Kansas University juniors Keith Langford and Wayne Simien are among 50 preseason candidates for the John R. Wooden Award, which honors the nation’s top college basketball player.

Langford, a 6-foot-4 guard from Fort Worth, Texas, was an honorable mention All-Big 12 Conference selection last year after ranking third on the team with 15.9 points per game. He was named to the NCAA West Region All-Tournament team and the NCAA All-Final Four team after helping the Jayhawks to a 30-8 record and a berth in the national championship game.

Simien, a 6-9 forward from Leavenworth, averaged 14.8 points and 8.2 rebounds per game last season, but played in only 16 games because of a dislocated right shoulder. Simien shot a team-high 64.6 percent from the floor last year, and was named to the Preseason NIT All-Tournament team.

Other Big 12 Conference players on the list are Kevin Bookout of Oklahoma, Andre Emmett of Texas Tech, David Harrison of Colorado, Brandon Mouton and James Thomas of Texas, Arthur Johnson and Rickey Paulding of Missouri and Lawrence Roberts of Baylor.

Texas point guard T.J. Ford won the award last season.

• Bunge adds aide: Former KU outfielder Christi Musser has replaced Aaron Clopton as a KU softball assistant, coach Tracy Bunge announced Wednesday. Musser, who played for the Jayhawks 1999-2002, spent last season as a student assistant under Bunge. Clopton, who spent six seasons with the Jayhawks as a student manager then as an assistant, resigned to pursue other interests.

“This was such a tough decision, but we decided that building a family is most important right now,” Clopton said.

Clopton is married to former KU pitcher Sarah Workman. The couple have a 4-month-old daughter.

• KU golfer honored: KU senior golfer Jennifer Bawanan was named to the 2002-03 All-American Scholar Golf Team, the National Golf Coaches Assn. announced Wednesday. Bawanan, a native of Modesto, Calif., ranked second on the team last season with a stroke average of 79.96. The minimum cumulative grade-point average for selection on the NGCA squad is 3.50 (3.40 for seniors).

¢ 6Sports video: Langford and Simien on Wooden Award watch list