SPRINGFIELD, Mass.– Gonzaga's Joel Ayayi was named one of the five finalists for the 2021 Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced Tuesday.
 
Named after Class of 1980 Hall of Famer and 1959 NCAA Final Four Most Valuable Player Jerry West, the annual honor in its seventh year recognizes the top shooting guards in Division I men's college basketball.
 
The five finalists for the 2021 Jerry West Award are MaCio Teague (Baylor), Joel Ayayi (Gonzaga), Quentin Grimes (Houston), Joe Wieskamp (Iowa) and Chris Duarte (Oregon).
 
Ayayi is fourth in the WCC in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.19). His 7.05-rebound average ranks fourth in the conference, and is the most by a guard in program history. The junior averages 11.27 points per game at 58.4 percent shooting from the field. He's made 20 three-pointers this season. Ayayi recorded the first triple-double in program history in the win at Portland. He scored all 12 of his points in the first half, grabbed 13 rebounds and dished out a career-high 14 assists. Ayayi's 14 assists were the second-most in program history, and the most since Blake Stepp's record of 16 in 2002. His 18 rebounds against Iowa were the most by a Bulldog guard since the program moved to NCAA Div. 1 in 1958-59. His 18 boards were also the fourth most for a Gonzaga player since Mark Few took over as head coach.
 
"It is an immense honor to be considered a finalist for the Jerry West Award and these five student athletes have consistently contributed to the success of their teams at an elite level," said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Basketball Hall of Fame. "Our committee certainly has a tall task in determining this year's winner and we are grateful to have Jerry West's insights from a player, coach, and executive perspective."
 
A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 student-athletes in November, which was narrowed to 10 candidates in January and now just five finalists. This month, the finalists will be presented to Mr. West and the Hall of Fame's selection committee.
 
"While this year's collegiate season has been largely unpredictable, the five finalists for the Shooting Guard of the Year Award have been extremely consistent," said Jerry West, Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 1980. "I look forward to watching these young men compete as they continue playing in their most critical games."
 
The winner of the 2021 Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award will be determined by a combination of fan votes and input from the Basketball Hall of Fame's selection committee. Naismith Starting Five Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies will go live Feb. 26 on hoophallawards.com.
 
The winner of the 2021 Jerry West Award will be presented on ESPN, along with the other four members of the Men's Naismith Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Bob Cousy Point Guard Award, the Julius Erving Small Forward Award, the Karl Malone Power Forward Award and the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center Award, in addition to the Women's Starting Five. Additional information about the award presentation, including date and time, will be released in the coming weeks.
 
Previous winners of the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award include Myles Powell, Seton Hall (2020), RJ Barrett, Duke (2019), Carsen Edwards, Purdue (2018), Malik Monk, Kentucky (2017), Buddy Hield, Oklahoma (2016) and D'Angelo Russell, Ohio State (2015).