University of Tennessee Athletics
Candace Parker Wins Honda Sports Award
April 17, 2008 | Women's Basketball
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. - For the second straight year, Candace Parker has brought the Honda Sports Award for basketball back to Knoxville. Before winning the award in 2007, the Lady Vols had experienced a nine-year drought, as Chamique Holdsclaw last won the honor in 1998. Parker becomes the seventh all-time back-to-back winner in basketball.
"I have been fortunate to be surrounded by teammates and coaches who make our team a success," said Parker. "I am honored to win the Honda Sports Award again this year, but I know nothing this season would have been possible without my teammates. I am thankful my classmates and I could leave here with back-to-back NCAA titles and I know neither of the championships would have been possible without a full team effort."
Parker, who opted out of her final year of eligibility, will graduate in May from the University of Tennessee with a degree in sport management. On April 9, she was the No. 1 overall pick in the WNBA draft by the Los Angeles Sparks. She finished her career at Rocky Top with a plethora of school records, including most dunks, free throws made and attempted in a game; most dunks, blocks, free throws made and attempted in a single season; and as the career leader in dunks, blocks, free throws made and attempted. She became just the fourth 2,000-point scorer and was the eighth Lady Vol to amass 900 rebounds in program history. In 2008, her accolades include ESPN the Magazine Academic All-American of the Year and first-team Academic All-America honors, unanimous first-team All-SEC, SEC All-Tournament Team and SEC Tournament MVP, the Wooden Award, the Naismith Award, the US Basketball Writer???s Association National Player of the Year, the Associated Press Player of the Year and unanimous first-team All-American, ESPN.com National Player of the Year, State Farm All-American, WBCA National Player of the Month in January, and Oklahoma City Regional and NCAA Final Four All-Tournament and Most Outstanding Player honors.
The Naperville, Ill., native averaged 21.3 points, 8.5 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 2.4 blocks and 2.3 steals in 38 games this season while leading her team to a 36-2 record and the program???s eighth NCAA championship. The 36 wins mark the second-most in school history, behind only the 1997-98 team that went 39-0. This year???s team set new UT records for three-pointers made and attempted and went an astonishing 18-2 against top-25 opposition.
The Collegiate Women's Sports Awards program is in its 32nd year and recognizes the top collegiate woman athlete in each of 12 NCAA-sanctioned sports. In addition, the program honors the top women collegiate athletes representing Division II and Division III schools and the recipient of the Honda Inspiration Award. The Award winners in the 12 sports are automatically nominated for The Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year with the winner receiving the prestigious Honda-Broderick Cup.
The honor is based on the results of national balloting among 1,000 NCAA member schools as part of the Collegiate Women Sports Awards program for each sport. American Honda Motor Co., Inc., sponsor of the program, celebrates each nominee by donating $5,000 to each Honda Sports Award recipient school and $1,000 to each nominee school.
A press conference announcing the winner of the 2007-08 Honda-Broderick Cup will be held at the Low Library, Columbia University, New York City in late June 2008. The Cup will be presented to The Collegiate Woman Athlete of the Year.
The Division I basketball nominees for the 2007-08 Honda Sports Award were Sylvia Fowles (Louisiana State University), Maya Moore (University of Connecticut), and Candice Wiggins (Stanford University). Parker and the Lady Vols went 2-1 against Fowles and the Lady Tigers this season, including winning the SEC championship game and a thrilling one-point victory in the NCAA semifinals. UT split games with Wiggins and the Cardinal, the victory coming on April 8 in the NCAA title game. Tennessee and Connecticut did not play this season for the first time since starting a regular season series in the 1995-96 campaign.
