Duarte is the First DUCK EVER to be Finalist for Award...

[Charles Fischer]

OREGON ATHLETIC COMMUNICATIONS
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |TUESDAY, FEBRUARY 23, 2020
MEN’S BASKETBALL 

EUGENE, Ore. – Senior guard Chris Duarte was named one of five finalists for the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award on Tuesday by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. He is the first Jerry West Award finalist in program history.

The other 2021 Jerry West Award finalists are Joel Ayayi of Gonzaga, Quentin Grimes of Houston, MaCio Teague of Baylor and Joe Wieskamp of Iowa.

Duarte, from Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic, is one of only two players in the nation averaging 16 points and two steals per game while shooting 50 percent from the field. He leads the Pac-12 in steals (2.1 per game) and three-pointers made (2.6 per game).

In addition to leading the league in steals and three-pointers, Duarte is ranked among the Pac-12’s top 10 in six different statistical categories. He is seventh in scoring (16.8 points per game), fifth in three-point field goal percentage (.420) and ninth in field goal percentage (.530).

Earlier this season, Duarte was named Pac-12 Player of the Week for the third time in his career on Jan. 4. He averaged 21.0 points per game on 50 percent shooting (15-of-30), including 47 percent from three-point range (9-of-19) in the Ducks’ weekend sweep of California and Stanford. He also averaged 4.5 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game.

Duarte was at his best in the closing minutes of each game. He scored 14 of his 19 points in the final 5:18 to help the Ducks turn a three-point lead into a 13-point victory over the Golden Bears on Dec. 31. Jan. 2 versus Stanford, Duarte tallied 11 of team-high 23 points in the final 5:43 to turn a four-point cushion into a 17-point win.

The Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award is named after Class of 1980 Hall of Famer and 1959 NCAA Final Four Most Valuable Player Jerry West.

Previous winners of the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award include Myles Powell, Seton Hall (2020), RJ Barrett, Duke (2019), Carsen Edwards, Purdue (2018), Malik Monk, Kentucky (2017), Buddy Hield, Oklahoma (2016) and D’Angelo Russell, Ohio State (2015).

The winner of the 2021 Jerry West Award will be presented April 9, 2021, along with the other four members of the Men’s Starting Five. One of those awards is the Bob Cousy Point Guard of the Year Award, which was won by Oregon’s Payton Pritchard in 2020.