For the second year in a row, a basketball coach at Thompson Rivers University has been named as Canada West coach of the year. In 2014-15, it was ‘Pack women’s coach Scott Reeves getting the honor. This year (2015-16), the distinction goes to WolfPack men’s head coach Scott Clark. Clark, in his sixth year at the helm of the Thompson Rivers program led the team to their first Explorer Division title. The WolfPack finished with a record of 16-4. They were ranked nationally for most of the season as high as 8th spot. Clark has been a CIS coach for 20 years, joining the WolfPack from Simon Fraser University. He has an alltime record with TRU of 57-69. TRU has been above .500 the last three seasons and their record this year was the best in school history. TRU Athletics and Recreation director Ken Olynyk stated: “Usually this award is given because the team does well and that reflects a coaching job well done. That takes the accumulation of time and years to get to that point. Scott has worked hard to develop a program and his work is reflected in his peers acknowledgement of his efforts. The honour is well deserved,” He will now compete against the coaches of the year of the OUA, RESQ and AUAA. The CIS coach of the year will be announced later this month at the CIS Nationals to be held in Vancouver, BC. Here are the other major award winners courtesy of Canada West: Calgary’s Cooper named Canada West Outstanding Player of the Year NEW WESTMINSTER – Fourth-year guard Thomas Cooper from the University of Calgary Dinos is the 2015-16 Canada West Men’s Basketball Outstanding Player of the Year, as announced Wednesday morning. Cooper, who was named a Canada West first team all-star earlier this week, earned the award after leading the conference in scoring this season, averaging 25.8 points per game. He was the lone player in Canada West to eclipse the 25 points per game mark. A native of Chattanooga, Tenn., Cooper becomes the first Dino to win the award since Richard Bohne in 1996. Along with Cooper, four other individuals were honoured Wednesday with Canada West awards. Alberta’s Brody Clarke is the Rookie of Year, University of the Fraser Valley’s Kevon Parchment earns Defensive Player of the Year, Lethbridge’s Jared Baker is the Student-Athlete Community Service Award winner, and Thompson Rivers University’s Scott Clark is the Coach of the Year. Cooper’s Dinos and Clark’s WolfPack will be on display this weekend, as the Calgary Dinos host the Canada West Men’s Basketball Final Four (schedule below). All Canada West Final Four games can be seen live on Canadawest.tv A pair of teams at the conference Final Four will punch their ticket to the CIS Final 8, joining the host UBC Thunderbirds at the event March 17-20 at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre in Vancouver. For more information on the Final 8, including ticket options, click here. Outstanding Player of the Year Thomas Cooper Guard 4th-year University of Calgary Fourth-year guard Thomas Cooper from Chattanooga, Tenn. is the Outstanding Player of the Year for the 2015-16 season, and becomes the Canada West nominee for the Mike Moser Trophy given to the top player in CIS. His 515 points led the conference by 135, while his 25.8 points-per-game was the best in Canada West since the 2010 season – and both were second-best in the nation. He finished in the top three nationally in both field goals (170, second) and free throws (133, third), and he also cracked the top 10 in the conference in both assists (62) and rebounds (149). Cooper was a two-time Canada West first star of the week this season, earning the CIS athlete of the week award Feb. 17 after a 72-point weekend against Regina. His 42 points in the opener of that series was the most by a Dino in a single game since Richard Bohne in 1994. He led the Dinos to their best winning percentage since 1976 with a 17-3 season and the top seed in the playoffs – to be capped off by this weekend’s Final Four. “Thomas is our ‘everything’ guy,” said Dinos head coach Dan Vanhooren. “He can score out of offence, or on his own when we need a tough hoop. He hits big shots when we need them, he defends, he’s a great team guy. He’s a student of the game: he watches film on his own, and he comes in every Monday to talk about who we’re playing, what his match-up is going to be. He’s a great kid, we’re very lucky to have him, and we are looking forward to having him for another year yet.” Rookie of the Year Brody Clarke Forward University of Alberta Originally from Toronto, Brody Clarke joined the U of A for the 2014-15 season after being a highly sought after recruit, including by NCAA teams. Both his father and brother played in the NCAA, but Clarke chose to stay in Canada and play CIS basketball with the Bears. The engineering student-athlete had to sit out his first season however, as he was recovering from double knee surgery the year before. He did suit up for the Canadian junior national team in the summer of 2015, and parlayed that experience and game time into a starting role with the Golden Bears this season. In his debut campaign, Clarke started 19 games for the playoff bound Bears, and averaged 25.8 minutes per night. He scored 12 points per game, which was second in team scoring, while also collecting 6.3 rebounds per game. Clarke was successful on nearly 50 percent of his shots from the field (49.2 percent), while also draining 26 percent from beyond the arc. He also picked up 10 blocks on the season as well as 21 assists and 15 steals. He is the third Golden Bear to win the conference rookie of the year award in the past four seasons. "Brody's path from rehab to winning this prestigious award is a remarkable story. This is a true testament to his strong work ethic as well as his basketball talent. We are very excited to see Brody's continued progression in upcoming seasons,” said Bears head coach Barnaby Craddock. Defensive Player of the Year Kevon Parchment Guard 5th-year University of the Fraser Valley The 6’3” fifth-year guard from Scarborough, Ont. authored a phenomenal senior season, as he regularly guarded the opposition’s top perimeter player, while also converting at the offensive end of the court. He led the Cascades and finished 10th in the conference in scoring, averaging 17.5 points per game, and also ranked among the Canada West leaders in assists (5.2 apg, second), rebounds (9.1 rpg, sixth), blocks (1.2 bpg, 10th) and steals (1.6 spg, 17th). Parchment finished his Canada West career with back-to-back all-star seasons, after being a third-teamer in 2014-15 and first team all-star this season. “I think it’s very well-deserved. He’s been a tremendous defensive player who can guard a multitude of defensive positions, and he often covers for our mistakes in the course of the game,” explained UFV head coach Adam Friesen. “Physically, he’s quick, fast and long. But what separates him are his instincts and his tenacity to want to stop people. He competes on that end of the floor from the first minute of the game all the way to the 40th, and that level of competitiveness is rare.” “It can make defensive game-planning pretty easy. We have faith that he can do a really good job on whoever he’s asked to guard. And it’s not just his on-ball defence – he often finishes defensive possessions by grabbing the rebound.” Student-Athlete Community Service Award Jared Baker Forward 5th-year University of Lethbridge When teammate Brent Watkins was involved in a serious car accident this past summer, Jared Baker took it upon himself to start fundraising to aid Brent's family with medical costs. In less than a week, Baker had helped raise over $33,000. In total, over $50,000 was raised for Watkins’ family with Jared's help. Along with the leadership he showed in helping his injured teammate, Baker also volunteers with his wife Natalie in the recreational therapy program in the long-term care facility at the Raymond hospital. Baker’s work has focused on assisting the elderly people in the long-term care facility, providing company with many patients who are otherwise alone. Additionally, Baker volunteers at Our Lady of Assumption Elementary School where he is part of the Read to Succeed literacy program, which promotes literacy and aids struggling readers through work with role models like Baker. “Jared does all of the little things (right) and brings so much energy and passion to the game. As a three-year starter, he has sacrificed his personal achievements for the betterment of the team,” pointed out Lethbridge head coach Mike Hansen. “He lives to serve others, which is a big reason why he is pursuing medical school following the completion of his degree and basketball career. He exemplifies what it means to be a great teammate and a student-athlete.” Final Four – hosted by the University of Calgary Friday, March 11 UBC vs. Thompson Rivers / 6 PM MST / CW Final Four semifinal 1 Manitoba vs. Calgary / 8 PM MST / CW Final Four semifinal 2 Saturday, March 12 Loser semifinal 1 vs. Loser semifinal 2 / 6 PM MST / CW bronze medal game Winner semifinal 1 vs. Winner semifinal 2 / 8 PM MST / CW championship game