Collins Named Finalist for 2009 Cousy Award
Feb. 5, 2009
LAWRENCE, Kan. – Kansas junior point guard Sherron Collins has been named a finalist for the 2009 Bob Cousy Award presented by The Hartford, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in conjunction with The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc., announced Thursday.
Collins is the first Jayhawk to be named a Bob Cousy Award finalist since Russell Robinson in 2006-07.
The Bob Cousy Award is presented annually to the nation’s top collegiate point guard. The 17 finalists were chosen from a pool of over sixty top candidates from NCAA Division I, II and III institutions across the country. The 2009 Finalists were selected by screening committees comprised of media members representing all three divisions of collegiate basketball.
Beginning today, college basketball fans nationwide will have the opportunity to vote for their favorite candidate online at www.cousyaward.com. The top vote-getter from the on-line poll will receive the “Fan Vote“, representing one vote to be cast by the Blue Ribbon committee selecting the Award winner. The Blue Ribbon committee is comprised of Hall of Famers including Bob Cousy, Dean Smith and Jim Calhoun, as well as college coaches from Divisions I, II and III, members of the media and additional college basketball experts and celebrities.
The 2009 Bob Cousy Award presented by The Hartfordwinner will be presented at the NCAA Men’s Final Fourin Detroit, Mich., on Monday, April 6.
Cousy, also known as “Mr. Basketball,” is considered the prototype of point guards and was a freshman on the Holy Cross team that won the NCAA Championship in 1947. He was a pioneer in the NBA, famous for bringing a ‘flashy’ style of passing and showmanship to the game. Named one of the Top 50 Players in NBA History, Cousy led the Boston Celtics to championships in 1957 and 1959 through 1963.
Cousy led the NBA in assists for eight consecutive years (1953-1960) and played in 13 straight All-Star games. After his retirement from professional basketball he was a successful coach at Boston College from 1963 to 1969, with an overall record of 117 wins and 38 losses.
Cousy was enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 1971.
Previous winners of the award include former Big 12 stars D.J. Augustin of Texas (2008) and Acie Law IV of Texas A&M (2007), as well as Dee Brown of Illinois (2006), Raymond Felton from North Carolina (2005) and Jameer Nelson from St. Joseph’s (2004).
Collins leads Kansas this season in scoring (18.2), assists (5.1) and steals (1.2). The Chicago, Ill., product has led KU to a 7-0 start in the Big 12 Conference, as the Jayhawks are one of two remaining undefeated teams in conference play.
2009 BOB COUSY AWARD PRESENTED BY THE HARTFORD FINALISTS
DIVISION I
Sherron Collins, University of Kansas
Darren Collison, UCLA
Stephen Curry, Davidson College
Toney Douglas, Florida State University
Levance Fields, University of Pittsburgh
Jonny Flynn, Syracuse University
Dominic James, Marquette University
Ty Lawson, University of North Carolina
Eric Maynor, Virginia Commonwealth University
Patrick Mills, St. Mary’s College
Jeremy Pargo, Gonzaga University
AJ Price, University of Connecticut
Jeff Teague, Wake Forest University
DIVISION II
Virgil Buensuceso, BYU – Hawaii
Darren Duncan, Merrimack College
DIVISION III
David Arseneault, Grinnell College
Sean Wallis, Washington University
