Trayce Jackson-Davis Named Finalist for Karl Malone Award
Updated Friday, 1 p.m. ET
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Trayce Jackson-Davis is one of five finalists for the 2021 Karl Malone Award.
Jackson-Davis is third in the Big Ten in scoring with 20.3 points per game, and he continues to show up for Indiana on a consistent basis. He is one of five finalists, joining Drew Timme (Gonzaga), Justin Champagnie (Pittsburgh), Sandro Mamukelashvili (Seton Hall) and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (Villanova).
Voting for the award will open up on Feb. 26.
"It really means, with all the hard work I put in,'' Jackson-Davis said Friday when asked about the award. "Just to be considered with five other great players for that prestigious award, I'm just honored, honestly, and it's a blessing.
"There's still more work to be done, and there's a season I'm more worried about and winning these last few games than I am about the award.''
Below is the full press release:
Springfield, Mass. (Feb. 25, 2021) — The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced today the five finalists for the 2021 Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award. Named after Class of 2010 Hall of Famer and two-time NBA Most Valuable Player Karl Malone, the annual honor in its seventh year recognizes the top power forwards in Division I men's college basketball.
The five finalists for the 2021 Karl Malone Award are Drew Timme (Gonzaga), Trayce Jackson-Davis (Indiana), Justin Champagnie (Pittsburgh), Sandro Mamukelashvili (Seton Hall) and Jeremiah Robinson-Earl (Villanova).
"We're excited to recognize these five tremendous power forwards as the best in the collegiate game today," said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Basketball Hall of Fame. "Nonetheless, only one can take home the award come April and we're grateful to have Karl Malone spearheading a committee that will take great care when evaluating these players in the games that matter most."
A sophomore, Jackson-Davis is averaging 20.3 points (3rd in the Big Ten) and 9.5 rebounds (2nd in the Big Ten) and in conference games only is averaging 21.2 points (2nd in the Big Ten) and 9.9 rebounds (2nd in the Big Ten).
A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 student-athletes in November, which was narrowed to 10 candidates in January and now just five finalists. This month, the finalists will be presented to Mr. Malone and the Hall of Fame's selection committee. The winner of the 2021 Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award will be determined by a combination of fan votes and input from the Basketball Hall of Fame's selection committee. Naismith Starting Five Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies will go live on Friday, February 26 on hoophallawards.com.
The winner of the 2021 Karl Malone Award will be presented on ESPN, along with the other four members of the Naismith Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Bob Cousy Point Guard Award, the Jerry West Shooting Guard Award, the Julius Erving Small Forward Award and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center Award, in addition to the Women's Starting Five. Additional information about the award presentation, including date and time, will be released in the coming weeks.
Previous winners of the Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award include Obi Toppin, Dayton (2020), Zion Williamson, Duke (2019), Deandre Ayton, Arizona (2018), Johnathan Motley, Baylor (2017), Georges Niang, Iowa State (2016) and Montrezl Harrell, Louisville (2015).
For more information and the latest updates on the 2021 Karl Malone Award, log onto www.hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophall and #MaloneAward on Twitter and Instagram.
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