Josh Cohen (Lincroft, N.J./Christian Brothers Academy), a member of the Saint Francis University men's basketball team has been named to the Oscar Robertson Trophy Midseason Watch List by the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA), announced on Thursday. 

"This is a tremendous honor for Josh and he has worked hard to position himself as one of the best players in the country," said Saint Francis head coach Rob Krimmel. "His passion for winning and his desire to be great are unmatched. Josh's growth as a player parallels his growth as a leader of our program. He is very deserving to be included in this elite group of finalists for the Oscar Robertson Award."

Cohen, who is believed to be the first-ever Northeast Conference (NEC) player added to the watch list, ranks ninth in all of NCAA Division I with 21.5 points per game, while also ranking fifth in field goals made (147), 10th in points (387) and 24th in field goal percentage (60.7) through play on Wednesday.  

Cohen has been linked to two of the players on the list: Zach Edey (Purdue) and Drew Timme (Gonzaga). The trio are the only players in NCAA Division I to currently averaging 21.0 points a game and shooting at least 60.0 percent from the floor. 

The redshirt junior has posted eight 20-point games in the first 18 games of the season including five games with 27 points or more. Cohen posted a career-high 40 points against Lehigh on November 21, which was two points off the DeGol Arena record and marked the first time a Red Flash player posted 40 points in a game since Mike Iuzzolino against Robert Morris in 1991. The New Jersey native then repeated the feat on the road against Hawai'i on December 11 to join Naismith Hall of Famer Maurice Stokes as the only two players in team history to have two 40-point games in a career/season. Stokes had five in his senior season including three in his final five games. Cohen missed the arena record against the Rainbow Warriors by one point, but tied the arena record with 16 made field goals.

Cohen has also been the leading rebounder on the team and has registered eight games with at least nine rebounds and three double-doubles with a 28-point and a career-high 14 rebounds at Robert Morris on December 21 on his resume. In the three games he has finished with 30 points or more, the redshirt junior has narrowly missed a double-double each time, finishing with nine rebounds on each occasion. 

A three-time NEC Player of the Week honoree this season and four times in his career, he was also named to the 2022-23 All-NEC Preseason team and the 2021-22 NEC Most Improved Player. 

He fuels the league in scoring and field goal percentage, while ranking second in offensive rebounds (2.83 pg.), second in rebounding (8.2 rpg.), second in minutes played (33.17), fourth in defensive rebounds (5.33 rpg.) and 10th in blocked shots (0.61). Cohen current holds a 3.8 points per game average edge over the next scorer in the NEC (Marko Maletic, LIU, 17.7 ppg.) and 12.8 percent in field goal percentage (Kellen Amos, CCSU, 47.9). 

For his career, Cohen has appeared in 65 games with 34 starts with 843 points, 424 rebounds, 93 assists, 35 blocks and 35 steals. He is also shooting 60.1 percent (322-for-536) from the floor in his career. He recently became the 33rd player since Saint Francis joined the NEC to reach 800 points and the 22nd to reach 400 rebounds in his career. He has scored double figures in each of his last 26 games and 40 games in his career with 12 20-point games in his three seasons in Loretto. He also has 10 games with at least 10 rebounds and nine career double-doubles on his resume. 

Since the 1958-59 season, the USBWA has named a National Player of the Year. In 1998, the award was named in honor of the University of Cincinnati Hall of Famer and two-time USBWA Player of the Year Oscar Robertson. It is the nation's oldest award and the only one named after a former player. 

At the conclusion of the regular season, the entire USBWA membership will vote for the award. The winner of the award will be announced at the 2023 Men's Final Four in Houston with the formal presentation to follow at the annual USBWA Awards Luncheon hosted by the Missouri Athletic Club ­in St. Louis. 

All Division I players remain eligible for the 2022-23 Oscar Robertson Trophy. The watch list merely spotlights the top candidates, as selected by the USBWA board. 

Saint Francis returns to action at home against St. Francis Brooklyn on Friday. Tip-off is 7 p.m. The Red Flash are off to its second-best NEC start in team history at 4-1 for the sixth time. 

The complete 50-man Oscar Robertson Trophy Midseason Watch List: 

• Max Abmas, Oral Roberts (6-0, 175, Sr. G, Rockwall, Texas) 
• Tyree Appleby, Wake Forest (6-0. 175, Gr., G, Jacksonville, Ark.) 
• Armando Bacot, North Carolina (6-11, 235, Sr. F/C, Richmond, Va.) 
• Oumar Ballo, Arizona (7-0, 260, Jr.,. C, Koulikoro, Mali) 
• Souley Boum, Xavier (6-3, 175, Gr., G, Oakland, Calif.) 
• Jordan Brown, Louisiana (6-11, 225, Jr., F, Roseville, Calif.) 
• Kobe Brown, Missouri (6-8, 250, Sr., G/F, Huntsville, Ala.) 
• Marcus Carr, Texas (6-2, 175, Gr., G, Toronto, Ont.) 
• Jaylen Clark, UCLA (6-5, 205, Jr., G, Riverside, Calif.) 
• Josh Cohen, Saint Francis (6-10, 220, Jr., F, Lincroft, N.J.) 
• Yuri Collins, Saint Louis (6-0, 190, Jr., G, St. Louis, Mo.) 
• Ricky Council IV, Arkansas (6-6, 205, Jr., G, Durham, N.C.) 
• Antoine Davis, Detroit Mercy (6-1, 165, Gr., G, Birmingham, Ala.) 
• Kendric Davis, Memphis (6-0, 177, Sr., G, Houston, Texas) 
• Gradey Dick, Kansas (6-8, 205, Fr., G, Wichita, Kan.) 
• Hunter Dickinson, Michigan (7-1, 260, Jr., C, Alexandria, Va.) 
• Jordan Dingle, Penn (6-3, 195, Jr., G, Valley Stream, N.Y.) 
• Zach Edey, Purdue (7-4, 305, Jr., C, Toronto, Ont.) 
• Kyle Filipowski, Duke (7-0, 230, Fr., C,  Westtown, N.Y.) 
• Adam Flagler, Baylor (6-3, 185, Sr., G, Duluth, Ga.) 
• Keyonte George, Baylor (6-4, 185, Fr., G, Lewisville, Texas) 
• DaRon Holmes II, Dayton (6-10, 231, So., F, Goodyear, Ariz.) 
• Bryce Hopkins, Providence (6-7, 220, So., F/G, Oak Park, Ill.) 
• Jaelen House, New Mexico (6-0, 170, Sr., G, Phoenix, Ariz.) 
• Trayce Jackson-Davis, Indiana (6-9, 245, Jr., F, Greenwood, Ind.) 
• Jaime Jaquez Jr., UCLA (6-7, 225, Sr., G/F,  Camarillo, Calif.) 
• Keyontae Johnson, Kansas State (6-6, 230, Sr., F,  Norfolk, Va.) 
• Ryan Kalkbrenner, Creighton (7-1, 260, Jr., C, Florissant, Mo.) 
• Taevion Kinsey, Marshall (6-5, 191, Sr., G, Columbus, Ohio) 
• Caleb Love, North Carolina (6-4, 200, Jr., G, St. Louis, Mo.) 
• Mike Miles Jr., TCU (6-2, 195, Jr., G,  Highland Hills, Texas) 
• Brandon Miller, Alabama (6-9, 200, Fr., F, Antioch, Tenn.) 
• Kris Murray, Iowa (6-8, 220, Jr. F, Cedar Rapids, Iowa) 
• Jameer Nelson Jr., Delaware (6-1, 200, Jr., G, Haverford, Pa.) 
• Markquis Nowell, Kansas State (5-8, 160, Sr., G, Harlem, N.Y.) 
• Jalen Pickett, Penn State (6-4, 209, Sr., G, Rochester, N.Y.) 
• Marcus Sasser, Houston (6-2, 195, Sr., G, Dallas, Texas) 
• Terrence Shannon Jr., Illinois (6-6, 225, Sr., G, Chicago, Ill.) 
• Terquavion Smith, NC State (6-4, 165, So., G,  Greenville, N.C.) 
• Adama Sonogo, Connecticut (6-9, 245, Jr., F, Bamako, Mali) 
• Joel Soriano, St. John's (6-11, 280, Sr., C, Yonkers, N.Y.) 
• Jake Stephens, Chattanooga (7-0, 275, Gr., C, Bunker Hill, W. Va.) 
• Drew Timme, Gonzaga (6-10, 235, Sr., F, Richardson, Texas) 
• Oscar Tshiebwe, Kentucky (6-9, 260, Sr., F, Lubumbashi, Congo) 
• Azuolas Tubelis, Arizona (6-11, 245, Jr., F, Vilnius, Lithuania) 
• Hunter Tyson, Clemson (6-8, 217, Gr., F, Monroe, N.C.) 
• Jordan Walker, UAB (5-11, 170, Sr., G, Long Island, N.Y.) 
• KJ Williams, LSU (6-10, 250, Sr., F, Cleveland, Miss.) 
• Jalen Wilson, Kansas (6-8, 225, Jr., F, Denton, Texas) 
• Isaiah Wong, Miami (6-4, 184, Jr., G, Piscataway, N.J.) 

By conference: Big 12 8, Atlantic Coast 7, Big East and Big Ten 6, SEC 5, Pac-12 4, American Athletic and Sun Belt 2, Atlantic 10, Colonial Athletic, Conference USA, Horizon, Ivy, Mountain West, Northeast, Southern, Summit and West Coast 1. 

The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. With some 900 members worldwide, it is one of the most influential organizations in college basketball. It has selected an All-America team since the 1956-57 season.