Blue Devil Nation: Luke Kennard Earns All American Honors

(Photo by Lance King for Blue Devil Nation)

DURHAM, N.C. – Duke sophomore guard Luke Kennard opened the national awards season on a high note Monday, receiving first-team All-America honors from NBC Sports and second-team acclaim from USA Today.

Both outlets’ All-America teams are a precursor to the release of the four All-America squads (AP, NABC, Sporting News, USBWA) that are used to determine consensus status.

Kennard leads Duke in scoring with an average of 20.1 points per game while shooting .504 from the floor, .450 from outside the arc and .847 from the free throw line. He is one of two players nationally – and the only major-conference player – to average at least 20.0 points while shooting at least .500 from the floor, .400 from outside the arc and .800 from the line.

The Franklin, Ohio, native has scored in double figures in 30 of Duke’s 31 games this season, eclipsing the 20-point mark a team-high 16 times. He leads the ACC in scoring and ranks second in three-point field goal percentage while averaging the third-most minutes per game (35.6) in the ACC. He is the only ACC guard shooting above .500 from the floor this season (min. 5FG/game).

He has made at least one three-point field goal in 34 consecutive games, tied for the fourth-longest streak in Duke history and the 16th-longest stretch in ACC history.

Kennard eclipsed the 1,000-point mark for his career on Feb. 25 at Miami, becoming just the 12th Duke player (and fifth under Mike Krzyzewski) to hit that milestone prior to the end of his second season. He has an opportunity to become the fifth Duke player – and first since Christian Laettner in 1992 – to average at least 20.0 points while shooting at least 50 percent from the field.

For his career, Kennard owns averages of 15.6 points, 4.4 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 30.8 minutes. He is a career .466 shooter from the floor and .384 from three-point range. Kennard’s .863 career free throw percentage is currently the second-best in Duke history (min. 200 FTs made).

He has scored at least 20 points in more than one-third (23-of-67) of his games in a Duke uniform.

Kennard was the only unanimous choice for first-team All-ACC honors this season, and was also named a member of the national ballot for the John R. Wooden Award and a semifinalist for the Naismith Trophy.

NBC Sports All-America Teams

First Team

Lonzo Ball, UCLA

Josh Hart, Villanova

Luke Kennard, Duke

Frank Mason III, Kansas

Caleb Swanigan, Purdue

Second Team

Josh Jackson, Kansas

Justin Jackson, North Carolina

Malik Monk, Kentucky

Johnathan Motley, Baylor

Nigel Williams-Goss, Gonzaga

Third Team

Dillon Brooks, Oregon

John Collins, Wake Forest

Jawun Evans, Oklahoma State

Lauri Markkanen, Arizona

Monte Morris, Iowa State

USA Today All-America Teams