2016-17 MIAC MEN'S BASKETBALL AWARDS

MINNEAPOLIS -- Augsburg College's Collin Olmscheid (JR, Buffalo, Minn.) and Nick Varner (JR, Farmington, Minn.) earned men's basketball postseason honors from the Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference on Tuesday, Olmscheid earning All-MIAC first-team honors and Varner being named to the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team.

Olmscheid earned All-MIAC first-team honors for the second straight year, after earning All-MIAC honorable mention and All-MIAC Rookie Team honors in 2014-15. The All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team award is the first conference honor for Varner in his career.

A forward, Olmscheid has been one of the top all-around players in the conference throughout his career. He averaged team highs of 19.6 points and 7.6 rebounds per-game this season, while also contributing 22 assists, 18 steals and eight blocked shots. He scored in double figures in 23 of his 26 games played this season, while pulling down six or more rebounds in 20 games -- including six point-rebound double-doubles.

Among MIAC players in overall statistics, he finished second in points and fourth in rebounds per-game -- the only MIAC player to finish in the top five (and one of only two MIAC players to finish in the top 10) in both categories. Playing in 34.7 minutes per-game (third-most among MIAC players), he recorded 182 field goals (second among MIAC players) and connected at a 50.1-percent clip from the field. His 110 free throws were fifth-best in the MIAC, and his 82.1-percent free-throw percentage was sixth-best.

In league games-only, he was also second in the MIAC in scoring, averaging 19.3 points per-game, while his 7.6 rebounds per-game were fifth-best. He stood second in made field goals (139), fourth in free throws (85) and fifth in free-throw percentage (85.1 percent).

His high point of the season came on Jan. 18, when he scored a career-high 43 points in an 89-86 win at Macalester -- the most by an Augsburg men's basketball player since Devean George '99 scored an MIAC-record 52 points against Carleton on Jan. 16, 1999. The 43-point game was a conference high for the season and the most scored by any MIAC player in a single game since the 2010-11 season.

This season, Olmscheid became the 21st player in Augsburg men's basketball history to reach the 1,000-point plateau, and currently stands tied for 10th in school history on the all-time scoring list with 1,274 points in 77 career games (56 starts). He is also tied for 10th in school history in career scoring average (16.5) and 10th in career free-throw percentage (81.6 percent). He has pulled down 479 rebounds (6.2 per-game), connected on 123 three-pointers, and claimed 64 assists, 56 steals and 17 blocked shots in his career.

Varner was named to the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team, as part of the conference's sportsmanship initiative. Members of the All-MIAC Sportsmanship Team are selected by their coaches and teammates as individuals who demonstrate ideals of positive sportsmanship both on and off the field of competition. 

In his first season as a starting post player, Varner averaged 4.7 points and 2.5 rebounds per-game, while contributing 10 steals, 15 assists and five blocked shots. In his three seasons at Augsburg (56 games, 24 starts), he has scored 219 points (3.9 ppg) and pulled down 108 rebounds (1.9 rpg), while also contributing 24 assists, 16 steals and 10 blocked shots.

Under 12th-year head coach Aaron Griess, Augsburg finished 12-14 overall, 10-10 in MIAC play in 2016-17, reaching the six-team MIAC postseason playoffs. The Auggies made a dramatic run to secure a conference playoff spot, winning four of its last five regular-season games. Augsburg has reached the MIAC playoffs seven of the last nine years, and has recorded double-digit win totals each of the last 11 seasons.