Michigan State University Athletics
Nick Ward Selected to Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award Watch List
10/19/2018 1:24:00 PM | Men's Basketball
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EAST LANSING, Mich. – Michigan State junior men's basketball player Nick Ward (Columbus, Ohio/Gahanna) was selected to the watch list for the 2019 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame today. He was one of 21 players selected to the watch list.
Named after Class of 1995 Hall of Famer and three-time NCAA Champion Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the annual honor in its fifth year recognizes the top centers in men's college basketball. A national committee comprising top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 21 candidates.
Ward, who was selected to the Preseason All-Big Ten Team last week, was one of three conference players selected to the list.
Ward was a Big Ten honorable mention selection by the coaches and a third team honoree by the media in 2017-18. He appeared in all 35 games, starting, 34, and finished third on the team in scoring with 12.4 points and led the team with 7.1 rebounds, adding 1.3 blocks per game in 18.9 minutes. He led the team with eight double-doubles and has 20 games with double figure scoring.
By mid-February, the watch list of 21 players for the 2019 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award will be narrowed down to just 10. In March, five finalists will be presented to Mr. Abdul-Jabbar and the Hall of Fame's selection committee. The winner of the 2019 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award will be presented at The College Basketball Awards presented by Wendy's in Los Angeles, CA on Friday, April 12, 2019, along with the other four members of the Naismith Starting 5. Additional awards being presented and receiving support from Eaton Ephesus Lighting include the Bob Cousy Point Guard Award, the Jerry West Shooting Guard Award, the Julius Erving Small Forward Award and the Karl Malone Power Forward Award. Broadcast information will be released by ESPN at a later date.
This is the second preseason award for an MSU player, as junior guard Cassius Winston (Detroit, Mich./University of Detroit Jesuit) was selected to the watch list for the Bob Cousy Award, recognizing the top point guard in the country.
For more information and the latest updates on the 2019 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, log onto www.hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophall and #KareemAward on Twitter and Instagram.
Named after Class of 1995 Hall of Famer and three-time NCAA Champion Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the annual honor in its fifth year recognizes the top centers in men's college basketball. A national committee comprising top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 21 candidates.
Ward, who was selected to the Preseason All-Big Ten Team last week, was one of three conference players selected to the list.
Ward was a Big Ten honorable mention selection by the coaches and a third team honoree by the media in 2017-18. He appeared in all 35 games, starting, 34, and finished third on the team in scoring with 12.4 points and led the team with 7.1 rebounds, adding 1.3 blocks per game in 18.9 minutes. He led the team with eight double-doubles and has 20 games with double figure scoring.
By mid-February, the watch list of 21 players for the 2019 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award will be narrowed down to just 10. In March, five finalists will be presented to Mr. Abdul-Jabbar and the Hall of Fame's selection committee. The winner of the 2019 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award will be presented at The College Basketball Awards presented by Wendy's in Los Angeles, CA on Friday, April 12, 2019, along with the other four members of the Naismith Starting 5. Additional awards being presented and receiving support from Eaton Ephesus Lighting include the Bob Cousy Point Guard Award, the Jerry West Shooting Guard Award, the Julius Erving Small Forward Award and the Karl Malone Power Forward Award. Broadcast information will be released by ESPN at a later date.
This is the second preseason award for an MSU player, as junior guard Cassius Winston (Detroit, Mich./University of Detroit Jesuit) was selected to the watch list for the Bob Cousy Award, recognizing the top point guard in the country.
For more information and the latest updates on the 2019 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, log onto www.hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophall and #KareemAward on Twitter and Instagram.
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