Men's Basketball's Jordan Gainey Named A Finalist for the Kyle Macy Award
3/25/2022 1:30:00 PM | Men's Basketball
BOSTON, Mass. – USC Upstate men's basketball guard Jordan Gainey has been named a finalist for the 2022 Kyle Macy Award presented by CollegeInsider.com. The award is presented annually to the top freshman in Division I college basketball.
The Kyle Macy Award, which is presented annually to the top freshman in Division I college basketball, is named for a guard who starred as a freshman for Purdue.
The 1975 Indiana "Mr. Basketball" played his freshman season at Purdue University, averaging 13.8 points per game while leading the Boilermakers in free throws (85.9 percent for the season). He started in 25 of 27 games, helping them to a 16-11 season record.
After playing his freshman year at Purdue, Macy transferred to the University of Kentucky in 1976. He started every game for the Wildcats in 1977. A three-time All-America and three-time All-SEC player, Macy was a member of Kentucky's 1978 National Championship team. In his senior year of 1979-80, he became the first Kentucky player ever to be named consensus Southeastern Conference Player of the Year.
Gainey concluded the 2021-22 season as the Big South Freshman of the Year after leading Upstate in both field goal percentage and three-point field goal percentage, shooting 47.1 (146-of-310) and 49.3 (74-of-150) percent, respectively, this season. He also ranked second among Spartans in scoring this season, averaging 13.8 points per game overall and 16.3 points per game during Big South play.
A native of Tucson, Ariz., Gainey scored in double-figures on 25 occasions for the Spartans, including five games scoring 20 or more points. He poured in a career-high 24 points against Winthrop on Jan. 26, shooting 7-for-11 from the floor, 2-of-4 from three, and 8-of-9 from the free throw line.
2021-22 KYLE MACY FRESHMEN ALL-AMERICA TEAM
Taran Armstrong, G, California Baptist
Zack Austin, F, High Point
Paolo Banchero, F, Duke
Malaki Branham, F, Ohio State
Paul Bruns, G, North Dakota
Kennedy Chandler, G, Tennessee
Jyare Davis, F, Delaware
Tyson Degenhart, F, Boise State
Tucker DeVries, F, Drake
Jalen Duren, C, Memphis
Jordan Gainey, G, USC Upstate
A.J. Griffin, G, Duke
Elijah Hawkins, G, Howard
Chet Holmgren, F, Gonzaga
Tyrese Hunter, G, Iowa State
Jao Ituka, G, Marist
Denver Jones, G, FIU
Kino Lilly Jr., G, Brown
Frances Nwaokorie, F, UC San Diego
Jabari Smith, F, Auburn
Reyne Smith, G, Charleston
Payton Sparks, F, Ball State
Ray'Sean Taylor, G, SIU Edwardsville
Fousseni Traore, F, BYU
Sam Vinson, G, Northern Kentucky
Ty Ty Washington, G, Kentucky
JOIN UP
Make a difference in the lives of USC Upstate student-athletes! Donate to the USC Upstate U Club today!
Keep UP with the Spartans
Facebook.com/UpstateAthletics
Twitter: @UpstateMBB
Instagram: @upstatespartans
YouTube.com/UpstateSpartans
The Kyle Macy Award, which is presented annually to the top freshman in Division I college basketball, is named for a guard who starred as a freshman for Purdue.
The 1975 Indiana "Mr. Basketball" played his freshman season at Purdue University, averaging 13.8 points per game while leading the Boilermakers in free throws (85.9 percent for the season). He started in 25 of 27 games, helping them to a 16-11 season record.
After playing his freshman year at Purdue, Macy transferred to the University of Kentucky in 1976. He started every game for the Wildcats in 1977. A three-time All-America and three-time All-SEC player, Macy was a member of Kentucky's 1978 National Championship team. In his senior year of 1979-80, he became the first Kentucky player ever to be named consensus Southeastern Conference Player of the Year.
Gainey concluded the 2021-22 season as the Big South Freshman of the Year after leading Upstate in both field goal percentage and three-point field goal percentage, shooting 47.1 (146-of-310) and 49.3 (74-of-150) percent, respectively, this season. He also ranked second among Spartans in scoring this season, averaging 13.8 points per game overall and 16.3 points per game during Big South play.
A native of Tucson, Ariz., Gainey scored in double-figures on 25 occasions for the Spartans, including five games scoring 20 or more points. He poured in a career-high 24 points against Winthrop on Jan. 26, shooting 7-for-11 from the floor, 2-of-4 from three, and 8-of-9 from the free throw line.
2021-22 KYLE MACY FRESHMEN ALL-AMERICA TEAM
Taran Armstrong, G, California Baptist
Zack Austin, F, High Point
Paolo Banchero, F, Duke
Malaki Branham, F, Ohio State
Paul Bruns, G, North Dakota
Kennedy Chandler, G, Tennessee
Jyare Davis, F, Delaware
Tyson Degenhart, F, Boise State
Tucker DeVries, F, Drake
Jalen Duren, C, Memphis
Jordan Gainey, G, USC Upstate
A.J. Griffin, G, Duke
Elijah Hawkins, G, Howard
Chet Holmgren, F, Gonzaga
Tyrese Hunter, G, Iowa State
Jao Ituka, G, Marist
Denver Jones, G, FIU
Kino Lilly Jr., G, Brown
Frances Nwaokorie, F, UC San Diego
Jabari Smith, F, Auburn
Reyne Smith, G, Charleston
Payton Sparks, F, Ball State
Ray'Sean Taylor, G, SIU Edwardsville
Fousseni Traore, F, BYU
Sam Vinson, G, Northern Kentucky
Ty Ty Washington, G, Kentucky
JOIN UP
Make a difference in the lives of USC Upstate student-athletes! Donate to the USC Upstate U Club today!
Keep UP with the Spartans
Facebook.com/UpstateAthletics
Twitter: @UpstateMBB
Instagram: @upstatespartans
YouTube.com/UpstateSpartans
Players Mentioned
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