Nigel Hayes
Wisconsin is one of four schools in the country that has three nominees named to the 50-player Naismith Trophy Watch list.
The Badgers are joined by Duke, Kansas and Kentucky with three players making the list.
Ethan Happ, Nigel Hayes and Bronson Koenig were named to the list, which recognizes the best individual in men’s college basketball each season.
It marks the second-straight season Hayes has been pegged for the preseason Naismith Trophy watch list and the first appearances for Happ and Koenig.
Wisconsin has had three players go on to become finalists for the award, most recently Frank Kaminsky in 2015, who became the first player in program history to win the award.
Hayes has already been tabbed as the Big Ten Preseason Player of the Year.
The mid-season list of 30 for the 2017 Naismith Trophy will be announced Feb. 9, 2017.