DURHAM, N.C. – Duke’s Vernon Carey Jr., has been selected by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association (USBWA) to receive the 2019-20 Wayman Tisdale Award as the national freshman of the year.
The consensus second-team All-American, Carey is the fifth Duke player and second consecutive Blue Devil to win the Wayman Tisdale Award, following Zion Williamson in 2019. Duke freshmen have now won four of the last seven Wayman Tisdale Awards, and the program’s five winners are most all-time.
Carey, who is also the USBWA District III Player of the Year and a USBWA second-team All-American, was the only player ranked in the ACC’s top 10 in scoring (third, 17.8), rebounding (fourth, 8.8), field goal percentage (first, .577) and blocked shots (sixth, 1.6). The ACC Freshman of the Year posted 15 double-doubles on the season, which ranked second among NCAA freshmen and second in the ACC. Ten of his double-doubles were 20-10 performances, while 14 came as 15-10 games. Carey was second nationally among freshmen in scoring, third in field goal percentage and fourth in rebounds.
Carey is also a finalist for the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Award. He earned second-team All-American honors from the Associated Press, Sporting News magazine, Sports Illustrated and CBS Sports – who additionally touted him as the Freshman of the Year – while earning a third-team nod from the National Association of Basketball Coaches (NABC). Carey attempted more free throws (218) than any freshman in college basketball this season, and his 28.7 points per 40 minutes were topped by only Marquette’s Markus Howard and Iowa’s Luka Garza among major conference players.
The USBWA has chosen a national freshman of the year award since the 1988-89 season. It was named the Wayman Tisdale Award in honor of the late three-time USBWA All-American at Oklahoma, the first freshman to receive first-team All-America honors from the USBWA.
Carey helped lead the Blue Devils to a 25-6 overall record and 15-5 mark in the ACC.
Duke’s Wayman Tisdale Award winners
Luol Deng, 2004
Jabari Parker, 2014
Jahlil Okafor, 2015
Zion Williamson, 2019
Vernon Carey Jr., 2020
Most Wayman Tisdale Award winners
Duke, 5
North Carolina, 2
Kentucky, 2
Texas, 2
