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Press release from Georgetown:
WASHINGTON - Georgetown University senior men's basketball player D'Vauntes Smith-Rivera (Indianapolis, Ind./North Central/Oak Hill) was one of 20 Division I players selected to the watch list for the 2016 Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award, presented by the College of the Holy Cross.
Named after Hall of Famer and former Boston Celtic and Holy Cross guard Bob Cousy, the annual honor, now in its 13th year, recognizes the top point guards in Division I men's college basketball. A national committee comprised of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates.
Smith-Rivera was an All-BIG EAST First Team selection in 2014-15, in addition to being named to the United States Basketball Writers Association All-District II Team and to the All-District 5 Team by the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC).
He led Georgetown, and ranked fourth in the BIG EAST, with 16.3 points per game. Smith-Rivera, who had nine games last season with at least 20 points, became the 45th player in program history to reach the 1,000-point mark for his career and finished his junior season ranked 18th all-time at Georgetown with 1,386 points.
Smith-Rivera also led Georgetown with 3.2 assists (10th in the BIG EAST), was third on the team with 4.2 rebounds per game and led the team with 1.6 steals per game (sixth in the BIG EAST). He was second in the league in free throw percentage (86.1 percent), ninth in three-point field goal percentage (38.7), fifth in 3-pointers made (2.3/game), fifth in assist-turnover ratio (1.9, 101 assists, 52 turnovers) and sixth in minutes played (34.4 mpg).
"The athletes on this list represent the most dedicated and skillful point guards in college basketball," said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Basketball Hall of Fame. "They exhibit many of the characteristics that made Mr. Cousy such a successful player and we are pleased to be recognizing them for their accomplishments. We thank College of the Holy Cross for their continued support of this esteemed award."
Bob Cousy played for Holy Cross from 1946-50, winning an NCAA Championship in 1947. He was named a Consensus First-Team All-American in 1950. His success continued at the professional level as a six-time NBA Champion (1957, 1959-1963), NBA Most Valuable Player (1957) and 13-time NBA All-Star (1951-63). In 1996, he was named a member of the NBA's 50th Anniversary All-Time Team.
By mid-February, the watch list of 20 players for the 2016 Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award will be narrowed to just 10. In March, five finalists will be presented to Mr. Cousy and the Hall of Fame's selection committee. The winner of the 2016 Bob Cousy Award will be presented at the ESPN College Basketball Awards Show live from Club Nokia in Los Angeles, Calif. on Friday, April 8, 2016. Broadcast information will be released at a later date.
Previous winners of the Bob Cousy Award include Delon Wright, Utah (2015), Shabazz Napier, Connecticut (2014), Trey Burke, Michigan (2013), Kendall Marshall, North Carolina (2012), Kemba Walker, Connecticut (2011), Greivis Vasquez, Maryland (2010), Ty Lawson, North Carolina (2009), DJ Augustin, Texas (2008), Acie Law, Texas A & M (2007), Dee Brown, Illinois (2006), Raymond Felton, North Carolina (2005) and Jameer Nelson, St. Joseph's (2004).
Georgetown opens the 2015-16 season on Saturday, Nov. 14 hosting Radford at Verizon Center. Tip-off is slated for noon.
Season ticket packages are currently available to see the Hoyas at Verizon Center. For more information, please visit http://wearegeorgetown.com/