Ben Simmons among Naismith Trophy semifinalists

LSU signee Ben Simmons, the 6'10 forward out of Melbourne, Australia, has been selected as a semifinalist for the Naismith Trophy Boy's High School Player of the Year award.

Ben Simmons | Photo credit: Dave Roback / The Republican

Simmons, who attends Montverde Academy in Florida, is among 10 semifinalists and is the only international player included in the selection.

Simmons was named to the Boy’s High School Player of the Year Midseason Team in late-January and is considered as one of the frontrunners to win the coveted award. Previous winners of the Player of the Year award include Kobe Bryant, Lebron James and Dwight Howard.

This selection caps off an impressive past few weeks for Simmons, with the ESPN #1 ranked player also being selected to play in the 2015 McDonalds All-American game, becoming the first Australian to achieve such a feat.

Montverde Academy has had a much needed break to start February and will return to the court on February 13th against a tough Roselle Catholic squad.

To catch up on the latest news of the Aussies playing high school basketball in the US, check out last month's recap.