Cal has not had the type of season it wanted, but there have been bright spots for the Bears in Year 2 under Mark Madsen. Among the highlights of the season was the emergence of freshman guard Jeremiah Wilkinson who is now the second leading scorer for the Bears entering postseason play. Monday, the ACC revealed its postseason awards and Wilkins was named the ACC Sixth Man of the Year following his standout first season with the Bears.
Wilkinson did not start until the 19th game of the season, but he has been an important part of the rotation since the early going. In all, the Powder Springs, Georgia native has averaged 15.4 points in 31 games and 13 starts for Cal.
When leading scorer Andrej Stojakovic missed time with an injury, Wilkinson stepped up to become the top producer on offense for the Bears. He has scored in double figures in 25 games this season and has hit at least 20 points on 10 occasions.
Wilkinson is coming off his most productive performance in college after he scored a team-high 36 points in Saturday's four-overtime loss to Notre Dame. He has averaged 20.4 points since becoming a starter for the Bears.
The 6-foot-1 guard also earned a spot on the five-man ACC All-Rookie team and is the only player not from Duke or North Carolina to make the list. Cooper Flagg (Duke) Kon Knueppel (Duke), Khaman Maluach (Duke and Ian Jackson (UNC) round out the team.
In addition to Wilkinson's postseason accolades, Stojakovic earned an All-ACC honorable mention nod for his work this year in his first season with the Bears. The sophomore, who transferred from Stanford, led Cal in scoring during the regular season with an average of 16.8 points in 27 appearances.
Stojakovic missed a handful of games for the Bears while working through an injury but proved himself as a talented defender when returning to the lineup. He is second on the team with 1.3 blocks per game, fourth with 4.6 rebounds, tied for second with 1.8 assists as well.
Prior to his injury, Stojakovic was on fire as a scorer with nine games of at least 20 points including reaching the 30-point mark twice. He was stellar on defense late against Notre Dame and finished that loss with 6 blocks to go with 21 points.
The Bears hit the floor hoping to keep their NCAA Tournament hopes alive as they take part in the ACC Tournament on Tuesday. Cal, the No. 15 seed, will square off with 10th-seeded Virginia Tech in Charlotte in the opening round of the tournament. Tipoff is set for 1:30 p.m. PT.
Full list of ACC postseason awards
Player of the Year – Cooper Flagg, Fr., G/F, Duke
Defensive Player of the Year – Chucky Hepburn, Sr., G, Louisville
Rookie of the Year – Cooper Flagg, G/F, Duke
Most Improved Player – Donald Hand Jr., So., Boston College
Sixth Man of the Year – Jeremiah Wilkinson, Fr., G, California
Coach of the Year – Pat Kelsey, Louisville
2024-25 ALL-ACC TEAM
FIRST TEAM
Name, School, Points
Cooper Flagg, Duke, 400
Maxime Raynaud, Stanford, 392
Chucky Hepburn, Louisville, 364
Chase Hunter, Clemson, 328
Hunter Sallis, Wake Forest, 257
SECOND TEAM
RJ Davis, North Carolina, 241
Markus Burton, Notre Dame, 238
Ian Schieffelin, Clemson, 225
Kon Knueppel, Duke, 208
Jamir Watkins, Florida State, 150
THIRD TEAM
Terrence Edwards Jr., Louisville, 125
Tyrese Proctor, Duke, 72
Baye Ndongo, Georgia Tech, 72
Boopie Miller, SMU, 71
Jaland Lowe, Pitt, 62
HONORABLE MENTION
Matthew Cleveland, Miami, 49
Andrej Stojakovic, California, 48
Naithan George, Georgia Tech, 40
Isaac McKneely, Virginia, 38
J.J. Starling, Syracuse, 32
Donald Hand Jr., Boston College, 29
Cameron Hildreth, Wake Forest, 26
Khaman Maluach, Duke, 23
Viktor Lakhin, Clemson, 20
Eddie Lampkin, Syracuse, 19
