CLEVELAND -- Cleveland’s best and brightest in the sports world were honored at the 17th annual Greater Cleveland Sports Awards at the Renaissance Cleveland Hotel Grand Ballroom Thursday night, and one of their athletes was named a reserve for the Eastern Conference All-Star team.
Here are a look at Friday morning’s Cleveland sports headlines.
CAVALIERS WIN BEST MOMENT AWARD
The Cleveland Cavaliers won the Best Moment Award at the 2017 Greater Cleveland Sports Awards, the Greater Cleveland Sports Commission announced Thursday night.
The Cavaliers earned the award by defeating the Golden State Warriors, 93-89, in Game 7 of the NBA Finals at Oracle Arena on Sunday, June 19th, and in doing so, becoming the first team in Cleveland to win a major sports championship in 52 years.
Despite being down, 2-0 and 3-1, in the best-of-seven series against the reigning league champion Warriors, the Cavaliers fought their way to three straight wins, including two at Oracle Arena, where Golden State lost just three times combined through the regular season and first three rounds of the playoffs.
It is the Cavaliers’ first-ever NBA Championship and the first major sports title for the city of Cleveland since the Browns took home the NFL Championship with an upset win over the Baltimore Colts in December of 1964.
By beating Golden State, the Cavaliers became the first team ever to overcome a 3-1 series deficit in the NBA Finals and win the championship.
HARRIS WINS HIGH SCHOOL ATHLETE OF THE YEAR AWARD
Cleveland Heights football player Jaylen Harris won the High School Athlete of the Year Award at the 17th Annual Greater Cleveland Sports Awards.
A top-rated receiver heading into the season after receiving All-Ohio Special Mention honors in 2015, Harris turned 53 receptions into 820 yards and eight touchdowns for the Tigers during the 2016 regular season.
Harris has committed to play football for the Ohio State Buckeyes.
JCU FOOTBALL WINS COLLEGE ATHLETE OF THE YEAR AWARD
The John Carroll football team won the College Athlete of the Year Award at the Greater Cleveland Sports Awards.
The Ohio Athletic Conference football championship had long belonged to the University of Mount Union Purple Raiders, but that was not the case this year, as the Blue Streaks broke their two-decade stranglehold on the league.
After an opening-week loss at the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, the Blue Streaks rattled off nine straight regular-season wins, including a come-from-behind victory over Mount Union, the school’s first win over the Purple Raiders since 1989.
CONWELL WINS AMATEUR ATHLETE OF THE YEAR AWARD
Boxing standout Charles Conwell, Jr. won the Amateur Athlete of the Year Award at the 17th annual Greater Cleveland Sports Awards.
A middleweight boxer out of Cleveland Heights, Conwell earned a spot on the U.S. Olympic Boxing team when he won The Americas Qualifier last March by literally punching his ticket to The Games.
Conwell is an 11-time national champion, the 2015 USA Boxing Athlete of the Year, 2015 National Golden Gloves Champion and two-time USA Boxing National Champion.
JAMES WINS PRO ATHLETE OF THE YEAR AWARD
For his efforts in leading the Cavaliers to a 93-89 win over the Warriors in Game 7 of The Finals, James received the Pro Athlete of the Year Award.
Despite making only nine of his 24 attempts from the field and just one of his five three-point shots in the close-out win, James scored a team-high 27 points, and finished off a triple-double with 11 rebounds and 11 assists to go along with three blocked shots and two steals.
In the best-of-seven series, James averaged 29.7 points, 11.3 rebounds and 8.9 assists, to go along with 2.3 blocks and 2.6 steals over 42 minutes per game. James converted 49.4 percent of his attempts from the field and 37.1 percent of his three-point tries.
SEITZ HONORED WITH COURAGE AWARD
Kendra Seitz is no stranger to challenges, but in the face of adversity, she has risen above all of those obstacles to shine in competitive swimming.
And for the determination she showed in overcoming a heart transplant to be a competitive swimmer, Seitz was honored with the Cleveland Clinic Sports Health Courage Award.
Under the watchful care of Dr. Gerald Boyle, the medical director of Pediatric Heart Failure and Transplant Services at Cleveland Clinic, Seitz was the recipient of a new heart just six days into her stay in the hospital.
Through the use of Aqua Therapy to strengthen Seitz’s body following the transplant surgery, she no longer needed a wheelchair and walked out of rehabilitation with the goal of being a competitive swimmer, which she has become with the Hudson Explorers Aquatics Team (HEAT).
HARGROVE HONORED WITH LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
Former Cleveland Indians first baseman/manager Mike Hargrove received the Lifetime Achievement Award at the 17th annual Greater Cleveland Sports Awards banquet.
With the Indians, Hargrove had a .292 batting average, .396 slugging percentage and a .778 OPS. His .424 on-base percentage in 1981 was the best in the American League.
Upon the conclusion of his playing career, Hargrove went on to manage the Indians (1991-1999), Baltimore Orioles (2000-2003) and Seattle Mariners (2005-2007), and posted a 1,188-1,176 record.
As a manager, Hargrove had his most success with the Indians, where he led the club to a 721-591 record, five straight American League Central Division titles (1995-1999), two AL pennants and a pair of World Series appearances.
LOVE NAMED TO EAST ALL-STAR TEAM
Cavaliers power forward Kevin Love has been selected as a reserve to the Eastern Conference All-Star team, the NBA announced Thursday night.
A three-time Western Conference All-Star with the Minnesota Timberwolves (2011, 2012, 2014), Love will make his all-star debut with the Cavaliers this season. In those three previous trips to the All-Star Game, Love averaged 10.67 points and 6.67 rebounds.
This season, Love averaged 20.5 points, 11.0 rebounds, 1.9 assists and 0.8 steals in 32.1 minutes of play over 39 games. With his shooting percentages up from the field and three-point range over the previous two years with the Cavaliers, Love has raised his offensive productivity by more than four points per game.
Love joins two of his teammates, small forward LeBron James and point guard Kyrie Irving, who were named Eastern Conference All-Star starters last week.
The 2017 NBA All Star Game will be played at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, Louisiana, on February 19.
