PROVO, Utah – The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame announced that BYU forward Yoeli Childs is one of 10 players as candidates for the 2019 Karl Malone Power Forward of the Year Award.

The award is named after Utah Jazz Hall of Famer Karl Malone that is given to the top power forward in college basketball.

A national committee of top college basketball personnel released a list of 20 candidates in October, which has now been cut down to 10.

“The young men recognized as the top ten candidates for this, and other awards in the Naismith Starting 5, should feel extremely proud,” said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Basketball Hall of Fame. “While there’s still a lot of basketball left to be played, they have proven themselves thus far to be fierce competitors and fantastic teammates, much like Karl Malone himself.”

Childs is averaging a team-high 21.2 points and 9.5 rebounds per game while shooting 52.5 percent from the field. He is top-30 in the country in scoring, rebounding and double-doubles.

In March, five finalists will be presented to Malone and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee. They will present the award at the College Basketball Awards show on April 12.

The 2018 winner was Deandre Ayton, who went on to be the No. 1 overall pick in the 2018 NBA Draft.

Childs is in good company with the other 9 candidates that include:

• Zion Williamson, Duke
• Dedric Lawson, Kansas
• P.J. Washington, Kentucky
• Ignas Brazdeikis, Michigan
• Jordan Murphy, Minnesota
• Luke Maye, North Carolina
• Mike Daum, South Dakota State
• Grant Williams, Tennessee
• Eric Paschall, Villanova

#MaloneAward Watch List from @Hoophall:

Yoeli Childs
Zion Williamson
Dedric Lawson
PJ Washington
Ignas Brazdeikis
Jordan Murphy
Luke Maye
Mike Daum
Grant Williams
Eric Paschall

Who is your pick? pic.twitter.com/CwG7JuC1PK

— NCAA March Madness (@marchmadness) February 7, 2019