PROVO — BYU’s Yoeli Childs has been named one of five finalists for the 2020 Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award by The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
The other four finalists are Obi Toppin (Dayton), Killian Tillie (Gonzaga), Jalen Smith (Maryland) and Reggie Perry (Mississippi State). Toppin and Smith were named finalists for the Naismith Player of the Year on Thursday.
When Childs was named one of 10 finalists last month, he expressed how honored he was to be connected with the former Utah Jazz superstar and Hall of Famer.
“It’s awesome. To have my name next to Karl Malone’s name is unbelievable,” Childs said. “It’s a testament to this team. They make me look a lot better than I am. They get me the ball and put me in good situations. The coaching staff really pushes me to be the best player I can be. I’m just really grateful for the environment that I’m in.”
Childs is averaging 22.2 points, 8.9 rebounds and 2.1 assists per game and is shooting 58.6% from the floor and 48.8% from 3-point range. Earlier this week, Childs was named to the All-West Coast Conference first team for the third time in his career. He’s also a finalist for the Senior CLASS Award.
Childs has recorded seven double-doubles and scored 20-plus points in 11 games. He has helped lead the Cougars to a No. 15 national ranking and is coming off a career-high 38-point, 14-point rebound outing last Saturday at Pepperdine.
“I have thoroughly enjoyed watching these young men compete this season, as leaders on the court and in the locker room,” Karl Malone, Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2010, said in a statement. “Working alongside the committee in choosing a winner has been a great joy, and we look forward to watching as these players compete in the coming weeks.”
“We’re happy to recognize these elite power forwards as finalists for this tremendous award,” said John L. Doleva, president and CEO of the Basketball Hall of Fame. “Combined with our fan voting component, our committee and Mr. Malone will be watching to determine who will take home this prestigious award this season. We’re looking forward to some really great performances when it matters most.”
A national committee of top college basketball personnel created the watch list of 20 student-athletes in October, which was narrowed to 10 candidates in early February and now just includes five finalists.
The winner of the 2020 Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award will be decided by a combination of fan votes and input from Malone and the Basketball Hall of Fame’s selection committee. Naismith Starting Five Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies will go live on Friday via hoophallawards.com.
The winner of the 2020 Karl Malone Award will be presented at The College Basketball Awards on April 10.
Previous award winners include Zion Williamson, Duke (2019), Deandre Ayton, Arizona (2018), Johnathan Motley, Baylor (2017), Georges Niang, Iowa State (2016) and Montrezl Harrell, Louisville (2015).