Men’s and women’s basketball had five players reap Horizon League honors for their efforts during the regular season. The league office announced the Horizon League players of the year and all-league teams on Tuesday, Feb. 28 for the women and Wednesday, March 1 for the men.

The Horizon League announced an All-Horizon League First Team, Second Team, Defensive Team and Freshman Team for both the men’s and women’s leagues. Additionally, the league announced Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Sixth Player of the Year.

Hannah Little and Taylor Jones represented Oakland University’s women’s basketball team. Little was named Defensive Player of the Year. Throughout the entire season, she gathered 337 rebounds for the Golden Grizzlies, 140 more than the next highest on Oakland’s team. She finished the regular season fourth in the country in rebounds per game, with 11.6, and 11th in steals per game, with 3.28.

She led the league in total steals this season with 95 and finished fourth in the league in blocked shots with 32.

In addition to her Defensive Player of the Year honor, Little was also named to the Horizon League First Team, as well as the Horizon League Defensive Team.

Jones earned Sixth Player of the Year after coming off the bench and leading the team in points at 411. Her average of 15.2 points per game was good for ninth in the Horizon League at the conclusion of regular season play.

Jones scored 20 or more points on nine occasions this season, two of which came in the last two games of the regular season.

Oakland men’s basketball had three players collect postseason awards. Jalen Hayes was named to the All-Horizon League First Team. Martez Walker earned a spot on the Second Team, while Isaiah Brock earned Freshman Team and Defensive Team honors.

This marks Hayes’s third consecutive season receiving All-Horizon League honors. He has been an integral part of Oakland’s success this season, scoring in double digits in 25 out of 31 games.

Hayes finished the regular season averaging 17.9 points per game in conference play, good for third in the Horizon League, while his 9.2 rebounds-per-game average finished at second in the league.

Walker’s Second Team selection came after a season of leading the Golden Grizzlies in scoring, averaging 17.2 points per game this year, the fourth highest in the Horizon League.  Additionally, Walker leads the team with 12 20-plus points performances.  This is Walker’s first all-league award in his second season with the Golden Grizzlies.

Brock’s accolades reflect his impressive first season with the Golden Grizzlies, five years removed from his last experience playing organized basketball. Brock was an obvious choice for the Freshman Team, as he collected three Freshman of the Week honors this season. He became the first Horizon League player in history to sweep the league’s weekly honors on Feb. 2, earning both Freshman and Player of the Week.

His Defensive Team selection comes in light of his 2.1 blocked-shots-per-game average, ranked second in the Horizon League.

The postseason Horizon League awards are voted on by a panel consisting of head coaches, sports information directors and three media representatives from each school.