STILLWATER, OKLA. ? The Big 12 Conference coaches are in disagreement with the writers on player of the year in the league.

Wednesday, the coaches named Oklahoma State shooting guard Tony Allen player of the year in the league, while the Associated Press panel of writers went with Cowboy point guard John Lucas.

Lucas, the 5-foot-11 son of former NBA standout and coach John Lucas, and the 6-4 Allen led the Cowboys to their first Big 12 title and first outright conference championship in nearly 40 years.

“I’d probably make them co-players of the year,” said OSU coach Eddie Sutton, who Wednesday was named coach of the year by the coaches after receiving the writers’ AP honor earlier this week.

“I certainly think Tony Allen could have won the award as well,” he added of the AP honor.

Lucas gained immediate eligibility at OSU this year after playing at scandal-ridden Baylor last year.

“I feel like I was placed here for a reason,” Lucas said. “I am just enjoying every minute of it.”

“For him to be able to concentrate and focus after what happened at Baylor,” said Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton, “it’s just been quite a feat.”

A 23-member regional panel of sports writers gave Lucas 14 votes, Allen four votes and Texas Tech’s Andre Emmett five. The same panel named Sutton the Big 12 coach of the year, Iowa State guard Curtis Stinson the freshman of the year and Kansas State forward Jeremiah Massey the newcomer of the year.

Oklahoma State's John Lucas, left, and Tony Allen were named Big 12 Conference players of the year Wednesday. Lucas won the Associated Press writers' award, and Allen received the coaches' honor.

In two seasons at Baylor, Lucas averaged 13.2 points and 4.2 assists per game, but never was consistent enough to even merit honorable mention on the All-Big 12 teams.

Allen is fifth in the Big 12 in scoring (16.1 points per game), 19th in rebounding (5.4 per game) and leads the league with 2.1 steals per game.

Of the two … even a popular Web site for Cowboys fans — usually a place where dissent is welcome, even encouraged — couldn’t come up with a pick.

“They’ve both had such an impact,” read a posting from someone named “OStateMan.” “Thank God they’re both Cowboys.”

Texas coach Rick Barnes was a little more decisive.

“For anybody not to put Tony Allen as player of the year blows my mind,” Barnes said. “We don’t have an answer for him. No one in this conference does.”

Meanwhile, KU’s Wayne Simien on Wednesday earned first-team all-league honors by the coaches. Earlier, he’d been named a first-team all-AP pick.

Simien was joined on the first team by Allen and Lucas, Emmett, plus Colorado junior center David Harrison.

KU’s Keith Langford was named second-team and Aaron Miles third team. J.R. Giddens earned honorable mention honors.

Coach Eddie Sutton was coach of the year, and junior forward Joey Graham was the league’s newcomer of the year.

Graham, who transferred from Central Florida, has 11.5 points a game and is fourth in the Big 12 with a 57 percent field goal percentage. It is the fifth time in seven years the league’s top newcomer played for the Cowboys.

Iowa State guard Curtis Stinson (team-high 15.4 points, 6.1 rebounds per game) was the league’s freshman of the year.