Josh Reaves Selected as 2019 Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year

A day after his offensive explosion and career-high scoring performance propelled Penn State to a victory in the regular season finale, Josh Reaves has achieved another career-first for what he’s been best known for. He becomes the second player in Penn State history to win the award, joining center Calvin Booth who won the award in 1998. Reaves was also named to the All-Defensive Team for the second straight year.

In three of his four years in State College Josh led the conference in steals, something no other player has done in the Big Ten. He holds the school record for steals, and is currently eighth on the conference’s all-time chart. Equally impressive, for a 6-foot-4 guard, Reaves is tied for ninth place in Penn State history with 91 blocks.

His defensive abilities made him an incredible force on the court, and we’ll likely never see another player who can intercept alley-oops and cross-court passes leaping into the air as he does. This past week his ability to change the game was on full display @Rutgers and vs Illinois at home. On Thursday he’ll lead the Nittany Lions against Minnesota at 7pm ET in Chicago. The game will air on BTN.