List of Senior CLASS Award basketball winners explained

See main article: Senior CLASS Award.

Senior CLASS Award (men's and women's basketball)
Description:	the senior NCAA Division I student athlete of the year in men's and women's basketball
Presenter:	Premier Sports Management
Country:	United States
Year:	2001 (men) 2002 (women)
Year2:	On hiatus as of 2022

The Senior CLASS Award is presented each year to the NCAA Division I student athlete of the year in men's and women's basketball who are seniors. The acronym "CLASS" stands for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School.^[1] According to the award's official website, the recognition "honors the attributes of NCAA Division I senior student-athletes in four areas: community, classroom, character and competition. The award program is designed exclusively for college seniors who are utilizing their complete athletic eligibility, remaining committed to their university and pursuing the many rewards a senior season can bring."^[1] NCAA Division I basketball coaches, media members, and fans vote during the selection process.^[1]

History

The idea for the award came from legendary sportscaster Dick Enberg.^[2] A major storyline throughout the 2000–01 men's basketball season, andduring the broadcast of the 2001 championship game, was Duke player's Shane Battier's decision the previous summer to return to school for his senior season, despite being a projected first round NBA draft lottery pick if he had decided to turn pro.^[3] Later in 2001, Premier Sports Management announced the formation of the Senior CLASS Award and teamed up with the Kansas City Club to host an annual awards gala.^[2] Enberg agreed to serve as honorary chairman of the award and CBS Sports provided broadcast support, announcing the winner each year during the Final Four telecast.^[2] Enberg's idea for this award was originally to honor men's basketball seniors but over the ensuing years it expanded to other sports, with women's basketball seniors getting their first awardee one year later.^[2]

In September 2022, Premier Sports Management decided to "take a pause" on presenting future Senior CLASS award winners.^[4] They had been operating without an official corporate sponsor since 2012–13 and in 2022 decided it was time to look for a new one.^[4] Once they have a new sponsor they intend to resume the awards "for years to come."^[4]

Key

*

Awarded a national player of the year award: Men – Sporting News; Oscar Robertson Trophy; Associated Press; NABC; UPI; Naismith; Wooden; Adolph Rupp Trophy Women – Wade; Associated Press; Naismith; Wooden

Winners

Reference 2000–01 Duke SF ^[5] 2001–02 Maryland SG 2002–03 Xavier PF ^[6] 2003–04 Saint Joseph's PG ^[7] 2004–05 Kansas PF ^[8] 2005–06 Duke SG ^[9] 2006–07 Wisconsin SF ^[10] 2007–08 Vanderbilt SG / SF ^[11] 2008–09 North Carolina PF / C ^[12] 2009–10 West Virginia SF / PF ^[13] 2010–11 BYU SG ^[14] 2011–12 Purdue SF ^[15] 2012–13 Indiana PG ^[16] 2013–14 Creighton SF / PF ^[17] 2014–15 Butler PG ^[18] 2015–16 Michigan State SF ^[19] 2016–17 Villanova SF ^[20] 2017–18 West Virginia PG ^[21] 2018–19 North Carolina PF ^[22] 2019–20 Marquette PG ^[23] 2020–21 Iowa C ^[24] 2021–22 Richmond PG ^[25]

Reference 2000–01 No award 2001–02 UConn PG 2002–03 F 2003–04 SG / SF 2004–05 F 2005–06 LSU F 2006–07 C ^[26] 2007–08 Stanford PG / SG ^[27] 2008–09 Oklahoma C 2009–10 Nebraska F ^[28] 2010–11 UConn PF ^[29] 2011–12 Stanford PF ^[30] 2012–13 Delaware SF / SG ^[31] 2013–14 UConn C ^[32] 2014–15 Iowa PG ^[33] 2015–16 UConn PF ^[34] 2016–17 Oregon State PG / SG ^[35] 2017–18 UConn PF ^[36] 2018–19 Iowa PF / C ^[37] 2019–20 Oregon PG ^[38] 2020–21 Tennessee F ^[39] 2021–22 Stanford SG ^[40]

Notes and References

1. Web site: About the Senior CLASS Award . . 2024 . SeniorClassAward.com . Premier Sports Management . September 4, 2024.
2. Web site: History of the Award . . 2024 . SeniorClassAward.com . Premier Sports Management . September 4, 2024.
3. News: Tudor. Caulton. Devils hope Battier will stay . . . March 5, 2000 . 51. Newspapers.com. September 4, 2024.
4. Web site: Senior CLASS Award Takes a Pause . Miner . Erik . September 13, 2022 . SeniorClassAward.com . Premier Sports Management . September 4, 2024.
5. News: Prater. Derek. CLASS passes tests in first year . . . April 21, 2002 . 42. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
6. News: Kerkhoff. Blair. Top seniors honored with CLASS . The Kansas City Star . Kansas City, Missouri . April 26, 2003 . 83. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
7. News: Kerkhoff. Blair. Nelson adds CLASS . The Kansas City Star . Kansas City, Missouri . May 7, 2004 . 80. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
8. News: Voepel. Mechelle. Award special for Simien, Wecker . The Kansas City Star . Kansas City, Missouri . May 1, 2005 . 31 . Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
9. News: Kerkhoff. Blair. Redick, Augustus show CLASS . The Kansas City Star . Kansas City, Missouri . April 2, 2006 . 35 . Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
10. News: Badgers' Tucker wins senior CLASS award . . . April 2, 2007 . 13 . Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
11. News: Vandy's Foster honored as top Division I senior student-athlete . . . April 6, 2008 . C4 . Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
12. News: . February 3, 2010 . Lowe's Senior CLASS Award Announces Finalists for NCAA Division I Men's and Women's Basketball . SeniorClassAward.com . . September 9, 2024.
13. News: Lesmerises. Doug. Four things I think about the championship game . . . April 5, 2010 . 24 . Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
14. News: . April 1, 2011 . Fredette Wins the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award . TheMTN.tv . Overland Park, Kansas . September 9, 2024.
15. News: Hummel wins Lowe's Senior Class Award . . . March 31, 2012 . B10 . Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
16. News: Johnson. Bob. Advice on making decisions . . . May 14, 2013 . 9 . Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
17. News: McDermott wins Senior CLASS Award . . . April 4, 2014 . 18. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
18. News: New accolade for Butler's Barlow . . . April 4, 2015 . C7. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
19. News: Award for Valentine . . . April 2, 2016 . B3. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
20. News: At a glance – college basketball . . . April 1, 2017 . D06. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
21. News: Meehan. Jim. Zags' Williams earns class honors . . . March 31, 2018 . B6. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
22. News: Alexander. Jonathan M.. UNC senior wins award that goes beyond game of basketball . The Herald-Sun . Durham, North Carolina . April 6, 2019 . B2. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
23. News: . March 31, 2020 . Markus Howard Wins Senior Class Award for Men's Basketball . GoMarquette.com . . September 9, 2024.
24. News: Doxsie. Don. Garza wins three more national awards . . . April 3, 2021 . B5. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
25. News: O'Connor. John. Spiders star Gilyard wins national character award . . . April 2, 2022 . A6. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
26. News: Bales wins Lowe's Senior CLASS award . . . April 6, 2007 . 22 . Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
27. News: Parker captures national honors . . . April 8, 2008 . 17. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
28. News: NU's Yori and Griffin reap more accolades . . . April 4, 2010 . D1 . Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
29. News: Nash . John . April 1, 2011 . Moore awards for Maya . . . September 9, 2024.
30. News: CLASS Award . . . April 1, 2012 . B10 . Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
31. News: More honors for Mingo . Journal & Courier . Lafayette, Indiana . April 6, 2013 . 9 . Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
32. News: Altavilla. John. Dolson's Award-Winning Season Keeps Going . . . April 5, 2014 . C1. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
33. News: Logic named to WBCA all-America team . . . April 6, 2015 . B3. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
34. News: More Honors for Breanna Stewart . Hartford Courant . Hartford, Connecticut . April 2, 2016 . C5. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
35. News: Metcalfe . Jeff. Wiese, Osahor, Brunner could get selected . . . April 13, 2017 . C1. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
36. News: Fulkerson. Vickie. Geno has always loved everything about Wooden and UCLA . . . March 31, 2018 . 11. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
37. News: Batterson. Steve. Gustafson named AP player of the year . . . April 5, 2019 . B1. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
38. News: . April 1, 2020 . Ionescu wins Senior CLASS Award . . . September 9, 2024.
39. News: Senior CLASS Team . . . April 2, 2021 . B3. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.
40. News: Stanford's Lexie Hull declares for WNBA draft . The Spokesman-Review . Spokane, Washington . April 5, 2022 . B2. Newspapers.com. September 9, 2024.