Westminster basketball: Griffins' Payne receives NAIA honors

Geoff Payne played a major role in helping Westminster put together its most memorable season of basketball in the program's history. On Wednesday, he was recognized for what he did for the Griffins.

Payne was named both the NAIA Division I Men's Basketball Player of the Year and the National Basketball Coaches Association Player of the Year. He is the first Westminster player to receive either reward. He was also named to the 2008-09 NAIA All-Tournament Team.

In his only season, with the Griffins, the senior forward averaged 20.7 points per game to rank as the 11th-best scorer in the NAIA. He was third in field goal percentage at 65.2 percent. Payne scored 725 points this season — the second-best single-season total in school history behind Adam Hiatt, who scored 769 points in 2003-04. Payne also set a single-season record for rebounds, collecting 263 boards — an average of 7.5 per game.

Westminster finished the year at 30-5 overall and advanced to the quarterfinals of the NAIA Tournament for the first time in school history. The Griffins also swept the Frontier Conference regular season and tournament championships for the first time under coach Tommy Connor.