University of Louisville guard Carlik Jones has been selected as one of the top 10 candidates for the 2021 Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award presented by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Named after Class of 1971 Hall of Famer and former Boston Celtic and Holy Cross guard Bob Cousy, the annual honor now in its 18th year recognizes the top point guards in Division I men’s college basketball. A national committee of college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates in November, which has now been narrowed to 10.
A 6-1 graduate transfer from Cincinnati, Ohio, Jones ranks third in the ACC in both scoring (18.4 ppg) and assists (4.8 apg) while also averaging 5.6 rebounds per game. He is ninth in the nation in career assists among active players with 526 (57 at Louisville, 469 at Radford) and is ninth nationally among active career scorers with 1,773 points (221 at UofL, 1,552 at Radford). He needs 27 points for 1,800 in his career. He has collected 13 steals in the last five games.
In his last game against Duke, he had 24 points, three assists and two steals, marking the 30th game of his collegiate career with 20 or more points (four of the last six games). Combined with his time at Louisville and Radford, he has 95 career double-figure scoring efforts, including the last 35 consecutive games (all 12 this year). He scored a season-high 25 points at Miami with seven assists and three steals.
Bob Cousy played for Holy Cross from 1946-1950 winning an NCAA Championship in 1947. He was named a Consensus First-Team All-American in 1950. His success continued at the professional level as a six-time NBA Champion (1957, 1959-1963), NBA Most Valuable Player (1957) and 13-time NBA All-Star (1951-63). In 1996, he was named a member of the NBA’s 50th Anniversary All-Time Team.
In late February, five finalists will be presented to Mr. Cousy and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee. The winner of the 2021 Bob Cousy Award will be presented April 9, 2021, along with the other four members of the Men’s Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Jerry West Shooting Guard Award, the Julius Erving Small Forward Award, the Karl Malone Power Forward Award and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center Award, in addition to the Women’s Starting Five. College basketball fans can support their favorite players by participating in Fan Voting presented by Dell.
Previous winners of the Bob Cousy Award include Payton Pritchard, Oregon (2020), Ja Morant, Murray State (2019), Jalen Brunson, Villanova (2018), Frank Mason III, Kansas (2017), Tyler Ulis, Kentucky (2016), Delon Wright, Utah (2015), Shabazz Napier, Connecticut (2014), Trey Burke, Michigan (2013), Kendall Marshall, North Carolina (2012), Kemba Walker, Connecticut (2011), Greivis Vasquez, Maryland (2010), Ty Lawson, North Carolina (2009), DJ Augustin, Texas (2008), Acie Law, Texas A & M (2007), Dee Brown, Illinois (2006), Raymond Felton, North Carolina (2005) and Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph’s (2004).
For more information on the 2021 Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award and the latest updates, log onto www.hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophall and #CousyAward on Twitter and Instagram. Starting Five Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies will go live on Friday, January 29 at hoophallawards.com.
2021 Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award Candidates*
Jared Butler Baylor
McKinley Wright IV Colorado
Marcus Zegarowski Creighton
Scottie Barnes Florida State
Jalen Suggs Gonzaga
Ayo Dosunmu Illinois
Carlik Jones Louisville
Marcus Carr Minnesota
Cade Cunningham Oklahoma State
Collin Gillespie Villanova
*Players can play their way onto and off of the list at any point in the 2020-21 season*
About the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
Located in Springfield, Massachusetts, the city where basketball was born, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame is an independent non-profit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to promoting, preserving and celebrating the game of basketball at every level – men and women, amateur and professional players, coaches and contributors, both domestically and internationally. The Hall of Fame museum is home to more than 400 inductees and over 40,000 square feet of basketball history. Nearly 200,000 people visit the Hall of Fame museum each year to learn about the game, experience the interactive exhibits and test their skills on the Jerry Colangelo “Court of Dreams.” Best known for its annual marquee Enshrinement Ceremony honoring the game’s elite, the Hall of Fame also operates over 70 high school and collegiate competitions annually throughout the country and abroad. For more information on the Basketball Hall of Fame organization, its museum and events, visit www.hoophall.com, follow @hoophall or call 1-877-4HOOPLA.
This information may be found online at this link: https://uofl.me/2M5Ji4r
| KENNY KLEIN Senior Associate Athletic Director/Sports Information Director | Louisville Athletics |
