SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Three point guards from the American Athletic Conference – UConn’s Jalen Adams, SMU’s Shake Milton and Landry Shamet of Wichita State – were named to the watch list for the 2018 Bob Cousy Award, given annually by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and College of the Holy Cross to the top point guard in men’s college basketball.
Players can earn their way onto the list throughout the season. Former UConn players Kemba Walker (2011) and Shabazz Napier (2014) are past winners of the award.
Named after Hall of Famer and former Boston Celtic and Holy Cross guard Bob Cousy, the annual honor now in its 14th year, recognizes the top point guards in Division I men’s college basketball. A national committee comprised of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates.
“These twenty student-athletes truly represent the best in the college game today and we are eager to see what they will achieve in the 2017-18 season,” said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Basketball Hall of Fame. “They exhibit many of the characteristics that made Bob Cousy a tremendous player and floor general and we are pleased to be recognizing them.”
Cousy played for Holy Cross from 19461950 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, 19591963), NBA Most Valuable Player (1957) and 13time NBA All-Star (1951-63). In 1996, he was named a member of the NBA’s 50th Anniversary All-Time Team.
Adams led the Huskies in points (14.4) and assists (6.1) per game, while recording a team-best 82.8-percent mark at the free throw line. As a sophomore, he was named to the NABC Division I All-District First Team and USBWA All-District I Team. He has made 43 starts in 68 career appearances for UConn, averaging 10.7 points per contest.
Milton, the preseason player of the year in The American, was a member of the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award watch list and was selected All-American Athletic Conference second team in 2016-17. He averaged 13.0 points, 4.5 assists and 1.3 steals. He also had a 2.6 assist-to-turnover ratio while shooting 42.3 percent on threes.
Shamet helped guide Wichita State to a 31-win season as a freshman and a spot in the Round of 32 in the NCAA Tournament. Shifting to the point guard spot in January of 2017, Shamet averaged 11.4 points and led the Shockers in assists (3.3) and minutes (26.7).
By mid-February, the watch list of 20 players for the 2018 Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award will be narrowed to just 10. In March, five finalists will be presented to Mr. Cousy and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee. The winner of the 2018 Bob Cousy Award will be presented at the ESPN College Basketball Awards Show presented by Wendy’s in Los Angeles, CA on Friday, April 6, 2018. Broadcast information will be released at a later date.
Previous winners of the Bob Cousy Award include 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 2018 Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award log onto
www.hoophallawards.com.
2018 Bob Cousy Award Watch List
| Collin Sexton |
Alabama |
| Manu Lecomte |
Baylor |
| Jalen Adams |
UConn |
| Trevon Duval |
Duke |
| Jordan Bohannon |
Iowa |
| Devonte’ Graham |
Kansas |
| Quentin Snider |
Louisville |
| Nate Mason |
Minnesota |
| Joel Berry II |
North Carolina |
| Bryant McIntosh |
Northwestern |
| Matt Farrell |
Notre Dame |
| Trae Young |
Oklahoma |
| Kyron Cartwright |
Providence |
| Shake Milton |
SMU |
| Jaylen Adams |
St. Bonaventure |
| Jordan McLaughlin |
USC |
| Jalen Brunson |
Villanova |
| Bryant Crawford |
Wake Forest |
| Jevon Carter |
West Virginia |
| Landry Shamet |
Wichita State |