Morant Joins the Wooden List

Editor: The following is part of a press release from NCAA.com.

On the 2019 Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 Watch List, seven players make their debut on the Wooden Watch after not being named on the Preseason Top 50: Nickeil Alexander-Walker of Virginia Tech, Ignas Brazdeikis of Michigan, Jordan Caroline of Nevada, Jarrett Culver of Texas Tech, Ja Morant of Murray State, Myles Powell of Seton Hall, and Admiral Schofield of Tennessee. Three schools have two players that were chosen: Duke (RJ Barrett and Zion Williamson), Nevada (Caroline and Caleb Martin), and Tennessee (Schofield and Grant Williams).

The Big Ten leads all conferences with seven selections; followed by the ACC with five; the Big East and SEC with three selections each; the Big 12 and Mountain West with two apiece; and the Ohio Valley, Summit League, and WCC with one selection each.

The players on the list are considered strong candidates for the 2019 John R. Wooden Award Men’s Player of the Year presented by Wendy’s. Players not chosen to the preseason list are still eligible for the Wooden Award™ late season list, and the National Ballot. The National Ballot consists of 15 top players who have proven to their universities that they meet or exceed the qualifications of the Wooden Award.

Nearly 1,000 voters will rank in order 10 of those 15 players when voting opens prior to the NCAA tournament and will allow voters to take into consideration performance during early round games. The Wooden Award All American Team™ will be announced the week of the “Elite Eight” round of the NCAA tournament.

Editor: Morant is one of five Mid-Major players on the Wooden list. He joins Nevada’s Jordan Caroline and Caleb Martin, South Dakota State’s Mike Daum and Gonzaga’s Rui Hachimura.