BRISTOL, Tenn. –
Mikhail Pocknett and
Jordan Akal of the King University men's basketball team were named All-Conference Carolinas Thursday morning ahead of the Atlantic Casualty Insurance Conference Carolinas quarterfinals. Pocknett earned first team honors while Akal was named third team all-conference.
Pocknett, a sophomore from Wilmington, N.C., started all 29 games for the Tornado this season, averaging 21.9 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.9 assists per game. His season-high of 32 points occurred twice, most recently at Erskine on Feb. 15, where he finished with 14 rebounds as well. During the Conference Carolinas second round matchup with Erskine, Pocknett had a double-double in the first half, eventually finishing with 23 points and 17 rebounds.
Pocknett has 10 double-doubles on the season, three of which have come within the last month. He has played the full 40 minutes five times, including the conference tournament game against Erskine.
Akal, a junior from Harlan, Ky., earned all-conference honors for the first time in his career. He is averaging 18.9 points, 4.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game, while shooting 76.6 percent from the free-throw line. He scored a season-high 35 points in the conference tournament win over Erskine, along with six rebounds on the night. He posted his lone double-double of the season on Feb. 15 at Erskine, finishing with 11 points and 12 rebounds.
Akal's 35 points in the conference tournament against Erskine was the most points scored by a Tornado all season, with his 33 point performance against Lees-McRae on Feb. 5 being the second-most of the season.
The fifth-seeded Tornado will take on fourth-seeded Young Harris Friday night in the quarterfinals of the Atlantic Casualty Conference Carolinas tournament. Tipoff from Spartanburg, S.C. is set for 6:00 p.m. Live video and stats will be available on kingtornado.com/live.
