Week after week, they devised new schemes in hopes of somehow containing him, generally with limited success.

Monday, the Big 12 coaches rewarded Michael Beasley with the league's player of the year award, making him the first Kansas State player to earn the honor.

The 6-foot-10 freshman also earned unanimous first-team all-conference accolades from The Associated Press and the Big 12 coaches, joining Texas' D.J. Augustin as the only unanimous first-team selections.

"He can hurt you inside, he can hurt you outside, and he can do it a variety of ways," said Baylor coach Scott Drew, who watched Beasley go off for a Big 12-record 44 points when K-State played in Waco. "That's why no one's been able to have an answer for him."

Beasley has been all but unstoppable during his freshman campaign, averaging 26.5 points and 12.5 rebounds. He leads the league in scoring by nearly seven points per game, and he established a new Big 12 record with 26 double-doubles this season.

If the averages hold out, Michael Beasley will set Big 12 records for scoring and rebounding in a season. For the moment, the scoring record belongs to last season's player of the year, Kevin Durant, who averaged 25.8 points for Texas. The rebounding record is 11.8, set by Texas Tech's Tony Battie in 1997.

Beasley became the fourth Wildcat to earn conference player of the year honors from the AP. Lon Kruger (1973 and 1974), Mike Evans (1977 and 1978) and Rolando Blackman (1980) are the only other K-State players to win the award.

Beasley also became the first Wildcat to be named Big 12 freshman of the year.

"I'm extremely happy, and I'm proud for him," said K-State coach Frank Martin. "I know how hard he's committed himself to working to become a very good player, to representing our university the way he has, and to continue to improve."

Freshman forward Bill Walker was a third-team selection by both the AP and the Big 12 coaches, though he garnered first-team votes in the AP balloting. K-State and Kansas were the only Big 12 schools to have multiple players receive first-team votes.

Walker, who averaged 16 points and 6.5 rebounds during the regular season, also was named to the Big 12's all-rookie team. The Wildcats were well represented on that squad, with Beasley and Walker accounting for two of the five selections.

"For those two guys to have the kind of success they've had as individuals and lead our basketball team to a third-place finish in our conference, it's a credit to who they are," Martin said.

Beasley earned his 11th weekly honor from the Big 12 when he shared the player of the week honor with Kansas sophomore guard Sherron Collins.

The 11 awards for Beasley are the most for a Big 12 basketball player, surpassing the 10 earned last season by Texas' Kevin Durant.

Beasley averaged 24.0 points on 50 percent shooting in two wins last week. Collins averaged 13.0 points in two wins while shooting 60 percent from the field. He also recorded 10 assists to one turnover.

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