The Badgers are enjoying a solid season at 16-6, and now one of their best players is getting some recognition.
Junior guard John Blackwell has been named one of the 10 finalists for the Jerry West Award, given to the best shooting guard in the country. Former Badger Johnny Davis won the award back in 2022. Blackwell will be competing with BYU's Richie Saunders and Kansas' projected No. 1 overall pick Darryn Peterson among others.
Check out the full list of finalists below.
The 2026 Jerry West Award candidates 🤩 pic.twitter.com/MKz6Q3Klgc
— NCAA March Madness (@MarchMadnessMBB) February 3, 2026
Badgers' star finally getting his flowers during impressive junior season
Blackwell had a strong sophomore season as a first time starter, and even tested the NBA Draft waters. But he came back for a junior year and is playing some really great basketball for the Badgers. So far this season he's averaging 18.5 points, five rebounds and 2.3 assists per game. As one of the more well-rounded players in college basketball, Blackwell is top-three on the team in each category as well.
Wisconsin basketball has been no stranger to taking home some hardware. Johnny Davis and Frank Kaminsky received various player of the year awards, and last year John Tonje was an All-American and Naismith finalist. Blackwell is obviously talented, but has a tendency to be a bit inconsistent. He's also struggled against ranked teams, averaging just 14 points per game on 33% shooting in four contests. Still, he's had a nice stretch of games as of late and is averaging 22 points per game over the Badgers last two and has gotten Wisconsin out of a jam on more than one occasion, including a buzzer beater to beat Minnesota.
ESPN currently has Blackwell as the No.77 rated prospect heading into this summer's draft, so while he's enjoying a great season, there's always a chance he comes back as a senior for another go with the Badgers.