Former Crestwood standout Morant wins Cousy Award as nation's top point guard

The awards just keep piling up for former Crestwood High School basketball standout Ja Morant.

The Murray State point guard received the Bob Cousy Award from the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on Friday at the ESPN College Basketball Awards Show in Los Angeles.

The award is given annually to the most outstanding point guard in the country. Morant edged out Marquette's Markus Howard, Gonzaga's Josh Perkins, Louisiana State's Tremont Waters and Michigan State's Cassius Winston for the honor.

Morant averaged 24.5 points and 10 assists per game this year, making him the first player in college basketball history to average at least 20 points and 10 assists in a season since the assist became an official stat in 1983-84.

"I'd say my IQ," Morant said when ESPN's Jay Williams asked him at the ceremony what attribute of his game would translate best at the next level. "Just being able to make plays for not only me, but my teammates. Making the job easy on them."

Williams also pointed out that after doing research at the beginning of the year, he realized Morant wasn't ranked coming out of high school, and Williams asked Morant how he felt about that.

"It is true; I wasn't ranked coming out of high school," Morant said. "I was really overlooked, and now it's just a chip that I play with on my shoulder."

Morant has proven those who overlooked him wrong this season.

He earned 13 total All-American honors this season, including first-team honors from the Associated Press, Basketball Times, Bleacher Report, CBS Sports, the Lute Olson Award, NABC, Sports Illustrated, USBWA and the Wooden Award and second-team honors from NBC Sports, Sporting News, Stadium and USA TODAY Sports.

Williams also asked Morant why he does what he does.

"It's my dad (Ronnie "Tee" Morant)," Morant said. "He actually had the opportunity to play professional basketball, and my mom (Jamie) called him and told him that she was pregnant with me. And instead of going to play professional ball, he stayed and raised me, so I'm living his dream through me."

Morant is projected to be a lottery pick in the 2019 National Basketball Association draft on June 20.