The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced today the 11 finalists for the 2012 Bob Cousy Collegiate Point Guard of the Year award, and Long Beach State senior Casper Ware made the list.
The annual honor, named for Hall of Famer and former Boston Celtic Bob Cousy, recognizes the top point guards in college basketball. An original list of 60-plus candidates was trimmed by a Hall of Fame appointed, nationally-based committee to the below list of 11 student-athletes.
Ware, a native of Cerritos, Calif., ranks among the Big West top 10 in numerous statistical categories. He is third in scoring (16.8 ppg), fourth in assists (3.3 apg) and three-pointers made per game (2.4), fifth in free throw percentage (.811) and steals (1.4 spg), and sixth in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.3).
After a 2010-11 campaign in which he became the first in league history to capture both Big West Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year in the same season, Ware is having another outstanding season for the 49ers. He has established career-highs for points in a game on three separate occasions – 28 points in a win at No. 9 Pittsburgh on Nov. 16, 29 points at North Carolina on Dec. 10 and 30 points in a victory at Cal Poly on Jan. 19.
Ware, who made the preseason Wooden Award Watch List, has earned Big West Player of the Week three times this season. He is the conference's active career leader in points (1,619) and assists (504). Ware became the 11th player in Big West history to collect at least 500 career assists, and needs four more assists to break the school record as well as move into the league top 10.
Beginning on Feb. 6, fans will be able to vote for the top point guard via the Bob Cousy Award's website – www.cousyaward.com. The player that receives the most fan votes will receive one vote toward the final committee vote. Fan voting will run one month, concluding on Mar. 6.
The current listing of 11 finalists for the 2012 Bob Cousy Award will be narrowed down to five players on Mar. 8. The final five players in contention for the award will be presented to Mr. Cousy and the Hall of Fame's selection committee. The Hall of Fame committee is made up of top college basketball personnel including media members, head coaches, Sports Information Directors and Hall of Famers. The winner of the 2012 Bob Cousy Award will be awarded at the Hall of Fame's Class Announcement on Monday, Apr. 2 in New Orleans as part of NCAA Final Four weekend.
| 2012 BOB COUSY AWARD 11 FINALISTS |
| Name |
School |
| Pierre Jackson |
Baylor |
| Scott Machado |
Iona |
| Casper Ware |
Long Beach State |
| Phil Pressey |
Missouri |
| Isaiah Canaan |
Murray State |
| Kendall Marshall |
North Carolina |
| Aaron Craft |
Ohio State |
| Matthew Dellavedova |
Saint Mary's |
| Scoop Jardine |
Syracuse |
| Damian Lillard |
Weber State |
| Jordan Taylor |
Wisconsin |