The five national finalists for the Karl Malone Award were announced on Wednesday, and Duke 7-footer Kyle Filipowski is one of the names in contention.
The Malone Award is given to the nation’s best power forward each season, and Filipowski joined Akron’s Enrique Freeman, Dayton’s DaRon Holmes II, San Diego State’s Jaedon LeDee, and Utah State’s Great Osobor as the last players remaining for the honor.
Filipowski is averaging 16.5 points, 8.1 rebounds, and 2.9 assists this season. He’s shooting 50.7% from the floor and 35.2% from the 3-point line, and he’s added 1.6 blocks and 1.0 steals on the defensive end.
Through 30 games this season, the Duke big man has eight double-doubles and 10 20-point games, including a 30-point performance against Georgia Tech back in January.’
#MaloneAward finalists from @Hoophall 👀
🏀 Enrique Freeman
🏀 DaRon Holmes II
🏀 Kyle Filipowski
🏀 Jaedon LeDee
🏀 Great Osobor pic.twitter.com/PeSXLLQ0l5— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) March 7, 2024
Indiana’s Trayce Jackson-Davis won the award last year, and Zion Williamson (2019) is the only Blue Devil to win the award in its 10-year history.