Knox on Lute Olson Award Midseason Watch List
LEXINGTON, Ky. – Kentucky men’s basketball freshman forward Kevin Knox was one of 30 players named to the Lute Olson Award Midseason Watch List on Tuesday.
The Lute Olson Award is presented annually to the nation’s top Division I player who has played at least two seasons. Although Knox is ineligible for that award based on his freshman status, he is eligible to make the Lute Olson All-America Team.
Knox was one of six freshmen and one of three players from the Southeastern Conference on the midseason list.
The freshman from Tampa, Florida, leads UK in scoring (14.1 points per game), rebounding (5.7 rebounds per game) and 3-pointers made (23). On a historically young Kentucky team, Knox has shouldered a load of responsibility for the 13-3 Wildcats, ranking fourth in the Southeastern Conference in minutes per game.
A preseason pick for the All-SEC team by the league’s coaches, Knox has led Kentucky in scoring a team-high five times with a team-best 12 games in double figures. He’s scored 20 or more four times, including three in four games vs. UIC, Harvard and Virginia Tech.
Knox is shooting 44.1 percent from the field, 32.9 percent from behind the arc and 73.0 percent from the free-throw line.
The 6-foot-9 forward was also tabbed to preseason watch lists for three national player of the year awards: the Naismith Trophy, the Oscar Robertson Trophy and the John R. Wooden Award. He is also on the watch list for the Julius Erving Award, presented annually to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to the nation’s top small forward.
Named after the legendary Arizona coach who won 780 games in 34 seasons, including 24 at Arizona, the Lute Olson Award will be announced March 31 at the CollegeInsider.com Awards Event in San Antonio, site of this year’s Final Four. At Arizona, Olson led the Wildcats to 11 Pac-10 titles, 23 consecutive NCAA Tournaments, four Final Four appearances and a national championship.
At 3-1 in the league, UK returns to play Saturday at 4 p.m. ET at Vanderbilt. That game will be televised on ESPN.
For the latest on the Kentucky men’s basketball team, follow @KentuckyMBB on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchat, and on the web at UKathletics.com.
