Smith Recognized On Karl Malone Watch List

Smith Recognized On Karl Malone Watch List

October 26, 2023 | Men's Basketball

by Matt Dunaway, Director/Communications

SPRINGFIELD, Massachusetts – Mississippi State's Tolu Smith was recognized as one of 20 players on the prestigious Karl Malone Award Watch List announced Thursday by the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

The Malone Award, named after the Class of 2010 Hall of Famer and two-time NBA Most Valuable Player, is entering its 10th year. The honor is awarded to the nation's top power forward and is one of five preseason accolades presented by the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

The Naismith Starting Five features awards named after Malone, Bob Cousy [Point Guard], Jerry West [Shooting Guard], Julius Erving [Small Forward] and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar [Center].

As a program, the Bulldogs have had a player listed for one of the five awards on five occasions. Most recently, Reggie Perry was tabbed a top 5 finalist for the 2019-20 Malone Award whereas Quinndary Weatherspoon was among 10 finalists for the 2018-19 West Award.

A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates. In late January, the watch list of 20 players for the 2024 Malone Award will be narrowed to 10, and then in late February, to just five. In March, the five finalists will be presented to Mr. Malone and the Hall of Fame's selection committee, where a winner will be selected.

The winner of the 2024 Malone Award will be presented on a to be determined date, along with the other four members of the Men's Starting Five.

Previous winners of the Malone Award are Trayce Jackson-Davis (Indiana – 2023), Keegan Murray (Iowa – 2022), Drew Timme (Gonzaga – 2021), Obi Toppin (Dayton – 2020), Zion Williamson (Duke – 2019), Deandre Ayton (Arizona – 2018), Johnathan Motley (Baylor – 2017), Georges Niang (Iowa State – 2016) and Montrezl Harrell (Louisville –2015).

In 16 days, the Bulldogs will make their highly-anticipated home debut at a renovated Humphrey Coliseum against UT Martin (Nov. 11 – TBA – SEC Network+) following a SEC/Pac-12 showcase season opener versus Arizona State (Nov. 8 – ~8 p.m. CT – www.Barstool.TV) at the Barstool Invitational in Chicago, Illinois.

Tipoff time for the UT Martin contest will be announced at a later date after State's kickoff time at Texas A&M also on Nov. 11 is determined.

Fans can purchase season tickets through Mississippi State's Athletic Ticket Office starting as low as $225 at www.HailState.com/tickets or by calling (662) 325-2600/(888) 463-2947 (GO DAWGS).
The Bulldogs are led by Chris Jans who guided Mississippi State back to college basketball's biggest stage with a program single-season record for a first-year coach with 21 victories and a 2023 NCAA Tournament trip.

Jans heads into the 2023-24 campaign fifth among NCAA active coaches with a .742 winning percentage behind only Mark Few (Gonzaga), Bill Self (Kansas), Brian Dutcher (San Diego State) and John Calipari (Kentucky). He is one of 10 SEC coaches to amass at least 21 victories and secure a NCAA Tournament berth during their first season in league history.

As a program, Mississippi State has amassed five straight postseason bids when postseason tournaments have been played.

The Maroon and White are among the nation's leaders returning 80.9 percent of its points, 72.4 percent of its rebounds, 83.8 percent of its assists, 83.6 percent of its steals and 75.2 percent of its blocks from last season.

Tolu Smith (15.7 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 1.7 APG), Shakeel Moore (9.8 PPG, 3.0 RPG, 2.3 APG, 1.7 SPG), D.J. Jeffries (8.8 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 1.8 APG, 1.1 SPG), Dashawn Davis (8.7 PPG, 3.5 APG, 1.7 SPG) and Cameron Matthews (6.9 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 2.3 APG, 1.5 SPG) combined for 85.3 percent of the team's starts (145-of-170) from last season.

The Bulldogs have brought in an impressive group of newcomers which include Jimmy Bell Jr. (West Virginia), Trey Fort (Howard College), Jaquan Scott (Salt Lake Community College) and Andrew Taylor (Marshall) from the transition portal and junior college ranks.

Mississippi State's talented freshmen class features Harrison Alexander, Gai Chol, Josh Hubbard and Adrian Myers. The Bulldogs also bring back Shawn Jones Jr., KeShawn Murphy and Martavious Russell who will look to build on their freshmen campaigns.

Visit www.HailState.com for the latest news and information on the men's basketball program. Fans also can follow the program on its official social media accounts by searching 'HailStateMBK' on Facebook, X (formerly Twitter) and Instagram.