Hofstra basketball standout Charles Jenkins was one of 50 players named to the preseason Naismith Award watch list this week.

Jenkins was one of five players from mid-major conferences to earn a spot on the watch list, joining Shelvin Mack of Butler, Kenneth Faried of Morehead State, Elias Harris of Gonzaga and Keith Benson of Oakland.

Jenkins is coming off a junior season which saw him average 20.6 points per game, along with 4.5 rebounds and 3.9 assists. He was one of only five players in the country to average at least 20 points, four rebounds and three assists last year, and the only one of the five who is returning this season.

His 1,767 career points entering the 2010-11 season was the second-highest total in the nation (behind only Jeremy Hazell of Seton Hall).

The watch list was compiled by the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s Board of Selectors, which based its criteria on player performances from the previous year and expectations for the 2010-11 college basketball season. The Naismith Trophy presented by AT&T will be awarded at the 2011 NCAA Men’s Final Four in Houston.