Fredette Named a Naismith Top 30 Candidate

ATLANTA -- The top 30 candidates for the Naismith Trophy, one of the most prestigious awards in college basketball, were named today by The Atlanta Tipoff Club’s Board of Selectors, and BYU senior Jimmer Fredette and San Diego State sophomore Kawhi Leonard were included on the list. Composed of the players who will compete for this season's player of the year award, the list is based on individual performances from the first half of the 2010-11 season.

Fredette, a Glens Falls, N.Y., native, is averaging a NCAA-best 27.5 points, while contributing 4.3 assists and 3.5 rebounds per game for the seventh-ranked Cougars. He is shooting 47.3 percent from the field, including a 42.1 percent mark from beyond the arc, and has an 89.8 percent efficiency on free throws. In 10 Mountain West contests, Fredette has led BYU to a 9-1 mark by averaging 32.6 points per game while shooting 48.2 percent from three-point range.

Leonard has led the sixth-ranked Aztecs to a program-best 24-1 start this season and a 9-1 record in Conference play. The Riverside, Calif., native is averaging 14.9 points, 10.7 rebounds, 2.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game. Leonard, who is shooting 44.7 percent from the field, has tallied 17 double-doubles this season.

The Naismith Trophy, presented by AT&T, will be awarded at the 2011 NCAA Men’s Final Four in Houston. Each year, the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s board of selectors narrows the pre-season watch list of 50 players to 30, then chooses the four finalists who will make up the final ballot.

The board, comprised of leading basketball journalists, coaches and administrators from around the country, bases its criteria on player performance for the season. Since 2005, presenting sponsor AT&T has set the standard in allowing fans to participate in determining the trophy winner. Through text messaging, fan voting will account for 25 percent of the final results – more than any other national college basketball award.