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. 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." NCAA Division I basketball coaches, media members, and fans vote during the selection process.
History The idea for the award came from legendary sportscaster Dick Enberg. A major storyline throughout the 2000–01 men's basketball season, and during 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. 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. 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. 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.
In September 2022, Premier Sports Management decided to "take a pause" on presenting future Senior CLASS award winners. 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. Once they have a new sponsor they intend to resume the awards "for years to come."
Key * Awarded a national player of the year award that same season: Men – Sporting News; Oscar Robertson Trophy; Associated Press; NABC; UPI; Naismith; Wooden; Adolph Rupp TrophyWomen – Wade; Associated Press; Naismith; Wooden
Winners
+ Men Year Player School Position Reference 2000–01 * Duke SF 2001–02 Maryland SG 2002–03 * Xavier PF 2003–04 * Saint Joseph's PG 2004–05 Kansas PF 2005–06 * Duke SG 2006–07 Wisconsin SF 2007–08 Vanderbilt SG / SF 2008–09 North Carolina PF / C 2009–10 West Virginia SF / PF 2010–11 * BYU SG 2011–12 Purdue SF 2012–13 Indiana PG 2013–14 * Creighton SF / PF 2014–15 Butler PG 2015–16 * Michigan State SF 2016–17 Villanova SF 2017–18 West Virginia PG 2018–19 North Carolina PF 2019–20 Marquette PG 2020–21 * Iowa C 2021–22 Richmond PG + Women Year Player School Position 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 2007–08 * Stanford PG / SG 2008–09 Oklahoma C 2009–10 Nebraska F 2010–11 * UConn PF 2011–12 Stanford PF 2012–13 Delaware SF / SG 2013–14 UConn C 2014–15 Iowa PG 2015–16 * UConn PF 2016–17 Oregon State PG / SG 2017–18 UConn PF 2018–19 * Iowa PF / C 2019–20 * Oregon PG 2020–21 Tennessee F 2021–22 Stanford SG
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