Sullinger Named to John R. Wooden Award Midseason Top 30 – Ohio State Buckeyes
1/6/2011 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
JOHN R. WOODEN AWARD 2010-11 MIDSEASON TOP 30 CANDIDATES ANNOUNCED
Seniors Dominate List, Led by Singler, Fredette
Los Angeles (January 6, 2011)- The John R. Wooden Award Midseason Top 30 was announced today by The Los Angeles Athletic Club. Selected by the Wooden Award National Advisory Board, the list is made up of 30 student-athletes who, based on their performances in November and December, are the early frontrunners for college basketball’s most prestigious honor. The Women’s midseason list will be released early next week.
Returning players from past Wooden Award ballots include a pair of seniors: Duke’s Kyle Singler (2009, 2010) and BYU’s Jimmer Fredette (2010). Singler was the MVP of the 2010 Final Four and is averaging 17.5 points and 5.8 rebounds in 2010-11 for the undefeated Blue Devils; Fredette was an All-Mountain West Conference player as a junior and so far this year posts a 24.1 ppg scoring average.
Transfers, freshmen and medical redshirts are eligible for this midseason list but did not appear on the preseason Top 50. All players nationally who excel throughout the season will be evaluated and considered for the official voting ballot released in March. The National Ballot consists of approximately 20 top players who have proven to their universities that they are also making progress toward graduation and maintaining at least a cumulative 2.0 GPA. The Wooden Award All-American Team will be announced the week of the “Elite Eight” round during the NCAA Tournament, making it unique among college postseason awards.
The Big Ten and Big 12 conferences boast the largest number of players chosen to the list, with six each. Other conferences with multiple players represented include the ACC (5), Big East (5), Pac-10 (3), and the Mountain West (2). The Horizon, SEC and Ohio Valley each had one player selected.
Purdue (JaJuan Johnson, E’Twaun Moore) and No. 1-ranked Duke (Singler, Nolan Smith) were the only schools with two players on the Midseason List. In a change from the past several years, half of the players chosen are seniors. Only two freshmen made the list: Ohio State’s Jared Sullinger and Terrence Jones of Kentucky.
The 35th annual Wooden Award ceremony, which will include the announcement of the Men’s and Women’s Wooden Award winners, a special tribute to Coach Wooden and Wooden Award founder Duke Llewellyn, and the presentation of the Wooden Award All American Teams and the Legends of Coaching Award, will take place the weekend of April 8-10, 2011.
About the John R. Wooden Award
Created in 1976, the John R. Wooden Award is the most prestigious individual honor in college basketball. It is bestowed upon the nation’s best player at an institution of higher education who has proven to his or her university that he or she is making progress toward graduation and maintaining a minimum cumulative 2.0 GPA. Previous winners include such notables as Larry Bird (’79), Michael Jordan (’84), Tim Duncan (’97), Blake Griffin (’09) and Maya Moore of Connecticut (’09). Ohio State’s Evan Turner and Connecticut’s Tina Charles won the Award in 2010.
Since its inception, the John R. Wooden Award has contributed close to a million dollars to universities’ general scholarship fund in the names of the All American recipients. The Award has also sent more than 1,000 underprivileged children to week-long college basketball camps in the Award’s name. Additionally, the John R. Wooden Award partners with Special Olympics Southern California (SOSC) each year to host the Wooden Award Special Olympics Southern California Basketball Tournament. The day-long tournament, which brings together Special Olympic athletes and the All Americans, takes place at The Los Angeles Athletic Club on the Friday prior to the John R. Wooden Award Ceremony.
|
Name |
Hgt |
Yr. |
Pos. |
University |
Conference |
|
Marshon Brooks |
6-5 |
Sr. |
G/F |
Providence |
Big East |
|
Alec Burks |
6-6 |
So. |
G |
Colorado |
Big 12 |
|
Malcolm Delaney |
6-3 |
Sr. |
G |
Virginia Tech |
ACC |
|
Marcus Denmon |
6-3 |
Jr. |
G |
Missouri |
Big 12 |
|
LaceDarius Dunn |
6-4 |
Sr. |
G |
Baylor |
Big 12 |
|
Kenneth Faried |
6-8 |
Sr. |
F/C |
Morehead State |
Ohio Valley |
|
Jimmer Fredette* |
6-2 |
Sr. |
G |
Brigham Young |
Mountain West |
|
Austin Freeman |
6-4 |
Sr. |
G |
Georgetown |
Big East |
|
Jordan Hamilton |
6-7 |
So. |
G/F |
Texas |
Big 12 |
|
Matt Howard |
6-8 |
Jr. |
F |
Butler |
Horizon League |
|
Reggie Jackson |
6-3 |
Jr. |
G |
Boston College |
ACC |
|
Rick Jackson |
6-9 |
Sr. |
F |
Syracuse |
Big East |
|
JaJuan Johnson |
6-10 |
Sr. |
F/C |
Purdue |
Big Ten |
|
Terrence Jones |
6-8 |
Fr. |
F |
Kentucky |
SEC |
|
Kawhi Leonard |
6-7 |
So. |
F |
San Diego St. |
Mountain West |
|
Jon Leuer |
6-10 |
Sr. |
F |
Wisconsin |
Big Ten |
|
Demetri McCamey |
6-3 |
Sr. |
G |
Illinois |
Big Ten |
|
E’Twaun Moore |
6-4 |
Sr. |
G |
Purdue |
Big Ten |
|
Marcus Morris |
6-9 |
Jr. |
F |
Kansas |
Big 12 |
|
Jacob Pullen |
6-0 |
Sr. |
G |
Kansas State |
Big 12 |
|
John Shurna |
6-8 |
Jr. |
F |
Northwestern |
Big Ten |
|
Kyle Singler* |
6-8 |
Sr. |
F |
Duke |
ACC |
|
Nolan Smith |
6-2 |
Sr. |
G |
Duke |
ACC |
|
Jared Sullinger |
6-9 |
Fr. |
F |
Ohio State |
Big Ten |
|
Isaiah Thomas |
5-9 |
Jr. |
G |
Washington |
Pac-10 |
|
Klay Thompson |
6-6 |
Jr. |
G |
Washington St. |
Pac-10 |
|
Kemba Walker |
6-1 |
Jr. |
G |
Connecticut |
Big East |
|
Brad Wanamaker |
6-4 |
Sr. |
G |
Pitt |
Big East |
|
Derrick Williams |
6-8 |
So. |
F |
Arizona |
Pac-10 |
|
Jordan Williams |
6-10 |
So. |
F |
Maryland |
ACC |
(Players listed alphabetically.)
*indicates player chosen to the 2010 Wooden Award ballot
