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Ten NCAA conferences are represented on the ballot, including the
ACC (5), America East (1), Big 10 (3), Big 12 (3), Big East (3),
Conference USA (1), Mountain West (1), Pac-10 (3), SEC (2) and the
West Coast Conference (1). The best-represented conferences are the
ACC, with five candidates, and the Big 10, Big 12, Big East and
Pac-10 conferences, which each have three candidates. Several teams
have multiple players nominated, including Illinois with three
nominees, and Duke, Oklahoma State and North Carolina with two
nominees each. The ballot for the most prestigious individual
honor in college basketball also includes three 2003-04 Wooden Award
All-Americans: Ryan Gomes of Providence, John Lucas of Oklahoma
State and Lawrence Roberts of Mississippi State. Luther Head of
Illinois is the only candidate on the national ballot who was not a
midseason nominee for the award. In total, 11 juniors, 10 seniors
and two sophomores are represented.
"Each of these players should be commended for their athletic and
academic achievements, as they have all met the comprehensive Wooden
Award criteria," said Richard "Duke" Llewellyn, founder and chairman
of the Wooden Award. "This year's race for the Wooden Award is wide
open, and we look forward to closely following both the conference
and national tournament[s] to see who will emerge from the
talent-rich field of national finalists."
In order to be considered for the national ballot, all players
must have been accredited by their university as meeting the Wooden
Award criteria, which includes making normal progress toward
graduation and maintaining a cumulative grade-point average of 2.0
or higher. It should be noted that all players considered for the
national ballot, including those on the midseason list, were deemed
eligible as meeting the Wooden Award academic requirements.
A panel of over 1,000 voters comprised of sports media members
and college basketball experts from around the nation will have
until 3 p.m. Eastern time on March 28 to cast their votes for both
the 10-member All-American Team and Wooden Award recipient as the
most outstanding collegiate basketball player in the United States.
The Wooden Award opts for the March 28 deadline because it allows
voters to evaluate players up until the Final Four has been
determined.
The 2005 award ceremony, which will include the presentation of
the men's and women's Wooden Award, the Wooden Award All-American
Teams, and Legends of Coaching award recipient Jim Calhoun of the
University of Connecticut, will be at The Los Angeles Athletic Club
on April 9 and will be broadcast live on a national CBS telecast.
The top five male and female finalists will be invited to Los
Angeles for the awards ceremony and will receive a contribution from
the John R. Wooden Award Scholarship Fund for their university's
general scholarship fund.
The Wooden Award Scholarship Fund was established in 2002 by
Applied Materials and corporate partners through the California
Community Foundation to honor John Wooden's dedication as an
educator and mentor. The scholarship fund distributed $15,000 last
year to each university represented by a men's and women's Wooden
Award All-American Team finalist, for a total of $150,000. Donations
to Applied Materials' John R. Wooden Award Scholarship Fund can be
made by contacting the scholarship fund through the
California Community Foundation.
[to top of second column in this article] |
 For more information on the John R. Wooden Award, visit
http://www.woodenaward.com.
About the Wooden Award
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 cumulative 2.0 grade-point
average. Previous winners include such notables as Michael Jordan in
1984, Larry Bird in 1979, Tim Duncan in 1997 and last year's
recipient, Jameer Nelson.
Wooden Award ballot
(Players listed alphabetically)
A national poll was conducted by the advisory board for the John
R. Wooden Award to determine the ballot for the 2004-2005 Wooden
Award All-American Team. The top 23 candidates have been selected
based on this year's individual performance and team records.
|
Player |
Ht. |
Yr. |
Pos. |
School |
|
Andrew Bogut |
7'0" |
So. |
F/C |
Utah |
|
Dee Brown |
6'0" |
Jr. |
G |
Illinois |
|
Taylor Coppenrath |
6'9" |
Sr. |
F |
Vermont |
|
Ike Diogu |
6'8" |
Jr. |
F |
Arizona State |
|
Francisco Garcia |
6'7" |
Jr. |
F |
Louisville |
|
Ryan Gomes |
6'7" |
Sr. |
F |
Providence |
|
Joey Graham |
6'7" |
Sr. |
F |
Oklahoma State |
|
Luther Head |
6'3" |
Sr. |
G |
Illinois |
|
John Lucas |
5'11" |
Sr. |
G |
Oklahoma State |
|
Sean May |
6'9" |
Jr. |
F/C |
North Carolina |
|
Rashad McCants |
6'4" |
Jr. |
F/G |
North Carolina |
|
Chris Paul |
6'0" |
So. |
G |
Wake Forest |
|
J.J. Redick |
6'4" |
Jr. |
G |
Duke |
|
Lawrence Roberts |
6'9" |
Sr. |
F |
Mississippi State |
|
Nate Robinson |
5'9" |
Jr. |
G |
Washington |
|
Wayne Simien |
6'9" |
Sr. |
F |
Kansas |
|
Craig Smith |
6'7" |
Jr. |
F |
Boston College |
|
Salim Stoudamire |
6'1" |
Sr. |
G |
Arizona |
|
Ronny Turiaf |
6'10" |
Sr. |
F |
Gonzaga |
|
Hakim Warrick |
6'8" |
Sr. |
F |
Syracuse |
|
Deron Williams |
6'3" |
Jr. |
G |
Illinois |
|
Shelden Williams |
6'9" |
Jr. |
F |
Duke |
|
Kennedy Winston |
6'6" |
Jr. |
F |
Alabama |
[News release]
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