Four Freshmen Among Bob Cousy Award Finalists
Four freshmen were among 10 finalists named
By MIKE McCURRY
Kentucky point guard De’Aaron Fox left Saturday’s game against South Carolina in the first half after sustaining a right ankle injury, but the injury doesn’t appear to be serious.
Fox, who is averaging 16.7 points, 6.3 assists, and 5.0 rebounds per night, came out of the locker room at halftime on crutches and sporting a walking boot. The 6-foot-3 floor general, one of the fastest players in the country, scored 6 points on 3-of-3 shooting in eight minutes of action prior to going down.
“It’s not swelled,” coach John Calipari said about Fox’s injury after the game. “I think it might’ve been a stinger. I don’t know. But something hit his ankle.”
Please be a precaution.
Please be a precaution.
Please be a precaution.
Please be a precaution.
Please be a precaution. pic.twitter.com/tH77LLfmte— Scott Charlton (@Scott_Charlton) January 22, 2017
No. 5 Kentucky still rolled to an 85-69 win over No. 24 South Carolina behind 27 points from Malik Monk and 18 from Bam Adebayo.
The Wildcats improved to 7-0 in SEC play with the victory, giving the Gamecocks (15-4 overall, 5-1 SEC) their first league loss in the process.
UCLA freshman Lonzo Ball will enter Saturday’s game at No. 1 Kentucky having been named the MVP of the Wooden Classic and the Pac-12 Player of the Week.
Kentucky freshman De’Aaron Fox will enter the game against No. 11 UCLA coming off just the second triple-double in Kentucky history (an accomplishment that was later disputed by ESPN, but then determined to be legitimate by the official scorer).
Go ahead and get the popcorn ready for this nationally televised matchup featuring these two Speedy Gonzales-type floor generals of undefeated teams.
The 6-foot-6 Ball is now projected as the No. 4 pick in the 2017 NBA Draft, while the 6-4 Fox is currently projected at No. 10. Expect a slew of NBA personnel and Draft experts to attend this game and also scrutinize it on TV.
Kentucky freshman point guard De’Aaron Fox made history on Monday night.
Or did he?
Fox was credited with just the second triple-double in the school’s storied history, putting up 14 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists in No. 1 Kentucky’s 115-69 destruction of Arizona State in the Bahamas.
Chris Mills had Kentucky’s first triple-double on Dec. 27, 1988 against Austin Peay.
“I didn’t even know it had been that long. But it felt good,” said Fox, the projected No. 10 pick in the NBA Draft by DraftExpress.com.
On Tuesday morning, SportsCenter showed that Fox was credited with his seventh assist on a jump shot by Malik Monk (23 points) that wasn’t an actual assist.
SportsCenter shows one of De’Aaron Fox’s assists wasn’t an actual assist in triple-double. pic.twitter.com/O2yedghOza
— Adam Zagoria (@AdamZagoria) November 29, 2016
Kentucky is deferring the matter to the official scorer.
“We are aware of the statistic in question and informed the official scorers,” Kentucky spokesman Eric Lindsey said in a statement. “We defer all decisions to the official scorer. Because of travel, they are currently working through the process now of evaluating the play in question.”
Count Arizona State coach Bobby Hurley among Fox’s fans.
“He’s a really, really, really talented guy,” said Hurley, who led Duke to back-to-back NCAA titles in the early 1990s. “I’m a big fan of his.”
NEW YORK – Elite freshmen are the staple
The University of Kentucky is known for their “one-and-done” culture. Recruit elite talent, go for broke the first year, repeat. John Calipari continues to do what works for him.
At the open practice held in Lexington, and televised on ESPNU, Calipari trotted out his hot new recruiting class that tops ESPN’s rankings for this past cycle. Right from the jump the highly touted freshman – De’Aaron Fox, Bam Adebayo, and Malik Monk – made their presence known.
Those three freshman are all projected top 20 selections in the 2017 NBA Draft, according to DraftExpress.com. Adebayo is slated to go the earliest of the bunch at pick 10, followed by Fox at 12, and Monk just escaping lottery projection at pick 18.
“Kentucky is a team that is going to struggle to consistently make perimeter jump shots especially when teams play zone against them,” one NBA scout in attendance said. “Malik Monk is an NBA athlete who has a nice mid-range jump shot off the dribble. Fox has exceptional quickness and speed. Bam has an NBA body and is a powerful two footed jumper. [Derek] Willis is their best perimeter shooter. [Wenyen] Gabriel and [Sacha] Killeya-Jones both have upside and should be draftable prospects in a couple years.”
By JOSH NEWMAN
NEW YORK — Kentucky’s future backcourt put on a show in the Jordan Brand Classic and gave the basketball world a glimpse of what’s to come.
De’Aaron Fox went for 23 points, 5 rebounds and no turnovers en route to co-MVP honors as the East team beat the West team, 131-117, at Barclays Center.
His co-MVP was his future backcourt-mate in Big Blue Nation and his roommate here in the Big Apple. Malik Monk went for 22 points, 5 rebounds and 3 assists for the West. The duo combined for 45 points in the game.
Carmelo Anthony presented both players with their MVP trophies on court, but he wasn’t even the biggest star the guards met on Friday. That would be His Airness, who met with the players privately before the game.
