The Commonwealth Athletic Club of Kentucky announced today that North Carolina's Roy Williams has won this year's Adolph Rupp Award as national coach-of-the-year. The award will be presented to Williams in Indianapolis on March 30th at the start of the NCAA Final Four. The selection was made by a national selection committee consisting of over 40 present and retired sports writers, coaches, TV-radio broadcasters, and sports administrators.
Williams led North Carolina to a 23-8 record despite losing all five starters from the 2005 national championship team (including the top seven scorers from that squad). Using two walk-ons and two freshmen in the starting line-up, Williams' Tar heels achieved success this year that none thought possible, success that ended in a loss to George Mason in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The Carolina coach is no stranger to success, however, maintaining the highest winning percentage in the nation among active coaches with 10 years experience and the fourth-highest in history.
The 2006 Adolph Rupp All-American Team includes: Tyler Hansbrough (North Carolina), J.J. Redick (Duke), Adam Morrison (Gonzaga), Brandon Roy (Washington) and Rudy Gay (Connecticut).
The 6-9, 235-pound Hansbrough, from Poplar Bluff, Mo., averaged 18.9 points and 7.8 rebounds for North Carolina to become the first North Carolina freshman to lead the Tar Heels in both categories. Hansbrough led all freshmen in the nation with a .570 field goal shooting percentage and was the first freshman to be a unanimous all-Atlantic Coast Conference first-team selection.