Duke freshman Kyle Singler was named ACC Preseason Rookie of the Year at the conference's annual media day Sunday. At Duke's media day Oct. 12, head coach Mike Krzyzewski said that the 6-foot-8 forward would start if the season had begun that day.
Singler, a product of Medford, Ore., received 36 votes, topping N.C. State's J.J. Hickson by 21.
Freshman guard Nolan Smith also received five votes, good for third place.
The Blue Devils were tabbed second in the preseason rankings, trailing only North Carolina. The Tar Heels earned all 64 first-place votes and 768 total votes. They were followed by Duke (653), N.C. State (641) and Clemson (514).
North Carolina forward Tyler Hansbrough was selected as the conference's Preseason Player of the Year. The junior gained all but four first-place votes, which went to Virginia guard Sean Singletary.
Hansbrough and Singletary were joined by N.C. State's Brandon Costner, North Carolina's Ty Lawson and Boston College's Tyrese Rice on the conference's preseason first team.
Conferece to honor late coach Rod Myers
After voting to establish scholar-athlete awards in all sports, the ACC opted to name the Men's Golf Scholar-Atehlte Award after former Duke coach Rod Myers, who passed away last March from leukemia. Myers, who coached for 34 years, was a beloved member of the Duke community.
In addition to the Myers award, the ACC also created the Skip Prosser Award to honor the conference's top student-athlete on men's basketball teams. Prosser, the former Wake Forest head coach, passed away suddenly in July.
Candidates for the Prosser Award will be juniors and seniors with grade point averages of at least 3.0 both for their career and in the last two semesters. The award will be based on both academic achievements and athletic accomplishments.
Blue Devils continue to roll in ITA Regionals
Freshmen Reka Zsilinszka and Ellah Nze both advanced to the finals of the ITA Southeast Regional Championships in Chapel Hill, where they will face each other for the tournament title Monday.
Zsilinszka won 6-2, 6-2 in the semifinals, and Nze posted a 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (1) victory.
Junior Melissa Mang and freshman Amanda Granson also advanced to the semifinals of the double draw with an 8-5 victory.
The duo will play for a spot in the finals Monday.
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