Purdue center Zach Edey (15) dunks over Davidson forward David Skogman, left, and forward Sean Logan in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game in Indianapolis, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/AP-Michael Conroy
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Toronto’s Zach Edey is among 10 finalists for the NCAA’s 2023 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award, the Basketball Hall of Fame announced Friday.
The annual award is handed out to the top centre in NCAA Division 1 men’s college basketball.
Edey, a seven-foot-four, 305-pound junior centre with top ranked Purdue, has averaged 22.1 points and 13.2 rebounds for the Boilermakers.
Also nominated are: Oumar Ballo (Arizona); Ryan Kalkbrenner (Creighton); Clifford Omoruyi (Rutgers); Oscar Tshiebwe (Kentucky); Joel Soriano (St. John’s); Hunter Dickinson (Michigan); Adama Sanogo (Connecticut); Armando Bacot (North Carolina); and Jack Nunge (Xavier).
Previous winners include Luka Garza of the Minnesota Timberwolves (2020, “˜21) and Jakob Poeltl of the Toronto Raptors (2016).
The winner will be announced in March.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 10, 2023.
