Ellis Listed on Final Ballot for the Wooden Award
Link WoodenAward.com
Link Social Media Vote
LOS ANGELES, Calif. – Kansassenior forward Perry Ellis is listed on the 2016 National Ballot for the John R. Wooden Award® presented by Wendy’s®, the Los Angeles Athletic Club announced on ESPN College GameDay Saturday. Selected by the Wooden Award National Advisory Board, Ellis is one of 15 student-athletes who are candidates for the Wooden Award All-American Team and the Wooden Award Trophy as the most outstanding college basketball player in the United States. All balloted players have proven to their universities that they are making progress toward graduation and are maintaining at least a cumulative 2.0 GPA.
Voting will take place from March 14th to March 21st, and voters, consisting of nearly 1,000 members of the national college basketball media, take into consideration a player’s entire season of play, as well as opening rounds of the NCAA Championship. Fans may vote through the fan voting site, sponsored by Wendy’s, at www.woodenawardvote.com. The Wooden Award™ All-American Team, consisting of the nation’s top 10 players, and the five finalists for the Wooden Award, widely considered the most prestigious honor in college basketball, will be announced the week of the “Elite Eight” round of the NCAA Tournament and will be the focus of a 30-minute show March 28th on ESPNU at 8pm EST.
Coming off his 10th 20-point effort of the season with 20 points at Texas (Feb. 29), Ellis leads Kansas in scoring (16.3 ppg) and is second in rebounding (6.0 rpg). Ellis has nine games of scoring 19 or more points in Big 12 play this season, 17.5 points and 5.7 rebounds during conference action. Overall, he ranks third in the league in scoring and ninth in rebounding – one of two players in the Big 12 to rank in the top nine in scoring and rebounding.
The Big 12 features three student-athletes on the ballot – Ellis, Iowa State’s Georges Niang, and Oklahoma’s Buddy Hield.
The 40th annual presentation of the John R. Wooden Award® to the most outstanding basketball player will be the anchor presentation of the ESPN College Basketball Awards Show presented by Wendy’s® on ESPN2 on Friday, April 8th at 7 p.m. Central time. The John R. Wooden Award All-American Teams will be honored during the ceremony.
Created in 1976, the John R. Wooden Award® program features the most prestigious individual honors in college basketball. The Wooden Award Trophy is bestowed annually upon the nation’s best male and female player who have proven to their respective universities that they are making progress toward graduation while maintaining a minimum cumulative 2.0 GPA. Kansas’ Danny Manning was the 1988 recipient of the award.
Since its inception, the John R. Wooden Award® has contributed close to a million dollars to the general scholarship fund of the honoree’s University in the name of the All-American recipient. The Award has also enabled more than 1,000 underprivileged children to week-long basketball camps in the Award’s name. Additionally, the John R. Wooden Award partners with the Special Olympics Southern California each year to host the Wooden Award Special Olympics Southern California Basketball Tournament. The day-long tournament takes place at the Los Angeles Athletic Club the weekend of the John R. Wooden Award® presentation, and brings together Special Olympics athletes and the Wooden Award All-Americans.
Fans can follow the candidates en route to the Wooden Award presentation and get the latest news by liking the Wooden Award Facebook page or following @WoodenAward on Twitter and Instagram. For more information on the John R. Wooden Award, please contact Ernest Baskerville at (213) 630-5231 or via email at woodenaward@laac.net.
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