The American Athletic Conference released its first wave of postseason awards on Monday afternoon. Wichita State's Markis McDuffie earned second team all-conference status, and Dexter Dennis was named to the all-freshman team.
 
Awards were voted on by the league's 12 head coaches.
 
McDuffie -- a 6-foot-8 forward from Paterson, N.J. – was a first team All-Missouri Valley Conference choice as a sophomore before losing half of his junior year to a foot injury. He returned to all-conference form a senior, ranking among the league's top-10 in scoring (4^th, 17.9), free throw percentage (5^th, .814) and three-point field goals (8^th, 2.3).
 
McDuffie scored at least eight points in all 30 regular season games and topped 20 on 10 occasions. He twice earned American Athletic Conference Player of the Week status and made the league's weekly honor roll on four other occasions.

WSU has had at least one all-conference player in each of the last 10 seasons.
 
Dennis -- a 6-foot-5 guard from Baker, La. – averaged 7.8 points during the regular season while shooting 39.4 percent from three-point range (39-of-99). His 5.1 rebounds-per-game would be the highest ever for a Shocker freshman guard and the most by any WSU freshman in 18 years.
 
Dennis started 18 times and averaged 24.5 minutes-per-game, but he was at his best over the final month of the season. Over the final seven regular season games he scored in double-figures five times, averaging 11.1 points and 7.9 rebounds while hitting 21-of-45 threes. The last of those triples came at the buzzer to beat Tulane on Mar. 9.
 
Dennis is WSU's first all-freshman selection since joining The American. Notably, after the MVC established its all-freshman five in 2001, eight of the nine Shockers who made the team went on to earn all-conference plaudits at some point in their careers -- most recently McDuffie, the 2016 Valley freshman of the year.
 
The conference's Defensive Player of the Year, Most Improved Player, Sixth Man of the Year and Sportsmanship Award winners will be announced on Tuesday. The American Player of the Year, Freshman of the Year and Coach of the Year will be announced on Wednesday, March 13.
 
WSU (17-13, 10-8 American) is the No. 6 seed in this week's Air Force Reserve American Athletic Conference Men's Basketball Championship at FedExForum in Memphis, Tenn. The Shockers will take on No. 11 seed ECU in first round action at just after 9 p.m. CT Thursday on ESPNU, with the winner advancing to Friday night's quarterfinals against No. 3 Temple (8 p.m. CT, ESPNU).
 
For more information on the American Men's Basketball Championship, please visit Championship Central at www.theamerican.org/mbb.
 

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2019 AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE AWARDS:
 
First Team All-Conference
Shizz Alston, Jr., Temple
Jarron Cumberland, Cincinnati *
Corey Davis, Jr., Houston *
Jeremiah Martin, Memphis *
B.J. Taylor, UCF
 
Second Team All-Conference
Armoni Brooks, Houston
Aubrey Dawkins, UCF
Markis McDuffie, Wichita State
Jahmal McMurray, SMU
Quinton Rose, Temple
 
Third Team All-Conference
Jalen Adams, UConn
David Collins, USF
Tacko Fall, UCF
DaQuan Jeffries, Tulsa
Laquincy Rideau, USF
 
All-Freshman Team
Dexter Dennis, Wichita State
Jayden Gardner, ECU *
Tyler Harris, Memphis
Nate Hinton, Houston *
Alexis Yetna, USF *
 
*unanimous selection
 

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ALL-CONFERENCE SHOCKERS UNDER GREGG MARSHALL:
2019 – AAC -- Markis McDuffie (2^nd)
2018 – AAC -- Landry Shamet (1^st) & Shaquille Morris (1^st)
2017 – MVC -- Markis McDuffie (1^st), Landry Shamet (1^st), Conner Frankamp (3^rd), Shaquille Morris (3^rd)
2016 – MVC -- Ron Baker (1^st) & Fred VanVleet (1^st)*
2015 – MVC -- Ron Baker (1^st), Fred VanVleet (1^st), Tekele Cotton (2^nd), Darius Carter (HM)
2014 – MVC -- Ron Baker (1^st), Cleanthony Early (1^st), Fred VanVleet (1^st)*, Tekele Cotton (2^nd)
2013 – MVC -- Cleanthony Early (1^st), Carl Hall (2^nd), Malcolm Armstead (HM)
2012 – MVC -- Garrett Stutz (1^st), Joe Ragland (2^nd), Toure' Murry (HM)
2011 – MVC -- J.T. Durley (1^st), Toure' Murry (2^nd)
2010 – MVC -- Clevin Hannah (1^st), Toure' Murry (HM)
*=Conference Player of the Year
 
All-Freshman Shockers under Gregg Marshall:
2019 – AAC – Dexter Dennis
2017 – Landry Shamet*
2016 – Markis McDuffie*
2015 – Shaquille Morris
2009 – Toure' Murry
2008 – J.T. Durley
*=Freshman of the Year