Battier Wins John R. Wooden Award

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Shane Battier, who led Duke to its first NCAA championship since 1992, capped an outstanding college career Friday, winning the 25th John R. Wooden Award as the male player of the year.

Senior forward Shane Battier looks at the John R. Wooden Award during a news conference after he was given the award at the Los Angeles Athletic Club Friday, April 6, 2001 in Los Angeles. The award goes to the male college basketball player of the year.
(AP Photo/Kim D. Johnson)

Battier, a 6-foot-8 senior forward from Birmingham, Mich., was previously honored as The Associated Press player of the year and Naismith Award winner, and was chosen the outstanding player in the Final Four for his efforts in victories over Maryland and Arizona.

"I'm very honored to receive this award," Battier said. "Last year, Coach Wooden told me if he was still coaching, I'd be a player he'd like to coach. That's the ultimate compliment.

"Every goal I've set for the last four years, I have reached. To win the Wooden Award after winning the national championship is the perfect ending to my career. It's fitting it happened near Hollywood."

Battier, who averaged 19.9 points, 7.3 rebounds, 1.8 assists, 2.1 steals and 2.3 blocked shots this season to lead Duke to a 35-4 record, was a runaway winner, collecting 4,892 points from the more than 1,000 media members and basketball experts who participated.

Jason Williams, Battier's teammate at Duke, finished second with 3,764 points, followed by Joseph Forte of North Carolina with 2,899; Casey Jacobsen of Stanford with 2,831; Troy Murphy of Notre Dame with 2,768; Tayshaun Prince of Kentucky with 1,398; Charlie Bell of Michigan State with 1,386; Frank Williams of Illinois with 1,147; Casey Calvary of Gonzaga with 977; and Jarron Collins of Stanford with 939.

Battier was the only senior among the top five, Murphy is a junior, and Williams, Jacobsen and Forte are sophomores.

Except for Forte, the five finalists all attended the ceremony, as did coaches Mike Krzyzewski of Duke, Mike Brey of Notre Dame, Mike Montgomery of Stanford and Matt Doherty of North Carolina.

Arizona coach Lute Olson also attended to receive the third Legends of Coaching award, joining former North Carolina coach Dean Smith and Krzyzewski, who won last year.

"Shane has had an influence on everybody in our program and probably thousands of people around the country," Krzyzewski said. "His impact on the game could never be measured in stats. He's the most complete player I've ever coached, he's magnificent."

Krzyzewski coached two previous Wooden Award winners, Christian Laettner in 1992, and Elton Brand two years ago. Cincinnati's Kenyon Martin won the award last year.

Among other previous winners are North Carolina's Michael Jordan, Indiana State's Larry Bird, and the Naval Academy's David Robinson.

In addition to his exploits on the court, Battier was selected the top player for the Academic All-America basketball team by the College Sports Information Directors of America. He has a 3.43 grade-point average.

He also won defensive player of the year awards for his sophomore and junior seasons.

"I couldn't have done this without the great coaches, the great teammates I've had," said Battier, who specifically thanked Krzyzewski and his parents. "I've been blessed. Right now, I'm just concentrating on enjoying the day, that's how I've lived my life."

Battier, the 10th player in Duke history to have his jersey retired, played all 80 minutes in the two Final Four games. He had 25 points and eight rebounds in a 95-84 victory over Maryland last Saturday, and 18 points and 11 rebounds in an 82-72 victory over Arizona two days later.

Battier finished his four-year career at Duke with 131 victories, tying Kentucky's Wayne Turner, who played from 1996-99, for the NCAA record.

Wooden, now 90, coached UCLA to 10 NCAA championships in a 12-year span ending in 1975, when he retired.