Three players from the Tennessee basketball team landed on All-SEC teams on Monday following the Vols’ SEC regular-season championship.
Tennessee guards Dalton Knecht and Zakai Zeigler are First Team All-SEC selections while forward Jonas Aidoo landed as a Second Team All-SEC selection.
Knecht earned his spot on the First Team after just one season in Knoxville which saw him win the SEC Player of the Year award. Zeigler’s spot on the First Team comes after a sophomore season in which the Long Island, NY, native earned a spot as a 2022-2023 Second Team All-SEC pick from both the coaches and the AP. Aidoo’s All-SEC selection is the first of his career after a breakout season that saw him quickly climb the ranks of the best big men around the country.
Knecht was tremendous for Tennessee as a scoring machine. The former Northern Colorado transfer eclipsed the 30-point scoring mark seven times throughout Tennessee’s 31-game season. Knecht also led the SEC in scoring average at 21.4 points per game, just beating out Alabama’s Mark Sears at 21.1 points per game.
The 6-foot-6 guard ended the regular season with a 40-point showing against Kentucky after posting 39 points on two separate occasions this season (vs Auburn, at North Carolina.
Knecht finished the regular season averaging 21.4 points per game (12th in the nation) on 47.4 percent shooting, 4.8 rebounds per game, and 1.8 assists per game.
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Zeigler’s award comes exactly one year and 12 days after an ACL tear forced him to miss Tennessee’s entire postseason run during the 2022-2023 season. The 5-foot-9 guard worked tirelessly to return to the court and posted a career-high this season in minutes (30.7 MPG), FG percentage (40.4%), 3-point percentage (35.3%), assists (6.0 APG), and points (11.6 PPG).
Zeigler also took home the SEC Defensive Player of the Year award on Monday, becoming Tennessee’s second SEC DPotY recipient in program history next to only Yves Pons (2019-2020).
Jonas Aidoo’s leap into being an efficient, productive, breakout player for Tennessee is one of the main reasons why the Volunteers are entering the SEC Tournament as the overall one-seed. Aidoo has given Tennessee a strong defensive and scoring presence down low and has thrived in his role as a junior in the program. The North Carolina native racked up eight points-rebounds double-doubles on the season.
Aidoo’s 2023-2024 season included career-highs in minutes (25.3 MPG), rebounds (7.6 RPG), blocks (1.9 BPG), steals (0.7 SPG), and points (12.1 PPG). Additionally, all of those categories are a noticeable upgrade from what he averaged during the 2022-2023 season.
Here’s a look at how the All-SEC teams broke down on Monday:
First Team All-SEC
- Mark Sears, Alabama
- Johni Broome, Auburn
- Zyon Pullin, Florida
- Antonio Reeves, Kentucky
- Tolu Smith III, Mississippi State
- Dalton Knecht, Tennessee
- Zakai Zeigler, Tennessee
- Wade Taylor IV, Texas A&M
Second Team All-SEC
- Jaylin Williams, Auburn
- Walter Clayton Jr., Florida
- Rob Dillingham, Kentucky
- Reed Sheppard, Kentucky
- Matthew Murrell, Ole Miss
- Josh Hubbard, Mississippi State
- Ta’Lon Cooper, South Carolina
- Meechie Johnson, South Carolina
- Jonas Aidoo, Tennessee
