke to a great season and, along the way, turned in one of the greatest personal performances of all time. He had a fantastic career for the Blue Devils and really embodies what the Naismith Trophy stands for."

While averaging 27.4 points per game, a mark second in the nation only to Gonzaga's Adam Morrison, Redick led Duke to a 32-4 record while capturing the ACC regular season and Tournament titles and the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament before falling to LSU in the Sweet 16. Redick beat out fellow finalists Rudy Gay of UConn, Morrison and Allan Ray of Villanova for the award.

Redick also received the Senior CLASS Award over the weekend, an award given annually to the outstanding men's and women's senior college basketball player.

Williams' reign as two-time National Defensive Player of the Year marks the continuation of Duke's dominance of the award since its creation. In the 21-year history of the award, six Duke players have received the distinction nine times, while the rest of the NCAA schools have captured it 12 times among seven different players. No school besides Duke has had more than one player win the award. Williams led the ACC in rebounding and blocks and was top five in the league in steals.