Hillmon Named MVP at Awards Banquet
4/16/2019 8:30:00 PM | Women's Basketball
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Freshman Naz Hillmon was named the Most Valuable Player to headline eight awards given out as the University of Michigan women's basketball team celebrated its 2018-19 season at its awards banquet on Tuesday night (April 16) on the floor of Crisler Center.
Hillmon was named the MVP after her breakout freshman campaign. Hillmon was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Year by the media, the Sixth Player of the Year and became the first freshman in school history to earn All-Big Ten first-team honors. Hillmon also grabbed a spot on the Big Ten All-Freshman team after being named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week six times. Hillmon led Michigan in scoring (13.1 ppg) and rebounding (7.0 rpg) despite coming off the bench in all 34 games. She scored in double figures 20 times, racking up eight double-doubles on the season.
Senior Nicole Munger took home a pair of awards, highlighted by the Diane Dietz Michigan Way Award -- given to honor the student-athlete who best embodies the values and work ethic of a Michigan women's basketball player. She also earned the Heart and Hustle award for stickers accumulated during games. Munger served as a captain this season and averaged a career-high 10.2 points per game to go with 3.0 rebounds per contest. She became the 28th member of the 1,000-point club, finishing her career with 1,010 points.
Junior Kayla Robbins also took home a pair of awards, winning Most Improved Player and the Leaders and Best award for accumulating the most practice points in categories established by the coaching staff. Robbins appeared in all 34 games off the bench this season, averaging a career-best 5.6 points per game to go with 3.3 boards in 14.1 minutes per contest. Robbins set new career highs in points (15) and assists (7) this season while scoring in double figures six times.
Senior Hallie Thome was given the Academic Excellence award, given to the player who achieved on the court and in the classroom. Thome, a three-time Academic All-Big Ten and four-time U-M Academic Athletic Achievement honoree, ended her career ranked second in points (2,081), rebounds (885) and blocks (202). Thome earned All-Big Ten first-team honors for the third straight season, while also grabbing her second straight WBCA All-Region award. Thome, who averaged 11.8 points and 5.9 rebounds per game in her final season, is graduating with a degree in communications.
Sophomore Hailey Brown earned the Unsung Hero award, given to the player whose contributions might not always appear in a box score but are invaluable to the team. Brown started all 34 games for Michigan, averaging 7.8 points and 4.0 rebounds in 23.4 minutes per game. Brown was instrumental in stretching the defense for the Wolverines, coming in second in three-pointers made (37). The Canadian helped Michigan to an important win at Penn State (Feb. 10), hitting a career-best six triples en route to 20 points.
Freshman Amy Dilk was given the Samantha Provenzano Perseverance Award, given to the player who overcame adversity to contribute to the team's success. Dilk appeared in 31 games, starting 29 times after missing three games with a knee injury during February. The freshman directed Michigan's offense, leading all Big Ten freshmen with 4.4 assists per contest (137). Dilk averaged 7.2 points and 3.7 rebounds in 30.3 minutes per game as one of two Wolverines to average at least 30 minutes per game.
Michigan finished the 2018-19 season with a 22-12 record, including an 11-7 mark in the Big Ten to finish fourth. U-M reached the second round of the NCAA Tournament for the second straight season, winning eight of its last nine regular-season contests to wrap up the postseason bid. The senior class of Munger, Thome and Samantha Trammel leaves Michigan as its winningest class with 94 victories over the last four years.
