NAISMITH MEN's COLLEGE PLAYER of the YEAR FINALISTS NAMED Durant, Hansbrough, Law and Tucker Seek Prestigious Trophy
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NAISMITH MEN’S COLLEGE PLAYER OF THE YEAR FINALISTS NAMED Durant, Hansbrough, Law and Tucker Seek Prestigious Trophy ATLANTA (March 18, 2007) – Four of the nation’s top basketball players have been named as finalists for the Naismith Trophy presented by AT&T, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced today. Kevin Durant (Texas), Tyler Hansbrough (North Carolina) Acie Law IV (Texas A&M) and Alando Tucker (Wisconsin) have been selected to the final ballot. The Naismith Trophy is the most prestigious national award presented annually to the men’s and women’s players of the year, and men’s and women’s college basketball coaches of the year. Durant, the Big 12 Player of the Year, seeks to become the first freshmen in the history of the Naismith Trophy to claim the honor. To date, 24 winners have been seniors, eight as juniors and six as sophomores. Hansbrough, a first-team All-ACC selection, hopes to extend the conference’s lead in Naismith Trophy winners – thus far, 15 winners have come from the ACC. Seniors Law, consensus first-team all Big 12 and Tucker, the Big Ten Player of the Year Tucker, round out the group. Finalists were chosen through a vote by the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s Board of Selectors, who narrowed the mid-season list of 30 candidates down to the final four. The Board, which is comprised of leading basketball journalists, coaches and administrators from around the country, based its criteria on player performances this season. The four finalists will attend the National Association of Basketball Coaches Awards program in Atlanta on Sunday, April 1, where the winner will be presented with the Naismith Trophy. The Men’s College Player of the Year winner will be featured on AT&T “At the Half” during CBS Sports’ coverage of the NCAA championship game on April 2. Again this year AT&T will give fans an unprecedented voice in selecting the winner. Fan voting, through the power and ease of text messaging, will account for 25 percent of the selection process. This program sets the standard in college athletics for integrating fans into the voting process and providing them with more input than with any other major collegiate sports award. Fans can text message “VOTE” to “87654” to receive the final ballot and participate in the voting process.* Voting for the Naismith Trophy Women’s College Basketball Player of the Year will end on Saturday, March 31 at 9 p.m. EDT. AT&T is making the voting open to other wireless carriers allowing even more fans to participate. Other wireless carriers must opt-in for their subscribers to participate. “These final four players have had outstanding years, and more importantly, have led their respective teams to tremendous seasons,” said Gary Stokan, Atlanta Tipoff Club president. “They each have displayed the true meaning of team leader and any one of them could win the trophy.” -more- Naismith Men’s Finalist/Page 2 “These four student-athletes have excelled throughout the college basketball season,” said Marc Lefar, chief marketing officer for AT&T’s wireless unit. “They are all very deserving candidates for the Naismith Trophy presented by AT&T, and we are proud to empower the fans to have a voice in determining the winner.” CBS Sports will profile the four Naismith Trophy finalists during its coverage of the 2007 NCAA Men’s Basketball Championship starting with the first games of the NCAA ® Sweet 16® on March 22. Kevin Durant: In his rookie season, the 6-9 forward became the first freshman to earn the league’s Player of the Year honor, while also garnering Big 12 Freshman of the Year award. He led the Longhorns in scoring (25.1 ppg), rebounding (11.4 rpg), blocked shots (55), steals (54) and double- doubles (18) while directing Texas to a 22-8 mark in the regular season and a Top 15 national ranking. Durant posted at least 20 points and 10 rebounds in 17 of the first 30 games and reached the 30-point mark nine times. He set Big 12 season records for scoring (462) and rebounds (200), and is on pace for breaking the school single-season scoring mark of 772. He also was named NABC First-Team All-American. Acie Law IV: The 6-3 senior guard from Dallas was named the Big 12 Player of the Year by the Dallas Morning News and Big 12 Most Valuable Player by the Fort Worth Star-Telegram. A consensus First-Team All-Big 12 and second-Team Academic All-Big 12, he averaged 17.9 points, 3.2 rebounds and 5.3 assists per game while making 51.3 percent from the field, 44.9 percent from three-point range and 76.5 percent from the free throw line. In addition, Law was the only player in the nation averaging at least 17.0 points and 5.0 assists per game while making 50 percent or better from the field. Alando Tucker: Was named Big Ten Player of the Year by both the coaches and media and was the only unanimous first-team All-Big Ten selection by both groups. He also was named first-team All- American by the USBWA, Wisconsin’s first first-team All-American since 1950. In a season in which the Badgers set a school record for most overall wins (29) and conference victories (13), the 6-6 forward eclipsed Michael Finley to become Wisconsin’s all-time leading scorer (2,177). He averaged 19.9 points per game, second in the Big Ten, this year in leading Wisconsin to the school’s first-ever No. 1 ranking. Dating back to last season he has scored in double figures in 41 consecutive games, the 10th-best active streak in the country. Tyler Hansbrough: A consensus 1st Team All-America by the USBWA and NABC, and unanimous 1st-Team All-ACC Selection, the 6-9 sophomore forward led the team and was fourth in the ACC in scoring at 18.1 points per game. He is the first Tar Heel to repeat first-team All-America honors since Antawn Jamison in 1997 and 1998. He has 1,201 career points, becoming the 59th Tar Heel to score 1,000 (an NCAA record). Hansbrough reached the 1,000 plateau in just his 54th game, the sixth- fastest of any Tar Heel and the fastest among those who played as a true freshman. Last year’s Naismith Trophy recipient was Duke Forward J.J. Redick. Other notable men’s college player of the year winners include Bill Walton (1972-1974), Larry Bird (1979), Michael Jordan (1984), Patrick Ewing (1985) and Christian Laettner (1992). For more information, visit www.naismithawards.com. -more- Naismith Men’s Finalist/Page 3 ABOUT THE ATLANTA TIPOFF CLUB The Atlanta Tipoff Club, an Atlanta Sports Council property, is committed to promoting the game of basketball and recognizing the outstanding accomplishments of those who make the game so exciting. The Atlanta Tipoff Club has presented the Naismith Trophy since UCLA’s Lew Alcindor first won the award in 1969. Old Dominion’s Anne Donovan won the inaugural Women’s Naismith Trophy in 1983. The Naismith Award has become an emblem of excellence for the game, recognizing the Men’s and Women’s College Basketball Player of the Year, Men’s and Women’s College Basketball Coach of the Year, as well as awards for outstanding achievement in high school basketball, officiating, and overall contribution to the game. ABOUT AT&T AT&T Inc. is a premier communications holding company in the United States and around the world, with operating subsidiaries providing services under the AT&T brand. AT&T is the recognized world leader in providing IP-based communications services to business and the U.S. leader in providing wireless, high speed Internet access, local and long distance voice, and directory publishing and advertising services. As part of its "three screen" integration strategy, AT&T is expanding video entertainment offerings to include such next-generation television services as AT&T U-verse(SM) TV. Additional information about AT&T Inc. and the products and services provided by AT&T subsidiaries and affiliates is available at http://www.att.com/. - end - Contacts: Eric Oberman Clay Owen Atlanta Sports Council Cingular Wireless, part of the new AT&T (404) 586-8506 (404) 236-6153 [email protected] [email protected] .