J’Wan Roberts, LJ Cryer Named to Preseason All-Big 12 First Team

HOUSTON – The University of Houston Men's Basketball program was picked to finish second in the Preseason Big 12 Conference Coaches Poll with graduate stars J'Wan Roberts and LJ Cryer earning players on the Preseason All-Big 12 First Team, the league announced Thursday.

Under the leadership of National and Big 12 Coach of the Year Kelvin Sampson, the Cougars received 211 points and five first-place votes in the poll, which was voted on by the league's head coaches.

This marked the sixth consecutive season in which Houston was tabbed among the Top Two in its conference preseason poll. The Cougars were picked as favorites in each of their final four seasons in the American Athletic Conference.

Kansas held a slim advantage for the top spot in the preseason poll with 215 points and nine first-place votes. Iowa State and Arizona each received one first-place vote.

ABOUT J'WAN ROBERTS
A four-year letterman, Roberts has been a leader in the Houston frontcourt for years. With Thursday's announcement, he collected the first preseason conference honor of his career.

The St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, native led Houston and finished sixth in the Big 12 with 6.8 rebounds per game and was one of only three student-athletes to rank among the league's Top-10 leaders in both offensive and defensive rebounding.

Roberts tallied four double-doubles and led the Cougars with six double-digit rebounding performances on the way to receiving All-Big 12 Third-Team honors.

As he enters the 2024-25 season, Roberts ranks among Houston's Top-10 career leaders in wins, games played and rebounds and is poised to set school records in the first two categories.

He is also tied for the school record with 63 wins inside Fertitta Center and could become only the fourth student-athlete in Houston history to record 1,000 points and 1,000 rebounds during his career.

ABOUT LJ CRYER
Competing in his first season with the Cougars a year ago, Cryer led Houston and finished fifth in the Big 12 with 15.5 points per game. This was the second straight season in which he has named to the Preseason All-Big 12 Team.

The Katy, Texas, native was one of only three Cougars to start all 37 games in 2023-24 and led Houston and the league with 3.0 3-point field goals per game.

Cryer paced Houston with 13 20-point games and 27 double-digit performances, including a season-high 26 points against rv/– Texas inside Fertitta Center on Feb. 17.

For his impressive efforts, Cryer was named an All-America Honorable Mention by the United States Basketball Writers Association and was named to the All-Big 12 Second Team by the league and the Associated Press.

Cryer also received National Association of Basketball Coaches All-District 8 Second-Team recognition and was named the Shriners Children's Charleston Classic Most Valuable Player.

PRESEASON ALL-BIG 12 CONFERENCE TEAM
Houston was the only Big 12 school with two members on the league's Preseason First Team and tied with Baylor, Kansas and Iowa State for tops with two Preseason All-Conference honorees.

Roberts and Cryer were joined on the First Team by Arizona guard Caleb Love, Iowa State guard Tamin Lipsey and Kansas center Hunter Dickinson.

Baylor center Norchad Omier and guard Jeremy Roach, Iowa State guard Keshon Gilbert, Kansas guard Dajuan Harris and Kansas State wing Coleman Hawkins earned places on the Preseason Second Team.

Dickinson was named the league's Preseason Player of the Year while Roach and Hawkins shared honored as Preseason Newcomer of the Year. Baylor guard VJ Edgecombe was recognized as the league's Preseason Freshman of the Year.

2024-25 BIG 12 PRESEASON COACHES POLL

Rank	School (First-place votes)	Points
1.	Kansas (9)	215
2.	Houston (5)	211
3.	Iowa State (1)	194
4.	Baylor	185
5.	Arizona (1)	179
6.	Cincinnati	140
7.	Texas Tech	135
8.	Kansas State	133
9.	BYU	116
10.	TCU	90
11.	UCF	83
12.	Arizona State	64
13.	West Virginia	62
14.	Oklahoma State	46
15.	Colorado	37
16.	Utah	30

2024-25 PRESEASON ALL-BIG 12 CONFERENCE TEAM
First Team

Name	Position	School
J'Wan Roberts	Forward	Houston
LJ Cryer	Guard	Houston
Caleb Love	Guard	Arizona
Tamin Lipsey	Guard	Iowa State
* Hunter Dickinson	Center	Kansas

* – unanimous selection

Second Team

Name	Position	School
Norchad Omier	Forward	Baylor
Jeremy Roach	Guard	Baylor
Keshon Gilbert	Guard	Iowa State
Dajuan Harris	Guard	Kansas
Coleman Hawkins	Wing	Kansas State

Preseason Player of the Year: Hunter Dickinson, Kansas
Preseason Co-Newcomers of the Year: Jeremy Roach, Baylor; Coleman Hawkins, Kansas State
Preseason Freshman of the Year: VJ Edgecombe, Baylor

BUY 2024-25 TICKETS
Non-season ticket holders interested in purchasing season tickets are invited to place their names on the Season Ticket Wait List by clicking here.

SUPPORT YOUR COOGS
Fans can make a direct impact on the success of Houston Men's Basketball by supporting Linking Coogs – UH's NIL collective – and by joining the 50-50 Club, which provides financial support directly to Houston Men's Basketball for needs beyond its operating budget.

Fans who join the 50-50 Club will receive embroidered Jordan Brand team apparel, invitations to exclusive events, regular updates about the program and much more.

STAY CONNECTED
Fans can receive updates by following @UHCougarMBK on X, formerly known as Twitter, and catch up with the latest news and notes on the team by clicking LIKE on the team's Facebook page at UHCougarMBK or by visiting the team's Instagram page at UHCougarMBK.

– UHCougars.com –

Upcoming Events

Recent Results