SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Tennessee senior Admiral Schofield is one of 10 players who has been named a 2019 Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award finalist, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced Wednesday.
Named after Hall of Famer and former UMass standout Julius Erving, the annual honor now in its fifth year recognizes the top small forward in Division I basketball. Previous winners include Mikal Bridges of Villanova (2018), Josh Hart of Villanova (2017), Denzel Valentine of Michigan State (2016) and Stanley Johnson of Arizona (2015).
Schofield has been a major contributor to the Vols’ success this season. He is averaging 16.6 points per game, which ranks second on the team and sixth in the SEC, while also averaging 6.3 rebounds.
The Zion, Ill., native leads the team in shooting from beyond the arc with 42 3-pointers one the year. While being a high-volume shooter, he has shot 50 percent or better from the field in 13 games this season, including seven times during SEC play.
The senior recorded key performances for Tennessee in wins over No. 1 Gonzaga, in which he scored 30 points and made six three-pointers. Schofield followed up that performance with a 29-point game at Memphis.
For his effort against the Bulldogs and the Tigers, Schofield was named the 2018 Jerry Colangelo Classic Most Valuable Player. He was also named SEC Player of the Week in back-to-back weeks (Dec. 10 and Dec. 17) and the Oscar Robertson National Player of the Week on Dec. 11.
Schofield is one of just two SEC players included amongst the finalists, along with Kentucky’s Keldon Johnson. This list of finalists will be narrowed down to five in March. The winner of the award will be presented at the ESPN College Basketball Awards Show live from The Novo by Microsoft in Los Angeles, Calif. on Friday, April 12.
For more information on the 2019 Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award and the latest updates, log onto www.hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophall on Twitter and Instagram.
2019 Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award Candidates
Dylan Windler, Belmont
Rui Hachimura, Gonzaga
Marial Shayok, Iowa St.
Keldon Johnson, Kentucky
Charles Matthews, Michigan
Caleb Martin, Nevada
Tres Tinkle, Oregon St.
KZ Okpala, Stanford
Admiral Schofield, Tennessee
De’Andre Hunter, Virginia
UT Athetics
