BIRMINGHAM, Ala. – Following impressive individual seasons, Alabama A&M men's basketball has landed a pair of selections on the 2020-21 All-Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) Teams as announced by the league on Tuesday, March 9.
Earning spots on the Second-Team were sophomore guard
Garrett Hicks (Madison, Ala.) and sophomore forward
Jalen Johnson (Indianapolis, Ind.) as the pair were among the 10 best players in the league.
JALEN JOHNSON – SECOND-TEAM
Johnson was a force to be reckoned with all year long as he picked up three SWAC Player of the Week honors while averaging 16.5 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.1 steals and shooting .562 from the field in 15 games and starts.
On the year he would score in double-figures 12 times, including four games of 20 points or more, while ripping down double-digits in boards on four occasions, each of them a double-double.
He would produce a career-high 28 points on 13-of-17 shooting in the season opener at Samford (11/29) and follow that up with 24 points and 11 boards in the very next game against South Alabama (12/19).
After notching a 25-point, nine rebound performance against Alcorn State (2/22) and 22 points and seven caroms vs. Arkansas-Pine Bluff (2/8) he would add his two best rebounding performances over the final three games of the season.
Johnson hauled in 13 boards against both Texas Southern (3/1) and Grambling (3/6) while adding 16 and 15 points, respectively, to put a cap on a breakout sophomore season, one that clearly did not go unnoticed by the league's head coaches and sports information directors.
GARRETT HICKS – SECOND-TEAM
A dangerous shooter and threat to pull it down and take it to the rim, Hicks was a dual threat for SWAC opponents in 2020-21, finishing with averages of 13.0 points, 3.8 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 1.3 steals, all while knocking down 26 three-pointers at a 31-percent clip.
His 15 games and starts would see him compile 10 double-digit scoring games, including a career-game against Southern (1/23). In that one he dropped a personal best 27 points on 10-of-17 shooting from the field, 7-of-11 of that from beyond the arc.
Those seven threes equaled his career-high from three-point range that he set on his way to 23 points against South Alabama (12/19) in the second game of the season. Hicks would also add 16 points and six rebounds in a near upset of eventual SWAC Regular Season Champion Prairie View A&M.
A constant threat for opposing defenses, one of his best abilities was his availability as he rarely left the court, playing at least 33 minutes in 12 of his 15 games, including a career-high 47 in a 93-90 double-overtime victory over South Alabama.
Alabama A&M wrapped up the 2020-21 season with a 6-9 overall record and return both Hicks and Johnson as part of a young nucleus that will see 12-of-13 players back next season, including just two seniors.
2020-21 All-Southwestern Athletic Conference Teams
First-Team
Troymain Crosby, Alcorn State
Michael Weathers, Texas Southern
Tristan Jarrett, Jackson State
Cam Mack, Prairie View A&M
Shaun Doss Jr., Arkansas-Pine Bluff
Second-Team
Jawaun Daniels, Prairie View A&M
Jayveous McKinnis, Jackson State
Cameron Christon, Grambling State
Garrett Hicks, Alabama A&M
Jalen Johnson, Alabama A&M
Player of the Year
Tristan Jarrett, Jackson State
Defensive Player of the Year
Jayveous McKinnis, Jackson State
Newcomer of the Year
Michael Weathers, Texas Southern
Freshman of the Year
Terrell Williams, Southern
Coach of the Year
Byron Smith, Prairie View A&M
