LOS ANGELES (January 22, 2014) — UConn Huskies senior guard Shabazz Napier (Roxbury, Mass.) has been named to the Midseason Top 25 for the John R. Wooden Award, presented annually by the Los Angeles Athletic Club to college basketball’s top player.
The list is comprised of 25 student-athletes who are the front-runners for the sport’s most prestigious individual honor based on their play so far this season. The players on the list are considered strong candidates for the official voting ballot, which will consist of approximately 20 top players who have proven to their universities that they are making progress toward graduation and maintaining at least a cumulative 2.0 GPA. However, players not chosen to the midseason list are still eligible for the ballot. 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.
Napier has sparked the Huskies to a 15-4 start this season, leading the team in scoring (17.4), rebounding (6.2), assists (5.9), steals (1.9), and minutes played (34.5). He has been named the American Athletic Conference Player of the Week twice and has been named to the league’s weekly Honor Roll six times.
Napier is also on the watch lists for a number of other prestigious awards, including the Bob Cousy Collegiate Point Guard of the Year Award, the 2013-14 Senior CLASS Award, the Oscar Robertson Trophy, and the Naismith Trophy.
Creighton senior forward Doug McDermott, a Wooden Award All-American in 2012 and 2013, looks to become the first three-time selection on the men’s side since North Carolina’s Tyler Hansbrough (2007-09). McDermott is the nation’s No. 2 scorer at 24.9 ppg (through Jan. 19), and averages 7.1 rebounds per game while shooting 50.2 percent from the field for the 16-3 Bluejays. He is the only returning Wooden All-American this season.
In terms of conferences, distribution of players was fairly even atop the top traditional conferences. The ACC had five selections from three schools, followed by the Pac-12 and Big Ten with four selections each, the Big 12 and SEC with three each, The American Conference had two, Napier and Louisville senior Russ Smith, while the Atlantic 10, Big East, Missouri Valley, Mountain West had one each.
Wooden Award Midseason Top 25
The players named to the Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 on Wednesday:
| Player | Pos. | School |
| Kyle Anderson | G/F | UCLA |
| Keith Appling | G | Michigan St. |
| Cameron Bairstow | F | N. Mexico |
| Jordan Clarkson | G | Missouri |
| Aaron Craft | G | Ohio State |
| Sam Dekker | F | Wisconsin |
| Cleanthony Early | F | Wichita St. |
| Tyler Ennis | G | Syracuse |
| C.J. Fair | F | Syracuse |
| Aaron Gordon | F | Arizona |
| Rodney Hood | F | Duke |
| Nick Johnson | G | Arizona |
| DeAndre Kane | G | Iowa St. |
| Doug McDermott | F | Creighton |
| Shabazz Napier | G | Connecticut |
| Jabari Parker | F | Duke |
| Adreian Payne | C | Michigan St. |
| Casey Prather | F | Florida |
| Julius Randle | F | Kentucky |
| Marcus Smart | G | Okla. St. |
| Russ Smith | G | Louisville |
| T.J. Warren | F | N.C. State |
| Andrew Wiggins | G | Kansas |
| Chaz Williams | G | UMass |
| Joseph Young | G | Oregon |
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