Luka Garza Placed on Wooden Watch List.....DAMN

thedukeofearl

Well-Known Member

  • Dayton sophomore Obi Toppin — who has transformed himself from a lightly recruited teenager into a high-flying NBA lottery pick — was one of five names added to the Wooden Award midseason watch list


    , which was also trimmed from 50 players to 25.


    • Other additions: Gonzaga's Filip Petrusev (So., F), who leads the top-ranked Bulldogs in points and rebounds; San Diego State's Malachi Flynn (Jr., G), who transferred from Washington State; Iowa's Luka Garza (So., C), who's averaging 22.1 pts and 10.7 reb per game; Michigan's Zavier Simpson (Sr., G), who does it all for the Wolverines.
    • Notable dropouts: UNC freshman guard Cole Anthony (injured) and former Memphis center James Wiseman (left the program).

This is Huge for Luka, who certainly deserves this honor.

:cool:
 
His only real negatives at this point are free-throw shooting and prone to facial injury.

22.1 pts, 10.7 rbds
 
Sorry. Meant to post the release from UI yesterday. Here it is:

LOS ANGELES -- University of Iowa junior center Luka Garza was named to the John R. Wooden Award mid-season Top 25. The announcement was made Wednesday evening by the Los Angeles Athletic Club.


Chosen by a poll of national college basketball experts based on their performances during the first half of the 2019-20 season, the list comprises of 25 student-athletes who are front-runners for one of the sport’s most prestigious honor. The announcement comes one day after Garza was named one of 30 finalists for the Lute Olson National Player of the Year Award.


Garza is one of six Big Ten student-athletes and one of five players to make their debut on the Wooden Watch List after not being named on the Preseason Top 50.


Garza (6-foot-11, 260 pounds) is the only player in the country averaging better than 20 points and 10 rebounds per game. The Big Ten scoring leader ranks eighth in the country in points per game (22.1), seventh double-doubles (9) and 13th in rebounds per game (10.7). The native Washington, D.C., has totaled 331 so far this season, the most by a Hawkeye after the first 15 games of a season since Fred Brown’s 422 in 1970-71.


Garza, who leads the Hawkeyes in 10 statistical categories this season, became the 27th player in program history with 1,000 points and 500 rebounds after snagging a career-best 18 rebounds in Tuesday’s contest at Nebraska. He is one of only five Big Ten student-athletes since the 2010-11 season to register multiple 30-point/10-rebounds games in the same season.
 
His catch and finish of Connor's air ball might have been his best play of the season and he made it look easy.
 
If he keeps playing like this (and I hope he does) we might not get to see him playing with Jordan next year and that would make me sad.
 
I think if they voted right now he would win. His only negative is playing for a sleepy Midwestern school, but I watch a lot of hoops and have not seen anyone as impressive night in and night out as Garza.
 
Someone get Frank Kaminsky on the line

He came back for his senior year and Wisconsin played for a national championship.
Kaminski had a good, but not great junior year. I don't think anyone expected him to go pro then. His senior year was when he became a force.
 
Has to be the best player at Iowa since Andre Woolridge??? Best player since BJ or Roy Marble? Maybe better than all three of those guys? Maybe the best since Ronnie Lester?
 
Kaminski had a good, but not great junior year. I don't think anyone expected him to go pro then. His senior year was when he became a force.
I'm pretty sure he was a force his junior year too. I'd have to look at his numbers. I thought he scored 49 or some crazy number against North Dakota State early in his junior year and never looked back.
 
Has to be the best player at Iowa since Andre Woolridge??? Best player since BJ or Roy Marble? Maybe better than all three of those guys? Maybe the best since Ronnie Lester?
As a stat line stuffer you may have to go back to Sky King, Kevin Kunnert, John Johnson.

Best Iowa player who never was (in my lifetime)?

Ray Thompson.
 

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