Kevin McCullar Jr.
OVERVIEW
A 2024 All-America Honorable Mention and All-Big 12 First Team selection who led the conference in scoring in 2023-24 at 18.3 ppg … A finalist for the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year and, including 2023-24, was a three-time semifinalist for the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year awards … Had a spectacular graduate season that was hampered by injury as he missed eight of the final 14 games of the season, including all three postseason contests … Posted back-to-back triple doubles during the 2023-24 season, which were the third and fourth in Kansas history and the first time in NCAA history since the 2007-08 season … Graduated from Kansas in May 2023 … Concluded career with 217 steals, which ranks 11th on the Big 12 career steals records list … Finished with 1,517 points, 745 rebounds, 338 assists and 217 steals with three seasons at Texas Tech (2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22) and the last two at Kansas (2022-23, 2023-24).
CAREER HONORS
Associated Press All-America Honorable Mention [2024]
NABC All-America Third Team [2024]
USBWA All-America Honorable Mention [2024]
NABC All-District 8 First Team [2024]
Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Semifinalist [2024]
All-Big 12 First Team [2024]
Wooden Award National Ballot (1 of 15)
Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Finalist (1 of 5)
Naismith Trophy Midseason Team (1 of 30)
Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watch List (1 of 15)
Wooden Award Late Season Top 20 [2024]
Jerry West Shooting Guard Award Top 10 Candidate [2024]
Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week (11.28.23)
Big 12 Player of the Week (11.27.23)
Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 [2024]
Naismith Trophy Preseason Watch List [2024]
Jerry West Shooting Guard Award Watch List [2024]
Preseason All Big 12 Honorable Mention [2024]
All Big 12 Third Team [2023]
Big 12 All Defensive Team [2023]
Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Semifinalist [2023]
All-Big 12 Honorable Mention [2022]
Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Semifinalist [2022]
Academic All-Big 12 First Team [2022]
All-Big 12 Honorable Mention [2021]
Academic All-Big 12 First Team [2021]
Academic All-Big 12 First Team [2020]
2023-24 (GRADUATE)
A 2024 All-America Honorable Mention and All-Big 12 First Team selection … One of five finalists for the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year, a feat he accomplished for the third-consecutive season … Due to injury, missed eight of the final 14 games of the season, including all three postseason contests … Posted back-to-back triple doubles against Kentucky (12 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assists on 11/14) and Chaminade (22 points , 11 rebounds, 10 assists on 11/20), which were the third and fourth in Kansas history and the back-to-back triple doubles were the first in NCAA history since the 2007-08 season … Led the Big 12 in scoring at 18.3 ppg … Ranked in 11 Big 12 statistical categories … In the top-10 of the league, he ranked first in scoring (18.3), first in triple doubles (2), fifth in field goal percentage (45.4), seventh in minutes played (34), eighth in steals (1.5), eighth in free throws made (12) and ninth in free throw attempted (149) … Had 12 games of 20 or more points, which was third in the Big 12 … Scored a career-high 34 points versus Yale (12/22) … His 10 assists versus Kentucky (11/14) and Chaminade (11/20) were career highs … Had a career-high 13 rebounds at Kansas State (1/31).
2022-23 (SENIOR AT KANSAS)
Named to the Big 12 All Defensive Team and All-Big 12 Third Team as selected by the league coaches … Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Semifinalist (1 of 10) … Finished fourth in the Big 12, 33rd nationally, in steals per game with 2.0 … Finished third in scoring at 10.7 points per game … Was second on the team, fourth in the Big 12, in rebounds per game at 7.0 rpg … Scored double digits in 21 games … Recorded seven double-doubles, which ranked third in the Big 12 … Blocked 25 shots, the second most on the team … Recorded a season-high five steals in back-to-back games … Achieved a season-high 21 points at Missouri (12/10) … Recorded his 1,000 career point on senior night versus his previous school Texas Tech (2/28).
2021-22 (JUNIOR AT TEXAS TECH)
Averaged 10.1 points, 4.6 rebounds and led Tech with 3.1 assists and 1.4 steals per game… Scored 17 points against Duke in the Sweet 16 after going for 14 points in the win versus Notre Dame in the NCAA Tournament Second Round and 10 in the first round against Montana State … Recorded double figures scoring in 16 of 29 game played during the season, including scoring a career-high 24 points in a win against Grambling (11/12) and dropping 21 points on Arkansas State (12/14) … Posted one double-double, going for 14 points and 10 rebounds against Gonzaga (12/18) … Finished the year shooting 100-for-249 (40.2 percent) from the field and making 28 3-pointers … Had 89 assists, which was second on the team, and had 18 games with three or more assists, including a career-high seven assists against Alabama State in non-conference play and later a five-assist game against Kansas in the Big 12 Championship final … Posted a steal in 19 of 24 games with a season-high three coming in games against Prairie View A&M, Alabama State, Baylor, Iowa State and TCU.
2020-21 (SOPHOMORE AT TEXAS TECH)
Earned All-Big 12 Honorable Mention honors after he averaged 10.4 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game … Scored a season-high 16 points in the road win at Texas by going 6-for-7 from the field with two 3-pointers … Had two double-doubles with 15 points/11 rebounds at Iowa State and then 10 points/10 rebounds at home against Baylor … Led the Red Raiders with 34 steals for the season, averaging 1.7 steals per game … Set a season-high with six steals in the Big 12 Championship quarterfinals against Texas, a game in which he also had 11 rebounds … Finished with 15 points, 8 rebounds and two steals in the NCAA Tournament second round loss against Arkansas … Helped lead Tech to the second round by having 10 points, 7 rebounds and 3 assists in the NCAA Tournament first round win over Utah State … Averaged 6.5 rebounds in Big 12 play, which ranked eighth in the conference … Recorded two or more steals in 10 of 20 games played and scored in double figures in 14 games … Missed the first nine games of the season due to an injury suffered in the preseason, but would play in the final 20 with 19 straight starts to end the year … Was an Academic All-Big 12 Team for the second straight season.
2019-20 (FRESHMAN AT TEXAS TECH)
Started the final six games of the season and played in 29 contests where he averaged 6.0 points, 3.2 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game… Finished the season scoring in double figures in eight games, leading the team in scoring three times and topping the team in rebounding in six games… Scored a season-high 15 points at Oklahoma State … Started the final six games, beginning by scoring nine points and having six rebounds in a home win over Kansas State … Posted a career-high 11 rebounds and added six points in a road victory at Iowa State before scoring 13 at Oklahoma and Baylor … Led the Red Raiders with eight rebounds and also had seven points in the regular-season finale against Kansas with four of the rebounds coming on the offensive end … Finished the season with eight games of having five or more rebounds and was third on the team with 35 steals for the season with a career-high four steals against Kansas State and Oklahoma State… Averaged 7.6 points and 4.1 rebounds in conference play and with 10.2 points and 5.8 rebounds in the final five games of the year … Along with his success on the court, he was named to the Academic All-Big 12 Team.
2018-19 (REDSHIRT)
Redshirt season
HIGH SCHOOL
Helped lead Converse Wagner to the Class 6A title game as a sophomore before averaging 16.8 points and 6.6 rebounds per game his senior season … ESPN listed him as a top-30 national player and rivals.com lists him as a 4-Star prospect.
PERSONAL
Son of Kevin McCullar Sr. and Hether … Has one sibling, Katelyn … His father played football at Texas Tech and then with the Green Bay Packers in the NFL … Chose Texas Tech over Louisville, Kansas State and Houston … Graduated in May of 2023 with a liberal arts and sciences degree.