Duke men’s basketball forward Kyle Filipowski has been named the 2023 winner of the Kyle Macy Freshman of the Year Award, announced today by CollegeInsider.com. The award, presented annually to the top Division I freshman, is named for the guard who starred as a freshman for Purdue in 1975.
Filipowski becomes the fifth Blue Devil to win the Kyle Macy Award since its inception in 2012, joining Jabari Parker (2014), Brandon Ingram (2016), Marvin Bagley III (2018) and Zion Williamson (2019). No other program has won the award more than twice.
“It’s an incredible honor and it’s so well deserved,” said head coach Jon Scheyer. “More than the numbers and the statistics, what he’s done from a competitive standpoint – diving on the floor for loose balls, making big-time game-winning plays, whether it be a rebound, free throws – coming up in the clutch has been something that he has done so well. I’m very proud of him, it’s an honor for our program and it’s an honor for Kyle and his family.”
Filipowski ended the season as a nine-time ACC Rookie of the Week, a near unanimous selection as ACC Rookie of the Year, the ACC Tournament MVP and an honorable mention AP All-American. He led the Blue Devils in scoring (15.1), rebounding (8.9) and steals (1.3), while leading all Division I freshmen with 16 double-doubles. The only Duke player to start all 36 games, Filipowski posted 31 games with at least 10 points and six 20-point efforts.
“Kyle Filipowski continued to grow as player throughout the season and as he got better, Duke got better,” said Angela Lento, Vice President of CollegeInsider.com. “He may stand 7-feet tall, but his skill level puts him in the category of a combo forward. Kyle has a unique ability to score at all three levels. Factor that in with his ability to rebound and defend, makes him the top freshman in the country.”
The Westtown, N.Y., native capped the regular season with a monster 22-point, 13-rebound effort in the 62-57 win at North Carolina and carried that momentum into a remarkable three-game run in the ACC Tournament to become the seventh freshman all-time to be named Tournament MVP. Filipowski averaged 19.5 points and shot .667 (24-of-36) from the field over Duke’s three games in Greensboro, opening with an 8-of-10 shooting, 22-point effort against Pitt and posting consecutive double-doubles in the semifinals (17 points, 11 rebounds vs. Miami) and championship (20 points, 10 rebounds vs. Virginia).
Filipowski was just the sixth Duke freshman all-time with 300 or more rebounds in a season, standing tied for third with Jahlil Okafor on the Duke freshman single-season rebounding list with 322. He is tied for second in most double-doubles by a Duke freshman and tied for seventh for both double-digit scoring games and free throws made.
Macy, the 1975 Indiana “Mr. Basketball” averaged 13.8 points per game while leading the Boilermakers in free throws (.859). He started in 25 of 27 games, helping them to a 16-11 season record. The recipient of the annual award is determined by a 10-member voting committee, which consists of current and former head coaches, as well as two senior staff members of CollegeInsider.com.
