Jaquez Jr. Among Semifinalists for Naismith Player of the Year
March 10, 2023 | Men's Basketball
ATLANTA โ UCLA senior Jaime Jaquez Jr. has been selected as one of 10 semifinalists for the Naismith Men's College Player of the Year Award, as announced on Friday by the Atlanta Tipoff Club.
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Jaquez Jr., who was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year on Tuesday, has averaged 17.4 points and 8.0 rebounds in 32 games for the Bruins this season. He has shot 48.7 percent from the field and 76.7 percent at the free throw line. He was one of 10 players named as a first-team All-Pac-12 selection earlier in the week, and he's among five candidates for the Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award.
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Jaquez Jr. has played a major role in lead the Bruins to a 28-4 record and to the program's first Pac-12 Conference regular-season title since 2013. Most recently, he totaled 16 points and seven rebounds on Thursday afternoon as the Bruins registered their 11th consecutive win with an 80-69 triumph over Colorado in the Pac-12 Tournament in Las Vegas.
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With Thursday's 16-point effort, Jaquez Jr. has climbed into the No. 15 spot on UCLA's all-time scoring list (1,701 points), surpassing former two-time NCAA Champion Gail Goodrich (1,691 points).
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Jaquez Jr. also ranks No. 15 on the Bruins' all-time rebounds list (792 rebounds).
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The ninth other candidates for this season's Naismith Men's College Player of the Year include Zach Edey (Purdue), Trayce Jackson-Davis (Indiana), Keyontae Johnson (Kansas State), Tyler Kolek (Marquette), Brandon Miller (Alabama), Marcus Sasser (Houston), Drew Timme (Gonzaga), Azuolas Tubelis (Arizona) and Jalen Wilson (Kansas).
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The national award's four finalists will be announced on Tuesday, March 21. The award's fan vote will help narrow down the list to the final honoree and will open on Tuesday, March 21, before closing on Tuesday, March 28. The fan vote will account for five percent of the overall final vote. The 2023 award will be presented on Sunday, April 2 during the Men's Final Four.
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