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Men's Basketball Celebrates 2011-12 Season at Annual Banquet Crimson Tide joined by the Tuscaloosa Tip Off Club and Tide Pride and annual end-of-seaon banquet
Anthony Grant addresses the crowd at Tuesday's banquet.

Anthony Grant addresses the crowd at Tuesday's banquet.

April 10, 2012

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TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -

The University of Alabama men's basketball team was recognized and honored for its efforts on and off the court during the 2011-12 season at its annual awards banquet Tuesday evening at Coleman Coliseum.

The Crimson Tide, coming off an NCAA Tournament appearance and another 20-win season, was joined by more than 400 supporters and members of the Tuscaloosa Tip-Off Club, which sponsored the event along with Tide Pride. Following dinner, head coach Anthony Grant addressed the assembled crowd to give a few brief comments on the team's growth and success throughout the season and extend his heartfelt gratitude and thanks to the many supporters of the program.

In addition to recognizing the entire team and staff, special praise was given to the team's two departing seniors in standout forward JaMychal Green and manager Brooks Merrill for the commitment and sacrifice they have made to the program during their careers. Green and sophomore point guard Trevor Releford were also acknowledged for earning All-SEC accolades.

A list of individual honors awarded and comments on each from Grant at the banquet follows below.

Student-Athlete Award - Retin Obasohan
"This young man, in my opinion, went above and beyond. He had an outstanding first semester with a 4.0 GPA and has done a tremendous job during the second semester. He sets the type of example that we want this program to be about."

Outstanding Freshman - Levi Randolph
"We had so many freshman that contributed in big ways this year at significant points in the season. I look at the complete body of work over the course of the year going back to last summer. Over the course of that year, this young man was consistent with his enthusiasm every single day from the practice to court to his focus during games and his willingness to do whatever was asked of him to help our team be successful."

Hustle Award - Andrew Steele
"This award to me, is the combination of many things this year. About a year ago we didn't know if this young man was going to play again. What he provided to our team was much needed leadership, stability and a willingness to do the things necessary to put himself and the team in a position to be successful. He was a calming voice on court and in a sense, he went from being a student-coach to being a player-coach because of the impact that he had on the team. He certainly was a huge part of the success we had this year."