Beverley Named to Naismith Trophy Pre-Season Watch List

ATLANTA – A day after being named to the pre-season top 50 watch list for the John R. Wooden Award, which goes to the national basketball player of the year, Arkansas sophomore guard Patrick Beverley has been named to the pre-season watch list for the 2007-08 Naismith Trophy presented by AT&T, the Atlanta Tipoff Club has announced.

The watch list was compiled by the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s Board of Selectors, which based its pre-season criteria on player performances from last season and expectations for the 2007-08 season. Seniors and juniors accounted for 17 apiece, along with 16 sophomores. The list does not include incoming freshmen, although those student-athletes will be considered in the first vote in January, 2008. The Naismith Trophy is the most prestigious national award presented annually to college basketball’s players of the year.

“The talent level is vast and far-reaching which indicates competition continues to grow at a high rate,” said Gary Stokan, Atlanta Tipoff Club president. “The winner of the Naismith Trophy can come from any conference and any class rank, as we witnessed last year with our first ever freshman winner, Kevin Durant of Texas.”

AT&T will continue to set the standard in allowing fans to participate in determining this year’s winner. Through the power and ease of text messaging, fan voting will account for an unprecedented 25% of the final results – more than any other national college basketball award.

After ranking among the SEC’s individual leaders in nine of 13 categories, Beverley, who is also a pre-season first-team All-Southeastern Conference selection, won just about every award possible last year. The SEC newcomer and freshman of the year was second-team All-SEC, a first-team freshman All-American by CollegeInsider.com, a second-team freshman All-American by Basketball Times, a third-team freshman All-American by Rivals and CollegeHoops.net, second-team All-District 9 by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, second-team All-District VII by the United States Basketball Writers Association, a three-time SEC Freshman of the Week and named to the Old Spice Classic all-tournament team.

He was 16th in the SEC in scoring (13.9), tied for 29th in rebounding (4.5), 15th in assists (3.14), sixth in steals (1.74), third in free-throw percentage (.812), eighth in three-point percentage (.386), 11th in assist-to-turnover ratio (1.57), 12th in three-point goals per game (2.09) and fourth in minutes played (34.37).

He led the team in scoring, steals, free-throw shooting, three-point shooting, three-point goals per game and minutes played, and was second in assists and assist-to-turnover ratio. He led the team in scoring 14 times, in assists 10 times and in double-figure scoring games with 24.

Over the summer, he led the USA Basketball Under-19 team to a silver medal finish in the World Championships at Serbia. The U.S. went 8-1 with Beverley leading the team in scoring (13.0), assists (3.2) and steals (3.4). He tied for second in rebounding (5.3), was second in three-point shooting (.394, 13-33) and third in free-throw shooting (.750, 18-24). He set a USA Basketball team record with 31 steals, shattering the previous mark of 20 set by Buck Johnson in 1983, and tied for fourth with 29 assists.

In January, the Naismith Trophy voting academy, comprised of leading basketball journalists, coaches and administrators from around the country, will narrow its pre-season list to the Top 30 players in the nation. Those players, and others who distinguish themselves throughout the season, will be eligible for the final ballot in March. Beginning in mid-February, CBS’ “AT&T at the Half” will feature a weekly Naismith Trophy update highlighting the players in contention. In April, the Naismith Trophy winner will be recognized at the NCAA Men’s Final Four in San Antonio.

Last year’s Naismith Trophy recipient was University of Texas forward Kevin Durant, who became the first freshmen ever to win the award. Other notable men’s college player of the year winners include Bill Walton, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing and David Robinson. For more information, visit www.naismithawards.com.

The pre-season men’s candidates for the Naismith Trophy presented by AT&T, listed in alphabetical order, are as follows:

ABOUT THE ATLANTA TIPOFF CLUB

The Atlanta Tipoff Club, an Atlanta Sports Council property, is committed to promoting the game of basketball and recognizing the outstanding accomplishments of those who make the game so exciting. The Atlanta Tipoff Club has presented the Naismith Trophy since UCLA’s Lew Alcindor first won the award in 1969. Old Dominion’s Anne Donovan won the inaugural Women’s Naismith Trophy in 1983.

The Naismith Award has become an emblem of excellence for the game, recognizing the Men’s and Women’s College Basketball Player of the Year, Men’s and Women’s College Basketball Coach of the Year, as well as awards for outstanding achievement in high school basketball, officiating, and overall contribution to the game.