Niang a finalist for Senior CLASS Award

Georges Niang‘s one of 10 finalists for the Senior CLASS award, which is bequeathed annually to the player who best combines "notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition.

 The list of finalists was announced today in a news release. Niang demonstrated most of the aforementioned qualities during Thursday’s players-only meeting.

 "Be us," Niang said of the upshot of that sometimes emotional get-together. "Let’s not steer away from who we are and what’s made us good."

 As for the competition component …

 The Cyclones (18-8, 7-6) take on last-place TCU (11-15, 2-11) at 6:30 p.m. Saturday at Hilton Coliseum.

Here’s the news release from ISU Athletics Communications:

AMES —  Iowa State senior Georges Niang has been selected as one of ten finalists for the Senior CLASS Award, given annually to the student-athletes that excel both on and off the court.

To be eligible for the award, student-athletes must be classified as NCAA Division I seniors and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their athletic platforms to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.

The finalists were chosen by national media from the list of 30 men’s candidates announced in January. Nationwide fan voting begins immediately to help select the winner, and fans are encouraged to submit votes online at the Senior CLASS Award website through March 21. Fan votes will be combined with those of the media and Division I head coaches to determine the winners. The Senior CLASS Award recipients will be announced during the 2016 NCAA Men’s Final Four.

Men’s Basketball Finalists

Ryan Arcidiacono, Villanova

Malcolm Brogdon, Virginia

Perry Ellis, Kansas

Buddy Hield, Oklahoma

Georges Niang, Iowa State

Marcus Paige, North Carolina

Justin Sears, Yale

Denzel Valentine, Michigan State

Fred VanVleet, Wichita State

Kyle Wiltjer, Gonzaga