ST. LOUIS (USBWA) – The U.S. Basketball Writers Association has selected 14 outstanding players as finalists for its 2013 Oscar Robertson National Player of the Year Trophy presented by Aflac and eight standout freshmen as finalists for the Integris Wayman Tisdale Award. Members of the association’s board of directors chose the finalists and the entire 900-member USBWA will vote on the awards as well as the annual All-America and All-District teams.
The recipients are to be announced on Friday, April 5 in Atlanta at a 9:15 a.m. ET press conference and then formally presented their awards at the Devon Energy College Basketball Awards on Mon., April 15 at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City. The Henry Iba Coach of the Year Award will also be presented at the gala to be held annually the Monday following the NCAA Men’s Final Four.
Following are the finalsts for the Oscar Robertson National Player of the Year Trophy:
| 2013 OSCAR ROBERTSON TROPHY FINALISTS | ||||||
| Pos. | No. | Player, School | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. | Hometown |
| F | 15 | Anthony Bennett, UNLV | 6-8 | 240 | Fr. | Brampton, Ont. |
| G | 3 | Trey Burke, Michigan | 6-0 | 190 | So. | Columbus, Ohio |
| G | 1 | Michael Carter-Williams, Syracuse | 6-6 | 185 | So. | Hamilton, Mass. |
| F | 3 | Doug McDermott, Creighton | 6-8 | 225 | Jr. | Ames, Iowa |
| G | 23 | Ben McLemore, Kansas | 6-5 | 195 | Fr. | St. Louis, Mo. |
| G | 4 | Victor Oladipo, Indiana | 6-5 | 214 | Jr. | Upper Marlboro, Md. |
| F | 13 | Kelly Olynyk, Gonzaga | 7-0 | 238 | Jr. | Kamloops, B.C. |
| F | 5 | Mason Plumlee, Duke | 6-10 | 235 | Sr. | Warsaw, Ind. |
| F | 22 | Otto Porter, Georgetown | 6-8 | 205 | So. | Sikeston, Mo. |
| G | 33 | Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State | 6-4 | 225 | Fr. | Flower Mound, Texas |
| G | 2 | Russ Smith, Louisville | 6-0 | 165 | Jr. | Brooklyn, N.Y. |
| F | 1 | Deshaun Thomas, Ohio State | 6-7 | 215 | Jr. | Fort Wayne, Ind. |
| C | 5 | Jeff Withey, Kansas | 7-0 | 235 | Sr. | San Diego, Calif. |
| F | 40 | Cody Zeller, Indiana | 7-0 | 240 | So. | Washington, Ind. |
Following are the finalists for the Integris Wayman Tisdale Freshman of the Year Award:
| 2013 INTEGRIS WAYMAN TISDALE AWARD FINALISTS | ||||||
| Pos. | No. | Player, School | Ht. | Wt. | Yr. | Hometown |
| F | 15 | Anthony Bennett, UNLV | 6-8 | 240 | Fr. | Brampton, Ont. |
| G | 1 | Jahii Carson, Arizona State | 5-10 | 175 | Fr. | Mesa, Ariz. |
| G | 14 | Gary Harris, Michigan State | 6-4 | 205 | Fr. | Fishers, Ind. |
| G | 23 | Ben McLemore, Kansas | 6-5 | 195 | Fr. | St. Louis, Mo. |
| G/F | 15 | Shabazz Muhammad, UCLA | 6-6 | 225 | Fr. | Las Vegas, Nev. |
| F | 3 | Nerlens Noel, Kentucky | 6-10 | 228 | Fr. | Everett, Mass. |
| G | 33 | Marcus Smart, Oklahoma State | 6-4 | 225 | Fr. | Flower Mound, Texas |
| G | 14 | Rasheed Sulaimon, Duke | 6-4 | 185 | Fr. | Houston, Texas |
Tickets and sponsorship information for the Devon Energy College Basketball Awards are available atcollegebasketballawards.com or by contacting Scott Hill (405-749-1515, scott.hill@access-sports.net). The April 15 banquet will also honor Michigan State coach Tom Izzo as the recipient of the Wayman Tisdale Humanitarian Award.
Since the 1958-59 season, the USBWA has named a National Player of the Year. In 1998, the award was named in honor of the University of Cincinnati Hall of Famer and two-time USBWA Player of the Year Oscar Robertson. It is the nation’s oldest award and the only one named after a former player.
The USBWA has chosen a national freshman of the year since the 1988-89 season when LSU’s Chris Jackson was the recipient. Last season, Kentucky’s Anthony Davis became the second winner of the Wayman Tisdale Award. Other notable previous winners of the national freshman of the year award include Kevin Durant, Carmelo Anthony, Jason Kidd and Chris Webber.
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. With some 900 members worldwide, it is one of the most influential organizations in college basketball. It has selected an All-America team since the 1956-57 season. For more information on the USBWA and its award programs, contact executive director Joe Mitch at 314-795-6821.
Related link:
• Oscar Robertson Trophy presented by Aflac
• Integris Wayman Tisdale Award