RJ Davis a finalist for best player in College Basketball
It’s Saturday, March 9 and all the focus on college basketball’s night games centers on UNC-Duke.
Tonight isn’t just any installation of the Tobacco Road Rivalry – first place is on the line. North Carolina (24-6, 16-3) can clinch its first outright, ACC Regular Season title with a win, while Duke can clinch a share by winning.
The 2023-2024 edition of Tar Heel Basketball is significantly better, with the leading cause being star guard RJ Davis. He’s averaging 21.5 points per game, which is good enough for 10th in the nation. Davis has scored in double-digits 29 times this year, including a career-high 42 points against Miami (FL) on Feb. 26.
To summarize, Davis has been playing like the best player in college basketball.
That statement could soon become a reality, as Davis was recently named one of 15 finalists for the 2024 John R. Wooden Award.
Davis would be the fifth Tar Heel to win the Wooden Award, joining Tyler Hansbrough, Antawn Jamison, Michael Jordan and Phil Ford.
Joining Davis on the Wooden Award finalist list is Johni Broome (Auburn), Hunter Dickinson (Kansas), Zach Edey (Purdue), Kyle Filipowski (Duke), DaRon Holmes II (Dayton), Dalton Knecht (Tennessee), Tyler Kolek (Marquette), Jaedon LeDee (San Diego State), Kevin McCullar Jr. (Kansas), Tristen Newton (UConn), Antonio Reeves (Kentucky), Mark Sears (Alabama), Jamal Shead (Houston) and a former Tar Heel in Caleb Love (Arizona).
There’s no doubt that each of these players is deserving of the award, but Davis has the strongest case because he’s helped turn UNC from last year’s embarrassment to a National Championship contender. With the exception of Dayton, each of the other above listed programs made the NCAA Tournament last year.
Oh – and did we mention Davis is 10 made 3-pointers away from the all-time UNC record?
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