Zach Edey headlines Wooden Award finalists; Brandon Miller left off

The 15 finalists for this season’s Wooden Award were announced Saturday.

Purdue’s Zach Edey is the frontrunner heading into conference tournament play, followed closely by Indiana’s Trayce Jackson-Davis.

Edey, a 7-foot-4 center, has had perhaps the largest imprint on his squad of any big man in the nation. He’s currently sitting ninth in the country in scoring (22.1 PPG), second in rebounds (13.1), and has turned away 2.3 shots per game.

Fellow big Oscar Tshiebwe returns to the finalist list as well. The senior from the Democratic Republic of the Congo won the award last season and is leading the nation in boards per game to complement 16.5 points. Gonzaga big Drew Timme joins Tshiebwe as the only returning finalists.

Jackson-Davis sits just behind Edey in scoring and rebounding in the Big Ten, and has guided his Hoosiers past the Boilermakers twice in conference play. He’s 22nd in the country in scoring (20.3 PPG) and sixth in rebounds (11.1).

Detroit Mercy’s Antoine Davis is also a finalist. With 3,664 career points, he’s currently four points away from passing Pete Maravich on the NCAA’s Division I all-time scoring list. He also set the DI career record for 3-pointers made in January.

Alabama’s Brandon Miller was left off the list. The freshman is averaging 19.6 points and eight rebounds for the second-ranked Crimson Tide. Miller, who’s a projected lottery pick in this year’s NBA Draft, reportedly transported a gun to former teammate Darius Miles, who was dismissed from the team after being charged with capital murder. Miller is not a suspect in the crime, according to Alabama.

Below is the full list of Wooden Award finalists:

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