Ethan Happ wins 2019 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award

On Friday night at the ESPN College Basketball Awards Show in Los Angeles, Ethan Happ claimed another honor on Friday night. The Wisconsin Badgers big man was announced as the recipient of the 2019 Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award, a distinction given by the Basketball Hall of Fame to the country’s best center.

Happ becomes the second Badger to win the award, as Frank Kaminsky was the first player ever to win the honor in 2015. The Milan, Ill., native—who led the team this season in points (17.3), rebounds (10.1), assists (4.5) and steals (1.1) per game—recently claimed this season’s NABC Pete Newell Big Man of the Year award, first-team All-Big honors and was deemed a consensus second-team All-American.

According to UW, Happ’s performance in averaging a double-double was the first time a Badger did so since 1995.