Garza Named To Three All-American Teams

Iowa center honored by CBS, NBC and USA Today.

More awards are coming in for Iowa junior Luka Garza.

Garza was named a first-team All-American by CBS Sports, NBC Sports, and USA Today on Monday.

Joining Garza on all of the five-player lists are Dayton’s Obi Toppin, Udoka Azbuike of Kansas, Marquette’s Markus Howard, and Oregon’s Payton Pritchard.

Garza was named the national player of the year and a first-team All-American by Sporting News last week. Garza is the first player in Iowa history to earn national player of the year distinction. He was also voted the USBWA District VI Player of the Year and the Big Ten Men’s Basketball Player of the Year.

Garza, a Washington, D.C., native, is a finalist for five national awards — the Naismith Trophy, Oscar Robertson Trophy, Wooden Award, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award, and the Lute Olson Award.

Garza, with 740 points and 305 rebounds is one of three Big Ten players to ever to total 740 or more points and 300 or more rebounds in a single-season, joining Purdue’s Glenn Robinson in 1994 and Purdue’s Joe Barry Carroll in 1979. He ranked second nationally with 12 20-point/10-rebound games and 25 20-point games. He was third in total field goals made (287) and points per 40 minutes played (29.8), fifth in scoring (23.9), 10th in 30-point games (5), 19th in double-doubles (15) and offensive rebounds per game (3.58), and 34th in rebounding (9.8).

The 2019-2020 college basketball season is over, but the memories will live on.

Enjoy the images from an unforgettable year of hoops in the Big Ten: pic.twitter.com/CIcTgCNWZr

— Big Ten Network (@BigTenNetwork) March 12, 2020

Garza's 15 double-doubles are third most in a single-season by a Hawkeye in three decades and the most since Reggie Evans had 18 in 2002. Garza averaged 26.7 points, 11.1 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks in 12 games against teams ranked in the Associated Press poll, including 11 consecutive 20-point performances.

Garza finished the 20-game conference schedule averaging 26.2 points per game, becoming the first player to average at least 26 points in Big Ten play since Robinson's 31.1 points per game in 1994. Garza broke the program's 50-year old scoring record previously set by John Johnson in 1970. He scored 20 points or more in a school-record 16 straight Big Ten games, the longest streak by any player in the Big Ten since Ohio State's Dennis Hopson 16 in 1987.

Garza is the only Big Ten player to register seven 25-point/10-rebound performances in the same season in more than 17 years. He has produced the two highest point totals in a game by a Big Ten player this season (44 at Michigan; 38 at Indiana).

Hawkeyes ranked in final poll

Iowa was ranked 25th in the final USA Today coaches poll.

The Hawkeyes went 20-11 overall, 11-9 in the Big Ten.