University of Connecticut Athletics
Jackson Named To Naismith Defensive POY Watch List
1/26/2023 10:35:00 PM | Men's Basketball
UConn Athletic Communications / Jan. 26, 2023
ATLANTA, Ga. – UConn junior Andre Jackson Jr. has been named to the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watch List, which was announced Thursday by the Atlanta Tipoff Club.
Jackson, one of just 15 players nationwide named to the watch list, has been UConn leader throughout the 2022-23 season, which saw the Huskies rise as high as No. 2 in the national polls.
The 6-6 junior has been used to guard multiple positions this season. Wednesday night, he was at the top of UConn's zone defense that sparked the Huskies' second-half comeback that brought UConn back from a 17-point deficit against nationally-ranked Xavier. He is averaging 6.0 points and 6.0 rebounds per game and leads the Huskies in assists (4.4).
The Naismith Defensive Player of the Year, in its sixth season, is given annually to the nation's best defensive college player by the Atlanta Tipoff Club. Last season's winner was Walker Kessler of Auburn. Other past winners include West Virginia's Jevon Carter, Washington's Matisse Thybulle, Kansas' Marcus Garrett, and Baylor's Davion Mitchell. This year's winner will be announced on April 2.
Jackson and Creighton junior Ryan Kalkbrenner are the only two BIG EAST players on the watch list:
|
Chase Audige |
Senior |
G |
Northwestern |
|
Leaky Black |
Grad Student |
F |
North Carolina |
|
Moussa Cisse |
Junior |
F |
Oklahoma State |
|
Jaylen Clark |
Junior |
G |
UCLA |
|
Zach Edey |
Junior |
C |
Purdue |
|
Junior |
G |
UConn |
|
|
Trayce Jackson-Davis |
Senior |
F |
Indiana |
|
Ryan Kalkbrenner |
Junior |
C |
Creighton |
|
Caleb McConnell |
Fifth Year |
G |
Rutgers |
|
Kevin McCullar Jr. |
Senior |
G |
Kansas |
|
Shakeel Moore |
Junior |
G |
Mississippi State |
|
Marcus Sasser |
Senior |
G |
Houston |
|
Jamarion Sharp |
Junior |
C |
Western Kentucky |
|
Oscar Tshiebwe |
Senior |
F |
Kentucky |
|
Zakai Zeigler |
Sophomore |
G |
Tennessee |
