UC Santa Barbara senior Alan Williams, the reigning Big West Men’s Basketball Player of the Year, is one of 50 players on the “Watch List” for the Naismith Trophy, given to the nation’s top collegiate player.
Williams, the first UCSB player ever named to the Naismith List, is off to an impressive start to the 2014-15 campaign. He leads the Big West in scoring (19.8 ppg) and the nation in rebounding (13.5 rpg), and has produced five double-doubles in the first six games. He had 22 points, 20 rebounds and six blocked shots in a semifinal overtime win over Mercer in last week’s Great Alaska Shootout.
With 898 rebounds, Williams is seven away from supplanting Eric McArthur (904, 1986-90) as the school’s all-time leader and two short of becoming just the seventh player in Big West history to reach 900. He also moved into 10th all-time on UCSB’s scoring list with 1,402 points.
The Big West record holder with 10 career Player of the Week citations, Williams already has received two of the first three weekly awards to begin this season.
| NAISMITH TROPHY MEN'S 50 WATCH LIST |
| Name |
Class |
Position |
School |
Conference |
| Cliff Alexander |
Fr. |
F |
Kansas |
Big 12 |
| Brandon Ashley |
Jr. |
F |
Arizona |
Pac-12 |
| Ron Baker |
Jr. |
G |
Wichita State |
Missouri Valley |
| Ryan Boatright |
Sr. |
G |
Connecticut |
American Athletic |
| Malcolm Brogdon |
Jr. |
G |
Virginia |
ACC |
| Willie Cauley-Stein |
Jr. |
F |
Kentucky |
SEC |
| Branden Dawson |
Sr. |
G-F |
Michigan State |
Big Ten |
| Sam Dekker |
Jr. |
F |
Wisconsin |
Big Ten |
| Perry Ellis |
Jr. |
F |
Kansas |
Big 12 |
| Yogi Ferrell |
Jr. |
G |
Indiana |
Big Ten |
| Marcus Foster |
So. |
G |
Kansas State |
Big 12 |
| Michael Frazier II |
Jr. |
G |
Florida |
SEC |
| Treveon Graham |
Sr. |
G-F |
VCU |
Atlantic 10 |
| Jerian Grant |
Sr. |
G |
Notre Dame |
ACC |
| Olivier Hanlan |
Jr. |
G |
Boston College |
ACC |
| Montrezl Harrell |
Jr. |
F |
Louisville |
ACC |
| Aaron Harrison |
So. |
G |
Kentucky |
SEC |
| Tyler Haws |
Sr. |
G |
BYU |
West Coast |
| Buddy Hield |
Jr. |
G |
Oklahoma |
Big 12 |
| Rondae Hollis-Jefferson |
So. |
F |
Arizona |
Pac-12 |
| R.J. Hunter |
Jr. |
G |
Georgia State |
Sun Belt |
| Stanley Johnson |
Fr. |
G |
Arizona |
Pac-12 |
| Tyus Jones |
Fr. |
G |
Duke |
ACC |
| Frank Kaminsky |
Sr. |
F |
Wisconsin |
Big Ten |
| Caris LeVert |
Jr. |
G |
Michigan |
Big Ten |
| Jordan Mickey |
So. |
F |
LSU |
SEC |
| Nic Moore |
Jr. |
G |
SMU |
American Athletic |
| Georges Niang |
Jr. |
F |
Iowa State |
Big 12 |
| Jahlil Okafor |
Fr. |
C |
Duke |
ACC |
| Marcus Paige |
Jr. |
G |
North Carolina |
ACC |
| Kevin Pangos |
Sr. |
G |
Gonzaga |
West Coast |
| Terran Petteway |
Jr. |
F |
Nebraska |
Big Ten |
| Chasson Randle |
Sr. |
G |
Stanford |
Pac-12 |
| Terry Rozier |
So. |
G |
Louisville |
ACC |
| D'Angelo Russell |
Fr. |
G |
Ohio State |
Big Ten |
| Wesley Saunders |
Sr. |
G-F |
Harvard |
Ivy League |
| Wayne Selden, Jr. |
So. |
G |
Kansas |
Big 12 |
| Winston Shepard |
Jr. |
F |
San Diego State |
Mountain West |
| D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera |
Jr. |
G |
Georgetown |
Big East |
| Juwan Staten |
Sr. |
G |
West Virginia |
Big 12 |
| Keifer Sykes |
Sr. |
G |
Green Bay |
Horizon League |
| Isaiah Taylor |
So. |
G |
Texas |
Big 12 |
| Karl-Anthony Towns |
Fr. |
F |
Kentucky |
SEC |
| Myles Turner |
Fr. |
F |
Texas |
Big 12 |
| Fred Van Vleet |
Jr. |
G |
Wichita State |
Missouri Valley |
| Rashad Vaughn |
Fr. |
G |
UNLV |
Mountain West |
| Alan Williams |
Sr. |
C |
UC Santa Barbara |
Big West |
| Justise Winslow |
Fr. |
F |
Duke |
ACC |
| Delon Wright |
Sr. |
G |
Utah |
Pac-12 |
| Joseph Young |
Sr. |
G |
Oregon |
Pac-12 |