NWF State's Duarte wins POY again

NICEVILLE – Chris Duarte won Panhandle Conference Player of the Year twice – both the media and coaches vote.

Now the University of Oregon signee can add another sweep to his résumé. Only this honor is bigger: National Player of the Year.

The latest came from the National Association of Basketball Coaches, which recognized NWF State's 6-foot-6 guard for his work on both ends of the floor.

Leading a Raiders offense that averaged 89 points per game on 50 percent shooting, Duarte averaged 19 points a night on 54 percent shooting and two 3-pointers per game at a 40-percent clip.

Compiling 10 double-doubles on the season, Duarte added 7.1 rebounds and 2.5 assists a night and also thrived on the defensive end with 1.2 steals and 1.1 blocks a night.

Only twice was Duarte held to single-digit points on the season, the sophomore shining at critical junctures.

On the night NWF State (28-5, 10-2) clinched its fifth straight Panhandle title, Duarte delivered 19 points of 8-of-10 shooting and three treys to accent seven boards.

A month later in an upset of top-ranked Florida Southwestern in the region semifinals, Duarte’s game-high 24 points led the Raiders back from 19 points down in the second half of a 69-68 victory.

Duarte, also the Player of the Year in Region 8, helped lead the Raiders to a fifth straight Panhandle crown and a second straight Region 8 title, which earned NWF State a No. 1 seed in Hutchinson and eventual a fifth straight Elite Eight appearance.

Now Duarte is headed to Oregon, which advanced to the Sweet 16 in the national tournament before losing 53-49 to national champion Virginia.

“Chris is everything a coach wants in a student-athlete,” NWF Sate coach Steve DeMeo said. “He is a great student, great person and a very special basketball player. Chris has really set the bar high here at Northwest Florida for all of our future Raiders, and I look forward to watching him grow and develop at Oregon and even beyond college.”