Kempton named a Final Five Finalist for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award

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BETHLEHEM, Pa. - Lehigh men's basketball senior Tim Kempton continues to receive national recognition as he was named one of five finalists for the 2017 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award on Friday. The award recognizes the best center in men's college basketball and is named after Abdul-Jabbar, who won three national championships while in college. The other four finalists are Przemek Karnowski (Gonzaga), Jock Landale (St. Mary's), Angel Delgado (Seton Hall) and Ethan Happ (Wisconsin). Among the finalists, Kempton ranks first in points and second in rebounds per game.

The Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award winner will be announced Apr. 7 on ESPN's College Basketball Awards show, televised on ESPN2 at 8 p.m. The winner will be decided based on a combination of fan votes and input from the Basketball Hall of Fame's selection committee. Fans are encouraged to visit www.HoophallAwards.com between Mar. 10 and Mar. 24 to cast their votes.

In Kempton's senior season, he has averaged 20.4 points, 10.4 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game. He ranks 28th nationally in scoring and 14th in rebounding per game in the nation. Kempton's scoring average is 3.6 points per game more than any of the other four candidates. He's shown a diverse game on the inside and outside, knocking down 23 three-pointers, 19 more than the other three candidates combined.

In Wednesday's Patriot League Championship Game at Bucknell, Kempton continued his dominant Patriot League Tournament, finishing the game with 22 points and 17 rebounds, eclipsing former Bucknell standout Mike Muscala in both career points (2,038) and rebounds (1,095) in the game. Kempton finished the tournament averaging 24.3 points, 13.3 rebounds and 3.7 blocks per game and was named to the All-Tournament Team for a second straight season. He put up 20 points and 10 rebounds against Colgate in the tournament quarterfinals and 31 points and 13 rebounds against Boston University in the semifinals. Kempton posted 15 points and five rebounds over the two overtime periods to help lead Lehigh to its second straight Patriot League Championship Game.

Kempton stands atop the league in both scoring and rebounding, earning his third straight first team All-Patriot League honor. He will also graduate having won Patriot League Rookie of the Year and Player of the Year twice. On Tuesday, he was named to the USBWA All-District team, Lehigh's first honoree since C.J. McCollum since 2010-11.

Kempton stands in third place in Lehigh scoring all-time. His 2,043 points also puts him fourth in Patriot League history. He is also second in league history with his 1,095 rebounds.

This will be the third year the award is given out. The past two winners, Frank Kaminsky (2014-15) and Jacob Poeltl (2015-16) were both selected in the first round in the NBA draft the year after winning the award.

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Kempton named a Final Five Finalist for Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award

Players Mentioned

Tim Kempton

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