Missouri's Bowers, Pressey named Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 - KAIT-Jonesboro, AR-News, weather, sports

From the University of Missouri

Mizzou Basketball standouts Laurence Bowers and Phil Pressey were named to the John R. Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 list by The Los Angeles Athletic Club this evening.

Selected by the Wooden Award National Advisory Board, the list is made up of 25 student-athletes who, based on their performances in November, December, and the beginning of January, are the frontrunners for college basketball's most prestigious honor.

The players on the list are considered strong candidates for the official ballot. The National Ballot consists of approximately 20 top players who have proven to their universities that they are making progress toward graduation and maintaining at least a cumulative 2.0 GPA. 

Missouri was one of just three schools with multiple midseason selections, joining Duke (Mason Plumlee and Seth Curry) and Kansas (Ben McLemore and Jeff Withey).

Pressey was also named one of the Top 20 candidates for the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award earlier on Thursday. Ranked No. 6 nationally with 7.6 assists per game, Pressey has been college basketball's most exciting player in 2012-13 and is averaging career highs in scoring (13.6), assists (7.6) and rebounds (3.5). He owns one of the more impressive individual efforts in Mizzou's game at UCLA on Dec. 28, scoring 19 points to go with a school and SEC-record tying 19 assists. It was the most assists in a game in college basketball since 2008 and the most by a major college player since 2000.

Pressey has been especially brilliant in his last four games, averaging 17.0 points and 12.0 assists in contests against Illinois, UCLA, Bucknell and Alabama.

Bowers has been one of college basketball's best stories this season. One year removed from ACL surgery, the Memphis, Tenn., native is averaging a career high 16.8 points and 6.9 rebounds. A 6-foot-8, 227-pound forward, Bowers has already earned his degree from Missouri and is closing in on the completion of a Master's degree in Health Education and Promotion.

Bowers has scored in double figures in 13-of-14 games this year and is second on the club with four double-doubles. Over his last eight games Bowers is averaging 18.8 points and 7.3 rebounds and he was named SEC Player of the Week after a 23-point, 10-rebound night in a win against Illinois in the annual Bud Light Braggin' Rights Game.

Missouri returns to action on Saturday night at Ole Miss. The game will be telecast on FSN at 7 p.m. CT.

2012-13 John R. Wooden Award^®

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Midseason Top 25 List

 (Players listed alphabetically.)

*indicates player was 2012 Wooden Award All American