UCLA’S JOHNNY JUZANG SELECTED TO LATE-SEASON WOODEN AWARD WATCH LIST

The Bruins’ leading scorer is among 20 student-athletes on the revised watch list

LOS ANGELES – UCLA junior guard Johnny Juzang has been named to the 20-person late-season watch list for the 2022 John R. Wooden Award, presented each season to the nation’s top men’s and women’s college basketball players by the Los Angeles Athletic Club.

Named after former UCLA head coach John Wooden, the national college basketball award is presented at the conclusion of each season. Coach Wooden guided UCLA’s program to 10 NCAA titles in a 12-year span, concluding in 1974-75 (his 27th year as the Bruins’ head basketball coach).

Juzang enters the week as the Pac-12 Conference’s second-leading scorer, having averaged 18.1 points per game (through 16 contests). He has shot 45.6 percent from the field and 39.5 percent from 3-point territory. In addition, Juzang has averaged 4.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game.

Juzang was honored in the fall as a preseason first-team All-Pac-12 selection. He has scored in double figures in 15 of 16 games played, totaling a season-high 28 points in the Bruins’ 63-58 win at Utah on Thursday, Jan. 20.

All 20 players on the “Wooden Watch” were named to the award’s midseason top 25 list earlier in January. The players on this list are considered strong candidates for the Wooden Award Men’s Player of the Year presented by Wendy’s. Players who were not chosen to the late-season list are still eligible for the national ballot.

The national ballot consists of the top 15 players who have proven to their universities that they meet or exceed the qualifications of the Wooden Award.

The Bruins (16-2, 8-1 Pac-12) have won their last six games and will return to action at No. 7 Arizona on Thursday, Feb. 3. Game time in Tucson, Ariz., is set for 5 p.m. PT (6 p.m. MT). UCLA’s game at Arizona will be nationally televised on ESPN.