MONTGOMERY, Ala. – The Southern States Athletic Conference announced the year-end 2025-26 men’s basketball award winners Wednesday evening.
Four different teams were represented in the individual honors, including William Carey’s Steve Knight being named Coach of the Year and Loyola’s Kameron Johnson earning Player of the Year honors.
Coach of the Year: Steve Knight, William Carey
Player of the Year: Kameron Johnson, Loyola
Defensive Player of the Year: Makeem Roberts, William Carey
6th Man of the Year: Malik Franklin, William Carey
Newcomer of the Year: Shane Stevensen, Life
Freshman of the Year: Jonathan Goldson, Thomas
Sportsmanship Award: Loyola
Noteworthy
- This was Knight’s seventh SSAC Coach of the Year honor, after guiding the Crusaders to the SSAC Regular Season Championship
- Only two All-Conference selections are repeat honorees, with Dalton State’s Qualen Pettus and Faulkner’s KJ Rogers climbing to the First-Team after earning Second-Team honors last year
- Earning Defensive Player of the Year honors, Makeem Roberts leads the NAIA with 109 steals, while Johnson is second with 179 assists to go along with his 18.2 points per game
| First-Team All-Conference |
|
| Aahmod Scarbrough |
Mobile |
| Gil Gonzalez |
Brewton-Parker Christian |
| Kameron Johnson |
Loyola |
| Kenton Steele |
Point |
| KJ Rogers |
Faulkner |
| Makeem Roberts |
William Carey |
| Malik Franklin |
William Carey |
| Qualen Pettus |
Dalton State |
| Shane Stevensen |
Life |
| Tanner Vogel |
Faulkner |
|
|
| Second-Team All-Conference |
|
| Zion Hunter |
Mobile |
| Zach Lee |
Loyola |
| Varun Danak |
Dalton State |
| Tommy Tisdale |
Brewton-Parker Christian |
| Omarion Smith |
Dalton State |
| Josh Baugher |
Life |
| Jonathan Goldson |
Thomas |
| Jamar Jenkins |
William Carey |
| Gavin Shannon |
Blue Mountain Christian |
| Antonio Cochran |
UT Southern |
|
|
| All-Freshman Team |
|
| Jonathan Goldson |
Thomas |
| Kamal Green II |
Faulkner |
| Robert Harris |
Point |
| Dontae Smith |
Abraham Baldwin |
| Sergio Corta |
Life |
|
|
| Athletic Solutions All-Academic Team |
| Michael Bell |
UT Southern |
| Ryan Dunn |
UT Southern |
| Ricardo Gomez |
UT Southern |
| John Harper |
UT Southern |
| JaMil Wilson |
UT Southern |
| Dominic Simpkins |
William Carey |
| Srdjan Popovich |
Life |
| Cahlib Edwards |
Point |
| Tanner Higgins |
Point |
| Kenton Steele |
Point |
| Yuta Yamamoto |
Point |
| Davontae Sinclair |
Point |
| Davis Altrofs |
Blue Mountain Christian |
| Jonathan Baker |
Blue Mountain Christian |
| Luka Goshadze |
Blue Mountain Christian |
| Esrael Yant |
Blue Mountain Christian |
| Kevin Jackson |
Brewton-Parker Christian |
| Tommy Tisdale III |
Brewton-Parker Christian |
| Trenton Shelton |
Brewton-Parker Christian |
| Gil Gonzalez |
Brewton-Parker Christian |
| Jonathan Goldson |
Thomas |
| Shane Payne |
Thomas |
| Brody Adams |
Loyola |
| Dominic Brown |
Loyola |
| Apo Paziotopoulos |
Loyola |
| Schuyler Pimentel |
Loyola |
| Evan Savoy |
Loyola |
| Reece Seicshnaydre |
Loyola |
| Troy Thomas |
Loyola |
| Jaron Briggs |
Dalton State |
| Kyoya Sasaki |
Dalton State |
| Dayton Richardson |
Mobile |
| Kristiyan Vasilev |
Mobile |
| Jerome Thomas |
Faulkner |
| Ian Johnigan |
Faulkner |
| Francois-Dony Baba |
Faulkner |
| Tanner Vogel |
Faulkner |
|
|
| Champions of Character Team |
| Gil Gonzalez |
Brewton-Parker Christian |
| Josh Baugher |
Life |
| Aahmod Scarbrough |
Mobile |
| Leonard Jackson |
Loyola |
| Yuta Yamamoto |
Point |
| Jack Harper |
UT Southern |
| Jamar Jenkins |
William Carey |
| Je'hvonni Hogan |
Thomas |
| Kyoya Sasaki |
Dalton State |
| Jerome Thomas |
Faulkner |
| Nathaniel Mobley |
Abraham Baldwin |
| Jonathan Baker |
Blue Mountain Christian |