UCLA freshmen Lonzo Ball and TJ Leaf have been selected to the 30-man semifinalist list for this season's Naismith Trophy, annually presented to the nation's top college basketball player.
 
Ball and Leaf are two of five Pac-12 players who have been named to the midseason watch list, as announced earlier this week by the Atlanta Tipoff Club.
 
A 6-foot-6 guard from Chino Hills, Calif., Ball has already been named as one of 20 players to the John R. Wooden Award's Late Season Top 20 list. He has averaged 15.1 points, 6.0 rebounds and 7.6 assists for UCLA, starting all 25 games. He ranks second in the nation in assists per game (7.6) and leads all college players with 189 assists.
 
Leaf, a 6-foot-10 forward from El Cajon, Calif., has recorded 11 double-doubles in 25 games and leads UCLA in scoring (16.7 points per game). Leaf is tied for fifth in scoring in the Pac-12 and ranks fifth in the conference in rebounding (8.8 rebounds per game).
 
Both Ball and Leaf have each been selected to positional watch lists, as announced earlier this month by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Ball is one of 10 players on the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year watch list, while Leaf is among 10 candidates for the Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award.
 
UCLA returns to action against Oregon State in Pauley Pavilion on Sunday, Feb. 12. Game time is 2 p.m. (PT). UCLA's game against Oregon State will be nationally televised by FOX Sports 1 (FS1).