University of Evansville men’s basketball players Shy Ely (Indianapolis, Ind./Speedway) and Pieter van Tongeren (Driehuis, The Netherlands/Ichthus College) have both been honored for their play this season, as the Missouri Valley Conference has announced its annual post-season awards.

Ely garnered honorable mention all-MVC honors after a strong junior campaign for UE, while van Tongeren was named to the MVC’s All-Freshman Team.  For Ely, it marks the second time in his UE career in which he has been honored by the MVC, after earning All-Freshman Team honors as a rookie in 2006.  van Tongeren, meanwhile, becomes UE’s first All-Freshman Team selection since both Ely and fellow junior guard Jason Holsinger made the team in 2006, and he is the sixth All-Freshman Team selection at UE since 2001.

Ely led the Purple Aces in scoring during the regular-season at 14.6 points per game, while also pulling down 5.2 rebounds per game.  He will enter State Farm MVC Tournament play on Thursday ranked fifth in the Valley in scoring, while also ranking 17th in rebounding.  He also ranks third on the team in both assists (50) and steals (20), while shooting 43.2 percent from the floor and 38.6 percent from three-point range.

van Tongeren garnered MVC All-Freshman Team honors after averaging 5.9 points and 4.1 rebounds per game in his initial season as a Purple Ace.  van Tongeren started all 29 contests at center for UE this year and shot a team-best 50.7 percent from the floor during the regular-season.

Evansville (9-20 overall, 3-15 in the MVC) will begin State Farm MVC Tournament play on Thursday night at 8:30 p.m., as the Purple Aces will battle the seventh-seeded Missouri State Bears (16-15 overall, 8-10 MVC) at Scottrade Center in St. Louis, Missouri, with the winner advancing on to face second-seeded Illinois State in Friday’s quarterfinals at 6:00 p.m.  Every UE game of the State Farm MVC Tournament can be heard live in the Tri-State on the UE Radio Network.