Indiana University Athletics
Vonleh Among Wooden Award Preseason Top 50
11/12/2013 12:00:00 AM | Men's Basketball
Nov. 12, 2013
LOS ANGELES-- Indiana freshman Noah Vonleh is among the Preseason Top 50 for the John R. Wooden Award, the Los Angeles Athletic Club announced on Tuesday, Nov. 12, on ESPN.com. Chosen by a preseason poll of national college basketball experts, the list is comprised of 50 student-athletes who are the early front-runners for the sport's most prestigious honor.
Vonleh, a native of Haverhill, Mass., recently earned his first Big Ten Freshman of the Week honor after tallying 11 points, 14 rebounds and three blocked shots in the Hoosiers' season opening win over Chicago State on Friday, Nov. 8.
In terms of conferences, it promises to be an interesting year in the Big Ten, with a chart-topping 10 players chosen to the preseason list from six different schools. The ACC had eight selections from six schools, followed by the Big 12 (3 schools), Pac-12 (5 schools) and SEC (2 schools) with six selections each. The brand new American Athletic Conference had five selections (4 schools), followed by the Big East, West Coast and Mountain West with two each; and the Atlantic 10, Missouri Valley, and Sun Belt each with one.
The players on the list are considered strong candidates for the midseason list and the official voting ballot, which will consist of approximately 20 top players who have proven to their universities that they are also making progress toward graduation and maintaining at least a cumulative 2.0 GPA. The Wooden Award All American Team, consisting of the nation's top 10 players, will be announced the week of the "Elite Eight" round of the NCAA Tournament.
About the John R. Wooden Award
The 38th annual Wooden Award ceremony will honor the Men's and Women's Wooden Award winners, and will include the presentation of the Wooden Award All American Teams and the Legends of Coaching Award, which in 2013 will go to Stanford Head Women's Basketball Coach Tara VanDerveer. The event will take place the weekend of April 11-12, 2014.
Created in 1976, the John R. Wooden Award is the most prestigious individual honor in college basketball. It is bestowed upon the nation's best player at an institution of higher education who has proven to his or her university that he or she is making progress toward graduation and maintaining a minimum cumulative 2.0 GPA. Previous winners include such notables as Larry Bird ('79), Michael Jordan ('84), Tim Duncan ('97), Candace Parker ('07 and '08), Kevin Durant ('09) and Maya Moore of Connecticut ('09 and `11). Michigan's Trey Burke won the 2013 Wooden Award presented by Wendy's.
Since its inception, the John R. Wooden Award has contributed close to a million dollars to universities' general scholarship fund in the names of the All American recipients. The Award has also sent more than 1,000 underprivileged children to week-long college basketball camps in the Award's name. Additionally, the John R. Wooden Award partners with Special Olympics Southern California (SOSC) each year to host the Wooden Award Special Olympics Southern California Basketball Tournament. The day-long tournament, which brings together Special Olympic athletes and the All Americans, takes place at The Los Angeles Athletic Club the weekend of the John R. Wooden Award Ceremony.
Follow the candidates and get the latest news throughout the season by logging on to www.WoodenAward.com or going to the Wooden Award facebook page at Facebook.com/WoodenAward. For more information on the John R. Wooden Award, please contact the Wooden Award staff at 213-630-5231 or via email at woodenaward@laac.net.
2013-14 John R. Wooden Award®, Presented by Wendy's®
Preseason Top 50
Jordan Adams, UCLA
Kyle Anderson, UCLA
Keith Appling, Michigan State
Isaiah Austin, Baylor
Jahii Carson, Arizona State
Willie Cauley Stein, Kentucky
Semaj Christon, Xavier
Aaron Craft, Ohio State
Sam Dekker, Wisconsin
Spencer Dinwiddie, Colorado
Cleanthony Early, Wichita State
Joel Embiid, Kansas
C.J. Fair, Syracuse
Aaron Gordon, Arizona
Jerian Grant, Notre Dame
Montrezl Harrell, Louisville
Gary Harris, Michigan State
Joe Harris, Virginia
Andrew Harrison, Kentucky
Tyler Haws, BYU
Andre Hollins, Minnesota
Rodney Hood, Duke
Joe Jackson, Memphis
Cory Jefferson, Baylor
Sean Kilpatrick, Cincinnati
Alex Kirk, New Mexico
James Michael McAdoo, North Carolina
Doug McDermott*#, Creighton
Mitch McGary, Michigan
Jordan McRae, Tennessee
Shabazz Napier, Connecticut
Kevin Pangos, Gonzaga
Jabari Parker, Duke
Adreian Payne, Michigan State
Elfrid Payton, Louisiana
Dwight Powell, Stanford
Julius Randle, Kentucky
Juvonte Reddic, VCU
Glenn Robinson III, Michigan
LaQuinton Ross, Ohio State
Wayne Selden, Jr., Kansas
Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State
Russ Smith, Louisville
Jarnell Stokes, Tennessee
Rasheed Sulaimon, Duke
Noah Vonleh, Indiana
Dez Wells, Maryland
Andrew Wiggins, Kansas
Kendall Williams, New Mexico
James Young, Kentucky
Players listed alphabetically
* indicates player chosen to the 2013 Wooden All-American Team
# indicates player chosen to the 2012 Wooden All-American Team
