LAKE CHARLES – McNeese Cowboys head coach Bill Armstrong has been named the 2025-26 LSWA Coach of the Year while Larry Johnson was selected as the state's Player and Freshman of the Year, the Louisiana Sports Writers Association announced on Tuesday.
 
In addition, Johnson was named to the All-Louisiana First Team along with teammate Tyshawn Archie while Garwey Dual earned second team honors. LSU's Max Mackinnon earned Newcomer of the Year honors.
 
It's the third straight year McNeese has had its head coach and a player earn top honors by the LSWA. Last week, Armstrong was named the Tommy Joe Eagles Award winner as the LABC Major College Coach of the Year and Johnson the Pete Maravich Award recipient as the state's major college player of the year.
 
In his first year at the helm, Armstrong guided the Cowboys to a 28-6 overall record and a third straight Southland Conference Tournament championship and NCAA Tournament appearance. He coached the Cowboys to the highest final NET ranking (No. 56) in the history of the Southland Conference and a record third-consecutive No. 12 seed in the NCAA Tournament.
 
McNeese received a vote in the final AP Top 25 poll for the second time in school history and was one of 15 teams in Division I basketball to record 28 or more wins.
 
The Cowboys' 26 regular season victories ere the second-most in school history while the 28 overall wins ranked as the second-most as a Division I school and third-most overall in the history of the program. McNeese tied a school record with 19 conference wins which are also the second-most in league history.
 
He was named a finalist for the Joe B. Hall Award which is presented annually to the nation's top first-year head coach.
 
As a first-year Cowboy, Johnson led the team with 17.4 points and 5.5 rebounds per game. He scored 592 total points to blow past Joe Dumars' 44-year-old record of 527 points set in 1982. His point total ranked as the 12^th-most among freshman in Division I basketball in 2025-26.
 
Johnson's points are the 14^th-most overall in a season in school history and the most scored since Demond Mallet scored 660 and Tierre Brown with 623 in the 2000-01 season.
 
A first-team All-Southland Conference selection, second-team NABC All-District honoree, and a finalist for the Kyle Macy Award as the nation's top freshman in Division I basketball, Johnson led the team with 30 double-digit scoring games, 12 of those going for 20 points or more.
  
Johnson made his collegiate debut by scoring 30 points in 18 minutes in the season opener against Champion Christian and scored 20 or more in two of the next three games following the opener. He scored 18 against Santa Clara, a NCAA Tournament participant, netted 14 at No. 1 Michigan, and 15 points against Vanderbilt in the NCAA Tournament First Round.
 
Archie earned first-team All-Southland Conference honors and a spot on the All-Tournament team. The junior averaged 14.3 points per game and scored double-digits 29 times on the season including 12 straight to end the season. He led the Cowboys with 65 three-pointers made and 57 steals, and was second with 98 assists.
 
Dual was one of the top point guards in the conference and earned Southland All-Defensive Team for his play this past season. He ranked fourth in the league with 4.4 assists per game, second with a 2.6 assist/turnover ratio, and sixth with 1.6 steals per game. He scored double-digits 12 times including a game-high 16 points against Vanderbilt in the NCAA Tournament First Round.
 
Players for the all-Louisiana ballot are nominated and voted on by each school's men's basketball sports information director.
 
2025-26 LSWA All-Louisiana Men's Basketball Teams
 
Player of the Year: Larry Johnson, McNeese
Freshman of the Year: Larry Johnson, McNeese
Newcomer of the Year: Max Mackinnon, LSU
Coach of the Year: Bill Armstrong, McNeese
 
First Team
Larry Johnson, McNeese
Rowan Brumbaugh, Tulane
Max Mackinnon, LSU
Tyshawn Archie, McNeese
Coleton Benson, New Orleans
 
Second Team
DJ Dudley, Louisiana Tech
Kameron Johnson, Loyola
Hayden Brittingham, LSU Shreveport
Garwey Dual, McNeese
Zachary Lee, Loyola