BOSTON — Little Rock senior forward Ruot Monyyong has been named to the Mid-Season Lou Henson Award Watch List, announced today by College Insider. The award is given annually to the top mid-major player in Division I basketball.
The 2020-21 Sun Belt Conference Preseason Player of the Year, Monyyong has picked up right where he left off last season when he was tabbed the league’s Newcomer and Defensive Player of the Year. Monyyong is averaging 13.0 points and 11.1 rebounds on the year, including 15.3 points and 13.1 rebounds in Sun Belt play.
Monyyong is the active Sun Belt leader in rebounds (470), blocks (89) and double-doubles (26), ranking second nationally in total blocks (167), third in double-doubles (10) and seventh in both total (11.1) and defensive (8.0) rebounds per game. He has pulled down double-digit rebound totals in 11 of his 15 games played this season.
For his career, Monyyong has notched 26 double-doubles, which ranks 11th nationally among active Division I players and second all-time in Trojan program history, trailing Rashad Jones-Jennings (2005-07) by two. He is coming off a career-best 19-rebound performance against UT Arlington Saturday and ranks second in the Sun Belt in both rebounding (11.1) and blocks (1.8), sitting third in field goal percentage (60.2%) and fourth in minutes played (34.1).
A 2020 Lefty Driesell Defensive All-American, Monyyong is one of four Sun Belt Conference players among the watch list, joined by Coastal Carolina’s DeVante’ Jones, Georgia State’s Justin Roberts and Louisiana’s Cedric Russell.
The award is named after Lou Henson, the former Illinois and New Mexico State head coach who won 775 games in 41 seasons of coaching and is one of only 11 coaches to take two different teams to the NCAA Final Four. The recipient of the 2020-21 award will be announced in April.
Monyyong and the rest of the Trojans return home this weekend for a pair of games against ULM Friday, January 29 and Saturday, January 30. Tickets for both games are available by contacting the Trojan Ticket Office at (501) 565-8257.