COLLEGE PARK, Md. - Maryland freshman guard Melo Trimble has been tabbed to the U.S. Basketball Writers Association Midseason Oscar Robertson Trophy and Integris Wayman Tisdale Award Midseason Watch Lists, announced Friday.
The Wayman Tisdale award - presented to the national freshman of the year - and the Oscar Robertson Trophy - given to the national player of the year – are presented at the Devon Energy College Basketball Awards on April 14 at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.
Trimble has scored in double-figures in all but one game during his rookie campaign in College Park, including a 31-point outing against Arizona State – the highest point total for a freshman since Joe Smith posted 33 against Rider in 1993. The Upper Marlboro, Md., native is averaging a team-high 15.8 points per game and ranks eighth in the conference in scoring and first in free throw percentage (.878).
The late Wayman Tisdale was a three-time USBWA All-American at the University of Oklahoma. Following a stint on the 1984 U.S. Olympic basketball team, he played 12 seasons in the NBA before retiring in 1997 to focus on a blossoming jazz music career. In March 2007, he was diagnosed with cancer and, following a courageous and difficult battle that included the amputation of his right leg in 2008, he passed away in May 2009.
Since the 1958-59 season, the USBWA has named a National Player of the Year. In 1998, the award was named in honor of the University of Cincinnati Hall of Famer and two-time USBWA Player of the Year Oscar Robertson. It is the nation's oldest award and the only one named after a former player.
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. With some 900 members worldwide, it is one of the most influential organizations in college basketball. It has selected an All-America team since the 1956-57 season.
2015 WAYMAN TISDALE AWARD MIDSEASON WATCH LIST
Cliff Alexander, Kansas
James Blackmon Jr., Indiana
Devin Booker, Kentucky
Stanley Johnson, Arizona
Tyus Jones, Duke
Kevon Looney, UCLA
Jahlil Okafor, Duke
Kelly Oubre Jr., Kansas
D'Angelo Russell, Ohio State
Karl-Anthony Towns, Kentucky
Melo Trimble, Maryland
Myles Turner, Texas
Tyler Ulis, Kentucky
Rashad Vaughn, UNLV
2015 OSCAR ROBERTSON TROPHY MIDSEASON WATCH LIST
Justin Anderson, Virginia
Ron Baker, Wichita State
Willie Cauley-Stein, Kentucky
Sam Dekker, Wisconsin
Anthony Gill, Virginia
Jerian Grant, Notre Dame
Montrezl Harrell, Louisville
Stanley Johnson, Arizona
Frank Kaminsky, Wisconsin
Georges Niang, Iowa State
Jahlil Okafor, Duke
Marcus Paige, North Carolina
Kevin Pangos, Gonzaga
Bobby Portis, Arkansas
Melo Trimble, Maryland
Kyle Wiltjer, Gonzaga
Delon Wright, Utah
