Joseph Tugler Receives Lefty Driesell Award

HOUSTON – University of Houston sophomore forward Joseph Tugler was honored as the nation's top defensive player when he received the Lefty Driesell Award.

Tugler broke into the Cougars' starting lineup early in the season and has been a fixture since. The Monroe, La., native leads Houston, ranks third in the Big 12 and 28^th nationally with 2.8 blocked shots per game and stands among the league's Top-20 leaders with 5.9 rebounds per contest.

Tugler has blocked at least one shot in all but three games with multiple blocks games in 18 games. He swatted eight shots against Alabama at the Players Era Festival, becoming the first Cougar to accomplish that feat since the 2005-06 season.

The Monroe, La., native also became only the sixth Cougar in school history to block 8+ shots in a single game, joining center Emmanuel Adeife, center Anwar Ferguson, forward Dwight Jones, center Hakeem Olajuwon and forward Bo Outlaw.

This isn't the first recognition for Tugler's defensive prowess in 2024-25. He was named the Big 12 Conference Defensive Player of the Year last month.

This was the second straight season in which a Cougar was named the Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year. Point guard Jamal Shead took home the award in 2023-24, becoming the first player in league history to receive the Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year honors in the same season.

Tugler is one of four finalists for the Naismith National Defensive Player of the Year presented by MOLECULE. That award will be presented this weekend at the NCAA Final Four in San Antonio, Texas.

ABOUT LEFTY DRIESELL
The Lefty Driesell Award is named in honor of the legendary coach who spent over four decades as a head coach. Driesell won 786 games in 41 years at Davidson, Maryland, James Madison, and Georgia State.

He ranks eighth on the NCAA career Division I coaches victories list and his teams at each stop were known for playing tenacious defense.

From 1969-1986 at Maryland, his teams posted a jo348-159 record, won two Atlantic Coast Conference regular season titles and one tournament title.

Driesell also led Davidson, Georgia State and James Madison to the NCAA tournament, making him one of three coaches to reach the NCAAs with four different programs. His teams won a total of 16 regular season championships and six tournament championships.

Charles "Lefty" Driesell passed away on Feb. 17, 2024. He was 92.

UP NEXT
• Houston has advanced to the NCAA Tournament Final Four for the seventh time in school history and the second time under Head Coach Kelvin Sampson.
• The Cougars will face #1/1 (1) Duke inside Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas, on Saturday.
• That game will tip off at 7:49 p.m., and can be seen on CBS. It can be heard on 950 AM KPRC, Varsity Network app and Westwood One.

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