O'Bryant first team All-SEC, Hickey all-defensive team

Advocate staff photo by HEATHER MCCLELLAND -- Arkansas' Michael Qualls (24) fouls LSU's Johnny O'Bryant III (2) in the Pete Maravich Assembly Center Wednesday, Feb. 27, 2013. MAGS OUT / INTERNET OUT/ONLINE OUT/NO SALES/TV OUT/FOREIGN OUT/LOUISIANA BUSINESS INC. OUT/GREATER BATON ROUGE BUSINESS REPORT OUT/225 OUT/10/12 OUT/IN REGISTER OUT/LBI CUSTOM PUBLICATIONS OUT/MANDATORY CREDIT THE ADVOCATE/ Heather McClelland

Hobbled early in Southeastern Conference play, LSU forward Johnny O’Bryant ably responded.

The sophomore tied for the SEC lead with 14 double-doubles and rallied to average 13.7 points and 8.8 rebounds, landing as one of eight players on the All-SEC team, which was announced by the conference Tuesday morning.

O’Bryant, a 6-9, 262-pound native of Cleveland, Miss., is the first LSU player to earn the honor since the Tasmin Mitchell and Marcus Thornton picked up the distinction in 2009. In 18 conference games, the former McDonald’s All-American ranked sixth in scoring at 14.7 points per game, including a career-high 30 points during a 66-48 victory at South Carolina. He also ranked second in rebounding at 9.4 per game during SEC play, setting a season-high at 14 in a loss to Georiga.

Meanwhile, sophomore guard Anthony Hickey was named to the SEC’s All-Defensive team, and the first Tiger to earn the recognition since 2009. Hickey, a 5-11, 182-pound sophomore from Hopkinsville, Ky., leads the nation in steals with 3.1 per game and currently tied for fourth most in a season with 83 ahead of entering the SEC tournament against Georgia on Thursday.