BOSTON – Southern Illinois men’s basketball graduate guard Xavier Johnson has been named to the 2023-24 Lute Olson Award Mid-Season Watch List, the organization announced Wednesday.
The award, which is presented annually to the top player in Division I college basketball, is named in honor of Hall of Fame coach Lute Olson, who won 776 games in 34 seasons, 24 of which were spent at the University of Arizona.
Johnson is the lone player from the Missouri Valley Conference that earned a spot on the watch list. A Germantown, Md., native, Johnson has led the Salukis to an 11-4 overall record and ranks second in the nation in scoring (24.3) and 18th in assists per game (6.1). He has put up five 30+ point scoring games and has scored at least 16 points in each of SIU’s games this season.
In his last nine games, Johnson has recorded at least five assists and has 30 assists in his last four games alone.
The recipient of the annual award is determined by a 10-member voting committee, which consists of current and former head coaches, as well as two senior staff members of collegeinsider.com.
The 2024 award will be announced in Phoenix, AZ, site of the men’s Division I Basketball Championship.
LUTE OLSON AWARD MID-SEASON WATCH LIST
| Johni Broome | 6-10 | Auburn |
| L.J. Cryer | 6-1 | Houston |
| RJ Davis | 6-0 | North Carolina |
| Hunter Dickinson | 7-2 | Kansas |
| Zach Edey | 7-4 | Purdue |
| Terrence Edwards Jr. | 6-6 | James Madison |
| Kyle Filipowski | 7-0 | Duke |
| Tyon Grant-Foster | 6-7 | Grand Canyon |
| PJ Hall | 6-10 | Clemson |
| Meechie Johnson | 6-2 | South Carolina |
| Xavier Johnson | 6-1 | Southern Illinois |
| David Jones | 6-6 | Memphis |
| Jaedon LeDee | 6-9 | San Diego State |
| Ryan Kalkbrenner | 7-1 | Creighton |
| Dalton Knecht | 6-6 | Tennessee |
| Tyler Kolek | 6-3 | Marquette |
| Xaivian Lee | 6-3 | Princeton |
| Caleb Love | 6-4 | Arizona |
| Kevin McCullar | 6-7 | Kansas |
| Tristen Newton | 6-5 | UConn |
| Great Osobor | 6-8 | Utah State |
| Jahvon Quinerly | 6-1 | Memphis |
| Antonio Reeves | 6-6 | Kentucky |
| Baylor Scheierman | 6-7 | Creighton |
| Jamal Shead | 6-1 | Houston |
| Isaiah Stevens | 6-0 | Colorado State |
| AJ Storr | 6-7 | Wisconsin |
| Wade Taylor IV | 6-0 | Texas A&M |
| Ja’Kobe Walter | 6-5 | Baylor |
| Shahada Wells | 6-0 | McNeese |