FORT WORTH, Texas – Three players on the men’s basketball team at Texas Wesleyan University were honored today by the coaches of the Red River Conference. Junior David Johnson was selected as the 2002-2003 Defensive Player of the Year and was also named to the first-team, and seniors Aaron Whaley and James Whitfield received all-conference honorable mention.

Johnson, a 6’-9” center from Los Angeles, California, set a school record with 141 blocks during the regular season. His average of 4.57 per game led the conference by a wide margin, and likely led the nation as well, but blocked shots are not a part of the NAIA national statistics report.

David also grabbed 264 rebounds this season, averaging 8.6 per game. That average led Wesleyan, places him 4th in the conference, and ranks 18th in the nation. He also recorded 27 steals, good for third on the team. Offensively, he shot 47 percent on the season to average 11.7 points per game, and dished out 35 assists in 31 games.

On February 22, David recorded the only triple-double in 2002-2003 Red River Conference play. He scored 17 points, grabbed 11 rebounds, and blocked 11 shots against Huston-Tillotson College. He transferred to Wesleyan this season after spending two years at Weatherford College, where he was honored as the conference Freshman of the Year and was twice named to the first-team.

Whaley, a 5’-10” guard from Chapman, Kansas, finished the year with a string of 20-point games to bring his average up to 12.8 for the season – good for 20th in the conference. He led the Rams with 135 assists and 71 steals on the season, both in the conference top five. He also hit 78 percent of his free throws - good for third in the conference - and connected on 44 percent of his three-point attempts, making him the most accurate long-range shooter in the Red River Conference this season. Aaron missed a national top ten finish in three-point accuracy by two percent.

Aaron finishes his three-year career at Wesleyan with 931 points. He made 174 of 429 three-point attempts, for a career shooting percentage of .406, which ranks him in Wesleyan’s all-time top-five.

Whitfield, a 6’-1” guard from Midland, Texas, led the Rams in scoring this season with 517 total points, averaging 16.2 per game. He transferred to Wesleyan this year after a three-year career at former RRAC member Southwest Adventist University, which disbanded its athletic program in 2002. James led the RRAC in scoring last season, and was named to the conference second-team.

On the final game of the regular season, James set the all-time Wesleyan record for made three-pointers in a season. His total of 81 bested the old mark, set by Robert Allen in 1999, by one. He shot 40 percent from long-range - good for 13th in the conference – and hit 73 percent of his free throws, which ranked 14th in conference.

For more information about the Red River Athletic Conference all-conference selections, visit their website at www.redriverconference.com.

The third-seeded Rams open conference tournament play on Saturday, hosting #6 Huston-Tillotson at 7:30 PM. The teams split the season series at a game apiece, each winning on their home court.