Three straight years for Eastern’s men’s basketball.

Two straight years for Eastern’s women’s basketball.

After Thursday’s announcement of guard Romain Martin and guard Jessica Huffman won the Ohio Valley Conference’s freshman of the year award for men’s and women’s basketball, maybe the league office should rename the freshman of the year award to Eastern’s most valuable player award.

It is an encouraging sign for two programs that experienced losing seasons to garner recognition throughout the league.

And all year long, after hearing other coaches talk about Eastern’s dangerous young talents, both on the men’s side and the women’s side, and seeing the talent first-hand, I agree that both Huffman and Martin should have won the freshman of the year awards.

But really, does it matter that much?

Any one who has followed Eastern men’s basketball can look back at the case of George Tandy.

Tandy, a slim, athletic 6-foot-8, 200-pound forward, didn’t progress his second year in Charleston, and first under current men’s head coach Mike Miller.

He didn’t regress either, but the expectations and talent Tandy displayed his freshman year wasn’t there his sophomore year.

His tenacity for going after offensive rebounds was gone.

His use of his raw athleticism and using his long-wing span to get to the basket easy wasn’t there.

He never looked comfortable playing under Miller’s system and while it was a shock to hear he intended to transfer last April, the warning signs were there.

But the past is the past.

Take for instance the 2006 freshman of the year, Mike Robinson.

Robinson, who at times still tries to do much too much for Eastern, saw his scoring average increase slightly (9.6 to 10 points) and decreased his turnover numbers also (99 turnovers in 27 games last year, 74 this year in 30 games).

Robinson had to adjust his first year to playing the point, a job he never had as a 5-foot-11 shooting guard in high school.

His learning curve is still steep, but if his teammates continue to improve around Robinson, so will Robinson.

And Martin’s year did help Robinson, by not placing so much of the scoring burden on Robinson.

Martin’s textbook outside shot, combined with a quick first step and a soft touch at the line, made the left-handed guard a sure bet to earn the league’s top honor for freshman.

Martin absolutely took over games this year (26 points against Austin Peay on Jan. 6 and 15 first-half points against Southeast Missouri on Feb. 14 come to mind).

But Martin must improve next year and keep improving ever year after, if the Panthers want to contend for a league title.

For the women, Galligan showed dramatic improvement, becoming the focal point of head coach Brady Sallee’s offense. When Galligan couldn’t score, Eastern had a difficult time scoring.

Her scoring average jumped tremendously (10.7 last season to 17.2 this season) and two things are almost bound to happen when she gets the ball in the post: she’ll either score or get fouled.

Galligan, if she keeps up the pace she has set her first two years, has a chance to scatter her name all throughout Eastern scoring and rebounding records.

And Huffman picked up the scoring slack at the guard spot when Megan Sparks graduated. Huffman, at times, played like a freshman (170 turnovers to 103 assists), but at times didn’t (16.9 scoring average and a 38-point game against Morehead State).

Huffman can do it all with the ball in her hand, both negatives and positives: turn it over, make tough layups, make spin moves, dribble between the legs and behind the back, score from outside with a soft shooting touch and distribute the ball to teammates.

But both Martin and Huffman would trade these individual awards they received Thursday night in Nashville, Tenn., for the opportunity some of their opponents are getting today.

And that would be a chance to play in the semifinals of the conference tournament.