Juzang Among Five Finalists for Jerry West Award

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – UCLA junior Johnny Juzang has been selected as one of five finalists for this season's Jerry West Award, honoring the nation's best shooting guard, as announced on Tuesday
 
Juzang, a 6-foot-7 guard from Tarzana, Calif., has averaged a team-leading 17.0 points in 23 games for UCLA this season. He has also registered 4.7 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game. Juzang has shot 44.3 percent from the field and 36.7 percent from 3-point territory.
 
Juzang joins Ochai Agbaji (Kansas), Johnny Davis (Wisconsin), Jaden Ivey (Purdue) and Bennedict Mathurin (Arizona) on this season's list of five Jerry West Award finalists. The Jerry West Award is determined each season by a national committee of top college basketball personnel, in conjunction with the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in Massachusetts.
 
Through games played on Monday, Feb. 28, Juzang ranked No. 3 in the Pac-12 in scoring (17.0 ppg) and No. 2 in free throw percentage (86.6%). He has scored in double figures in 21 of 23 games played and has made at least one 3-pointer in 21 contests. Juzang has also been named to the 20-man "late season" watch list for the John R. Wooden Award and is one of 30 candidates for the Naismith Trophy.
 
Juzang has twice been honored as the Pac-12 Conference's Player of the Week this season. He scored a season-high 28 points in a road victory at Utah on Thursday, Jan. 28. Juzang has eclipsed the 20-point plateau in eight games this season.
 
This marks the eighth year in which the Jerry West Award recognizes the top shooting guard in NCAA Division I men's basketball. The award is named after Jerry West, who attended West Virginia University and averaged 24.8 points and 13.3 rebounds per game in his three varsity seasons.
 
The winner of this season's award will be presented on a date (to be determined) along with the other four members of the "men's starting five," including the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award, the Julius Erving Small Forward Award, the Karl Malone Power Forward Award and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center Award.
 
A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the initial watch list of 20 candidates last November. That list of five finalists will be presented to Mr. West and the Hall of Fame's selection committee. The winner of the 2022 Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award will be determined by a combination of fan votes and input from the Basketball Hall of Fame's selection committee. Naismith Starting Five Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies will go live Friday, March 4 (by visiting www.hoophallawards.com).
 
For more information on this season's Jerry West Award and the latest updates, log onto www.hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophall and #WestAward on Twitter and Instagram.