March 20, 2005

Wake Forest sophomore guard Chris Paul was named one of four finalists for the Naismith Trophy, which is presented annually to the nation's top college basketball player.

Joining Paul are Utah's Andrew Bogut, Duke's J.J. Redick and Kansas' Wayne Simien. The finalists were chosen through a vote of the Atlanta Tipoff Club's Board of Slectors, who narrowed the mid-season list of 30 candidates down to the final four. The board is comprised of basketball journalists, coaches and administrators around the country.

"These four finalists represent the best of the best in college basketball," said Gary Stokan, Atlanta Tipoff Club president. "The statistics speak for themselves; these players have had incredible seasons both as individuals and in leading their teams on the court. We will be proud to honor any of these student-athletes with the Naismith Trophy."

This year, Cingular is making the selection process unique by giving college basketball fans an unprecedented voice in deciding who wins the Naismith Trophy. Fan voting, through the power and ease of wireless text messaging, will account for 25% of the Board of Selectors final vote. Fans can text message "PLAY" to "26222" to receive the final ballot.

The Naismith Trophy Men's College Player of the Year will be announced in St. Louis on Sunday, April 3. The four finalists will attend the National Association of Basketball Coaches Awards Show where the winner will be announced.

Bogut (7-0, 245) ranks second in the nation in rebounding (12.3 rpg), tenth in field goal percentage (62.8) and 16^th in scoring (20.7 ppg). The sophomore center has 63 blocked shots and leads the nation with 24 double-doubles this season. He was named ESPN.com's Men's Basketball National Player of the Year, a first team All-American by both the United States Basketball Writers Association and National Association of Basketball Coaches.

Paul (6-0, 175) averaged 15.3 points, 6.6 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game. The sophomore guard ranks among Wake Forest's all-time leaders in assists and steals and earned first team all-ACC and National Association of Basketball Coaches first team All-American honors this year.

Redick (6-4, 190) is averaging an ACC-leading 22.3 points per game, 3.2 rebounds per game, 2.7 assists per game, and has 33 steals on the season. The junior guard was the only unanimous first-team all-ACC selection this year, earned ACC Tournament MVP honors, and was named a first team All-American by the National Association of Basketball Coaches and United States Basketball Writers Association. Last week, Redick was named ACC Player of the Year.

Wayne Simien (6-9, 255) leads the Big 12 in scoring (20.3 ppg) and rebounding (11 rpg) and is the only player in the league to average a double-double this season. The senior forward was named a first-team All-American by the United States Basketball Writers Association and the 2005 Big 12 Player of the Year by the league's coaches and the media.

CBS Sports will profile the four Naismith Trophy finalists during its coverage of the 2005 NCAA Men's Basketball Championship starting with the first games of the NCAA ® Sweet 16® on March 24. Voting for the Naismith Trophy Men's College Basketball Player of the Year will end on Saturday, April 2 at 9:00 PM EST.

Last year's Naismith Trophy recipient was Saint Joseph's Jameer Nelson. Other notable men's college player of the year winners include Bill Walton, Larry Bird, Michael Jordan, Patrick Ewing and Christian Laettner.