Feb. 3, 2010
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Irish senior Luke Harangody (Schererville, Ind.) has been named one of the 10 finalists for the 2009-10 Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award in men’s basketball. Harangody is the first Notre Dame men’s basketball player to be selected as a finalist for the award.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as and NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence — classroom, character, community service and competition.
An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Lowe’s Senior Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities. The finalists were chosen by a media committee from the list of 30 men’s candidates who were announced in October.
A two-time second team All-American and John R. Wooden All-America Team honoree, Harangody leads Notre Dame in both scoring and rebounding for the third straight year as he is averaging 24.2 points and 9.7 rebounds. He ranks third nationally in scoring, the second straight year that he been in the top-10 in scoring. Harangody currently ranks second all-time in Notre Dame history with 2,356 career points and 1,163 rebounds. Currently, he owns a 27-game double-figure scoring streak and has reached double figures in all but 13 of the 121 games he has played in during his career.
Joining Harangody as one of the 10 finalists are: Matt Bouldin (Gonzaga), Da’Sean Butler (West Virginia), Marquis Hall (Lehigh), Damion James (Texas), Adam Koch (Northern Iowa), Chris Kramer (Purdue), Raymar Morgan (Michigan State), Jon Scheyer (Duke) and Josh Young (Drake).
The 10 names are being placed on the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award basketball ballot for a nationwide vote beginning today and concluding March 22. Fan balloting will be available on the award’s official web site http:www.seniorCLASS.award.com as well as through text messaging. Fans can text MBBALL to vote for men’s finalists. These votes will be combined with votes from coaches and media to determine the recipient of the award.
Lowe’s, an official Corporate Partner of the NCAA, will announce the Senior CLASS Award winners during the 2010 NCAA Men’s Final Four in April.
This marks the ninth year that the Lowe’s Senior CLASS Award has been presented. Previous winners in men’s basketball have included: Juan Dixon of Maryland in 2002; David West of Xavier in 2003; Jameer Nelson of St. Joseph in 2004; Wayne Simien of Kansas in 2005; J.J. Redick of Duke in 2006; Alondo Tucker of Wisconsin in 2007; Shan Foster of Vanderbilt in 2008; and Tyler Hansbrough of North Carolina in 2009.