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WKU recruit Dayvion McKnight named Kentucky Mr. Basketball; averaged 20 points, 8.1 rebounds


Western Kentucky University signee Dayvion McKnight received the state’s top high school hoops honor Sunday, as the guard was named 2020 Kentucky Mr. Basketball.

McKnight received the award, given to the state’s top senior, from the Kentucky Lions Eye Foundation during a virtual ceremony on Sunday.

McKnight, a 6-foot-2 guard from Collins High School in Shelbyville, is the ninth Kentucky Mr. Basketball award winner to join WKU. Four of the last six winners have played for the Hilltoppers.

Dayvion McKnight of Collins High School was named Kentucky Mr. Basketball on Sunday. (Collins HS photo)

McKnight, who signed a letter of intent with WKU in November, averaged 20 points and 8.1 rebounds per game as a senior for Collins while leading the Titans to a 27-7 record and the 8th Region championship. He shot 57.6 percent from the field and made 172 free throws.

He was named the 8th Region Player of the Year by the Kentucky Association of Basketball Coaches and the 8th Region coaches, as well as a first team All-State selection by the Louisville Courier-Journal.

McKnight finished his career as Collins’ all-time leader in points (1,897), rebounds (1,040), assists (600) and steals (329). He averaged 17 points and 10.4 rebounds as a junior, when he was chosen as a second team all-state pick.

McKnight recruit joins Camron Justice (2015), Carson Williams (2016) and Taveion Hollingsworth (2017) as Kentucky Mr. Basketball winners to play for the Hilltoppers in the last six seasons.

Last season, WKU became just the second team in state history to feature three Kentucky Mr. Basketball winners on the same roster, and the first to start all three in a game. With the graduation of Justice and the addition of McKnight, the Hilltoppers will once again feature three honorees on the 2020-21 squad.

The other previous Kentucky Mr. Basketball winners to play for WKU are Steffphon Pettigrew (2007), Steve Miller (1984), Terry Davis (1968), Jim McDaniels (1967) and Harry Todd (1958).

Northern Kentucky University recruit Marques Warrick was one of the finalists for Kentucky Mr. Basketball. Warrick, a 6-foot-3 guard from Lexington Henry Clay, averaged 23.2 points per game and was named the 11th Region Player of the Year. The sharp-shooting lefty was 69-for-159 (43.4 percent) from 3-point range this season and converted 81.8 percent of his free throws.

In his final game at Henry Clay, Warrick poured in 48 points — including eight 3-pointers — during a 108-104 double-overtime loss against Frederick Douglass.

From Western Kentucky University and staff reports


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