Zach Edey leads Wooden finalists; Brandon Miller off list

Reigning Wooden Award winner Oscar Tshiebwe and this season's favorite Zach Edey were among the 15 finalists named to the men's national ballot Saturday morning, as revealed on ESPN's «College GameDay.»

Edey, Purdue's 7-foot-4 center, is heading into the postseason as the perceived front-runner for the Wooden Award, given annually to the best college basketball player in the country.

He has been the most dominant player in men's college basketball for most of the season, ranking ninth in the country in scoring (22.1 PPG) and second in rebounds (13.1 RPG) while blocking 2.3 shots per game and shooting 61.6% from the field. Edey helped lead Purdue to its first outright Big Ten regular-season title since 2017.

Armando Bacot, North Carolina Antoine Davis, Detroit Mercy Zach Edey, Purdue Trayce Jackson-Davis, Indiana Jaime Jaquez Jr., UCLA Keyontae Johnson, Kansas State Mike Miles Jr., TCU Kris Murray, Iowa Jalen Pickett, Penn State Marcus Sasser, Houston Drew Timme, Gonzaga Oscar Tshiebwe, Kentucky Azuolas Tubelis, Arizona Jalen Wilson, Kansas Isaiah Wong, Miami

On Edey's heels is Indiana's Trayce Jackson-Davis, who has had an outstanding second half of the season, including helping the Hoosiers complete a season sweep of the Boilermakers. Jackson-Davis ranks 22nd nationally in scoring (20.3 PPG) and sixth in rebounds (11.1 RPG) while averaging 3.8 assists and 2.8 blocks. He is just behind Edey in scoring and rebounding in Big Ten play and leads the conference in blocks.

While Kentucky's Tshiebwe is unlikely to repeat, he has still been one of the best players in the SEC this season. Tshiebwe leads the nation in rebounding at 13.1 per game while averaging 16.5 points and shooting nearly 57% from the field.

Tshiebwe is one of