Harrell Named ACC / National Player of the Week
November 17, 2014 | Men's Basketball
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - University of Louisville forward Montrezl Harrell garnered multiple honors today, being named ACC and national player of the week while joining teammate Terry Rozier on the Wooden Award Preseason Top 50.
Harrell was honored as the national player of the week by CBSSports.com, ESPN.com and CollegeSportsMadness.com. He was also selected today as the first Atlantic Coast Conference Player of the Week for this season.
A junior from Tarboro, N.C., Harrell scored a career-high 30 points in the Cardinals' season opener against Minnesota on Friday in the Armed Forces Classic. He added seven rebounds, two dunks, two steals and shot an impress percentage in all facets -- 9-of-12 field goals, including 3-of-4 three-pointers, and 9-of-10 free throws. Harrell played 38 minutes in the game played in a very warm converted hangar on the US Coast Guard Air Station Borinquen in Aguadilla, Puerto Rico. His previous scoring high had been 25 points against Memphis last season.
A preseason first team All-America selection by the Associated Press and multiple media outlets, Harrell joined sophomore Terry Rozier on the Wooden Award Presented by Wendy's Preseason Top 50. The list, chosen by a preseason poll of national college basketball experts, was announced today by the Los Angeles Athletic Club. The Cardinal duo was among eight ACC student-athletes included on the list, second-most among all conference.
The players on the list are considered strong candidates for the 2015 John R. Wooden Award Presented by Wendy's. The Wooden Award National Advisory Board will select 25 players for the midseason list in early January. The leading candidates will be further pared to 20 in early February. Fifteen top players who have proven to their universities that they are also making progress toward graduation and maintaining at least a cumulative 2.0 GPA will be placed on the ballot and submitted to voters prior to the NCAA Tournament and voting will take into account play during the opening rounds of the tournament. The Wooden Award All American Team will be announced the week of the "Elite Eight" round of the NCAA Tournament. The 39th annual Wooden Award ceremony will take place the weekend of April 10-12, 2015.
