USA TODAY and HighSchoolSports.net Unveil 2012 All-USA Boys' Basketball Team

Steve Smith of Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, VA) Named Coach of the Year; Nerlens Noel of Tilton (NH) School Named Player of the Year

MCLEAN, Va., April 19, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- USA TODAY and HighSchoolSports.net today unveiled the 2012 All-USA boys' high school basketball team, highlighting the best high school players in the USA during the 2011-2012 season.

Nerlens Noel, a 6-10 center from New Hampshire's Tilton School who has committed to NCAA champion Kentucky for next year, has been selected as the national Player of the Year. Steve Smith, who guided Virginia's Oak Hill Academy to a 44-0 record and the number one spot in the USA TODAY Super 25 rankings, is the national Coach of the Year.

The full All-USA teams (first, second and third teams) appear in today's print edition of USA TODAY and are also available online at www.highschoolsports.net. The All-USA Team and its year-end player and coach awards have been given out annually since 1983 and are considered the highest such honors in high school basketball. Past player of the year honorees include several NBA stalwarts, including Kevin Garnett (Farragut Academy of Chicago in 1995), Kobe Bryant (Lower Merion, PA in 1996) and LeBron James (twice, in 2002 and 2003, at St. Vincent-St. Mary of Akron, OH).

Joining Noel on the All-USA first team are two UCLA-bound stars: guard Kyle Anderson of St. Anthony (Jersey City, NJ), who led Hall of Fame coach Bob Hurley's team to a second straight undefeated season and state Tournament of Champions title; and 6-6 forward Shabazz Muhammad of Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas, NV), who averaged 29.8 points and 9.9 rebounds per game while leading his team to Nevada's 4A state title.

They are joined by guard Marcus Smart (Flower Mound, TX), who led Marcus HS to its second straight Texas 5A state championship this year while averaging 15.1 points, 9.2 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game; and junior forward Jabari Parker of Chicago's Simeon HS, who led his team to a third straight state championship while averaging 19.5 points, 8.9 rebounds and 4.9 assists per game.

For more information on the All-USA Team, including full photo galleries and video highlights of the All-USA first team, visit www.highschoolsports.net. Following is the complete listing of this year's All-USA First Team, as determined by USA TODAY and HighSchoolSports.net.

2012 USA TODAY All-USA Boys Basketball Team

Coach of the Year: Steve Smith, Oak Hill Academy (Mouth of Wilson, VA)

All-USA First Team

* denotes Player of the Year

All-USA Second Team

All-USA Third Team

The USA TODAY Sports Media Group encompasses all sports initiatives across USA TODAY, as well as Gannett Co. Inc.'s 81 community newspaper properties and 23 broadcast television stations. It also includes the sports photography service U.S. Presswire, the Big Lead Sports digital properties, HighSchoolSports.net, BNQT.com and MMAjunkie.com. USA TODAY is owned by Gannett Co., Inc. (NYSE: GCI).

SOURCE USA TODAY

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