Kansas duo named to Wooden Award Preseason Top 50
LOS ANGELES – Kansas senior Devonte’ Graham and sophomore guard Malik Newman have been named to Wooden Award Preseason Top 50, the Los Angeles Athletic Club announced Tuesday. Last year, KU’s Frank Mason III won the 2017 Wooden Award.
Chosen by a preseason poll of national college basketball experts, the list is comprised of 50 student-athletes who are the early front-runners for college basketball’s most prestigious individual honor.
The 2017-18 Preseason Big 12 Player of the Year, Graham is one of two returning starters for Kansas this upcoming season. The Raleigh, North Carolina, native is also on the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award watch list and is a two-time All-Big 12 selection, earning second-team honors last season and honorable mention accolades in 2015-16. Graham is KU’s leading returning scorer from 2016-17 at 13.4 points per game, which was 13th in the league. He ranked third in the Big 12 in assist-to-turnover ratio at 2.3, second in 3-point field goals made per game (2.6) and sixth in assists (4.1). Graham enters the 2017-18 season with 1,075 career points, which is 45th on the KU record list. His 186 3-pointers made are eighth on the KU career chart.
The 2017-18 Preseason Big 12 Newcomer of the Year and preseason honorable mention all-conference selection, Newman transferred to Kansas from Mississippi State following the 2015-16 season. The Jackson, Mississippi, native averaged 11.3 points and started 22 of 29 games at Mississippi State his freshman season. He scored a career-high 25 points against Ole Miss (Jan. 23, 2016) which included seven 3-point field goals made.
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