Penn State men’s basketball point guard Ace Baldwin Jr. has been named to the Oscar Robertson Trophy’s midseason watch list, the U.S. Basketball Writer’s Association announced Monday.

Another one @yeah_ace3

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— Penn State Men’s Basketball (@PennStateMBB) February 3, 2025

This comes just a few hours after Baldwin was named a finalist for the Bob Cousy Award for the best point guard in the nation.

The Oscar Robertson Trophy, named after the NBA Hall of Famer, is given out annually to the top men’s basketball player in the country. Recent winners include former Purdue center Zach Edey, former Iowa center Luka Garza, and former Duke standout Zion Williamson. Baldwin is the first Nittany Lion to be named to the 50-person midseason watch list since Jalen Pickett was one of the final 15 in 2022-23.

Baldwin, in his second season with the Nittany Lions, is averaging 14.1 points and 7.8 assists (both team-highs), as well as 2.7 rebounds and 2.0 steals on 37% from the field, 30.8% from three, and 93.3% at the free throw line, which is fifth in the nation.

Baldwin is the Division I active leader in career steals at 313. He’s averaging two-plus steals per game for the fifth consecutive season, dating back to his time at VCU. His 7.8 assists per game is fourth in the nation, behind notable names such as Gonzaga’s Ryan Nembhard and Purdue’s Braden Smith.

The Nittany Lions’ lead guard has five 20+ point games (season-high of 25 vs Purdue Fort Wayne), six double-digit assist games, five double-doubles, and two games with five steals. He set a single-game school record with 16 assists against Coppin State.

SINGLE-GAME RECORD

Ace Baldwin Jr. with his single-game Penn State record 16th assist of the game ↓

: @BigTenNetwork#WeAre pic.twitter.com/TBK0OpiAyx

— Penn State Men’s Basketball (@PennStateMBB) December 14, 2024

Baldwin will work to continue stacking awards, having already been named the Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year last season, All-Big Ten Third-Team, and Atlantic 10 Player of the Year in 2022-23 with VCU. The Oscar Robertson Award Watch List will be narrowed down to a final 15 in March before being announced in early April.

The Nittany Lions are back in action at 7 p.m. on Tuesday night at the Bryce Jordan Center, hosting Minnesota. The game will be televised on the Big Ten Network.