Feb. 10, 2008
Complete CLASS Release in PDF Format
University of Dayton senior guard Brian Roberts is one of 10 men's basketball players who been named finalists for the 2007-08 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award. The award - presented annually to the NCAA Division I Student-Athlete of the Year in eight sports - focuses on the "Four C's" of classroom, character, community and competition.
The Lowe's Senior CLASS Award is one of four national awards Roberts has been selected to be a finalist for. He is also on the short list for the Los Angeles Athletic Club's John R. Wooden Award, the Atlanta Tipoff Club's Naismith Trophy, and the Basketball Hall of Fame's Bob Cousy Award.
Only Roberts and Virginia's Sean Singletary appear on all four lists.
Roberts, a 2004 graduate of Toledo St. John's High School, has continued to excel on the court as Dayton's top scorer and playmaker. This season, Roberts leads the Flyers with 18.7 points and 3.6 assists per game. He was named Preseason First Team All-Atlantic 10. He was the winner of last year's John L. Macbeth Scholar-Athlete award, and is the only Flyer basketball player to be named all-conference and academic all-conference in the same season.
These finalists will be placed on the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award ballot for a nationwide vote beginning February 6 and concluding March 21. Fan balloting, available on the award's official website www.seniorclassaward.com, will be combined with votes from coaches, media and sponsors to determine the recipient of the award.
"These young men and women are outstanding student-athletes who deserve recognition for their achievements on the court and off the court," said Bob Gfeller, Lowe's Senior Vice President of Marketing and Advertising. "The Lowe's Senior CLASS Award is dedicated to honor senior collegians that are making an impact on others with their talents.
Lowe's, an official corporate partner of the NCAA will award the winners with trophies during the respective men's and women's NCAA Final Four weekends. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the award was launched during the 2001-02 season to honor the attributes of college basketball seniors who remain committed to their university and pursue the many rewards that a senior season and complete college education brings.
Now in its seventh year for basketball, the award has developed into the nation's premier tribute for college seniors. After originating with basketball, Lowe's has expanded the award to include a total of eight NCAA sports.
The award was conceived by sportscaster Dick Enberg, who continues to serve as Honorary Chairman. It was inspired by the remarkable story of former Duke University basketball player Shane Battier, who could have been an NBA lottery pick but returned to college for his senior season and led the Blue Devils to the National Championship in 2001.
Previous winners of the men's award include Juan Dixon of Maryland (2002), David West of Xavier (2003), Jameer Nelson of St. Joseph's (2004), Wayne Simien of Kansas (2005), J.J. Reddick of Duke (2006) and Alando Tucker of Wisconsin (2007). Last year's women's winner was Duke's Alison Bales.
Dayton is 16-6 overall, and 4-5 in the A-10. The Flyers are back at UD Arena for a pair of home games against Duquesne (Wednesday at 7 p.m. ET) and Temple (Saturday at 4 p.m. ET).
