Senior guards Ashton Mitchell and Corey Allmond both are first team selections while Clavell was voted to the second team. The league's head coaches and sports information directors comprise the voting panel.

Marlin earned his third coach of the year honor after guiding Sam Houston State to its third regular-season conference championship. He also was voted coach of the year in 2000 and 2003 after guiding the Bearkats to regular-season championships, as well.

Sam Houston State finished 14-2 in conference play, the most league wins by the program since winning 17 in 2003 when it won the conference tournament championship to qualify for the NCAA tournament.

With a 22-7 overall record, Sam Houston State is one of 51 programs in the country to have won at least 20 games in four of the last five seasons. Marlin is 222-130 with the Bearkats and has a 16-year career record of 345-165.

Clavell not only helped Sam Houston State win its third regular-season conference championship, but also helped it reach the Southland tournament for the eighth consecutive season as well.

The junior from Mayaguez, Puerto Rico, averaged 16.9 points and 6.5 rebounds per game to lead the Bearkats. Clavell, a transfer from Collin County Community College, paced the Bearkats in scoring 13 times this season and had 11 20-point games. He topped 30 three times, scoring 34 in a win at Auburn in December and a season-high 35 in the regular-season finale against Texas State.

He is the Bearkats' second player to be named the league newcomer of the year, joining Donald Cole who earned the honor in 2002.

Allmond and Mitchell comprise the highest scoring backcourt duo in the Sam Houston's 23 years at the NCAA Division I level. The two players (who are roommates off the court) have combined for 28.5 points per game this season.

Allmond and Mitchell now both rank among Sam Houston's top 30 all-time leading scorers. Mitchell ranks No. 20 with 1,045 points in four years. Allmond stands No. 30 with 932 points in two years. Allmond's 15.8 scoring average is the eighth highest career mark in Sam Houston men's basketball history

Mitchell leads the Southland Conference in assists for the second year in a row and ranks in the top 10 in steals, three-point percentage and assist-turnover ratio. Allmond is the league's fifth-leading scorer and stands No. 1 in the Southland and No. 20 in NCAA Division I basketball in 3-pointers per game.

Sam Houston State led all universities with three all-conference selections. Clavell was a second-team selection. Stephen F. Austin and Texas A&M-Corpus Christi each placed two on the all-conference squads.

The 2010 State Farm Southland Conference Basketball Tournament will be played this week at the Leonard E. Merrell Center. Four men's quarterfinal games will be played Wednesday beginning at noon with semifinal games Thursday at 6:05 p.m. and approximately 8:33 p.m. The championship game will be played Saturday at 3:05 p.m. and televised on ESPN2. Tickets are available through Ticketmaster or at the Merrell Center box office.

2009-10 Men's Basketball All-Southland Conference Teams

First Team
Ashton Mitchell  Sam Houston          G             Sr.           New Orleans, La.
Corey Allmond  Sam Houston            G             Sr.           Oxon Hill, Md.
Marquez Haynes  UT Arlington                 G             Sr.           Irving, Texas
Kevin Palmer A&M-Corpus Christi           G/F            Sr.           Baltimore, Md.
Anatoly Bose   Nicholls                          G/F            Jr.           Sydney, Australia

Second Team
Patrick Sullivan  Southeastern La            F/C           Sr.           Orlando, Fla.
Gilberto Clavell  Sam Houston         F              Jr.           Mayaguez, Puerto Rico
Eddie Williams   Stephen F. Austin          G             Jr.           Lawton, Okla.
Justin Nabors   Lamar                            F              Sr.           Holly Springs, Miss.
Devin Gibson  UTSA                               G             Jr.           Houston, Texas

Third Team
Cameron Johnson  Texas State              F              Jr.           Richardson, Texas
Demond Watt  A&M-Corpus Christi        F              Jr.           Chicago, Ill.
Will Pratt   Northwestern State              F              Jr.           Harlem, N.Y.
Patrick Richard  McNeese State             G             So.          Carencro, La
Walt Harris    Stephen F. Austin             G             Sr.           Killeen, Texas

Player of the Year:  Marquez Haynes, UT Arlington
Newcomer of the Year:  Gilberto Clavell, Sam Houston State
Freshman of the Year:  Melvin Johnson III, UTSA
Coach of the Year:  Bob Marlin, Sam Houston State