University of Tennessee Athletics
Harrison On Wooden Midseason List
January 21, 2015 | Women's Basketball
LOS ANGELES - The John R. Wooden Award announced the Women's Midseason Top 20 on Wednesday, and Tennessee senior center Isabelle Harrison made the cut.
The list is comprised of 20 student-athletes who are the front-runners for college basketball's most prestigious individual honor at roughly the halfway point of the 2014-15 season. The list is chosen by a poll of national college women's college basketball media members.
After missing five games early in the season due to a knee injury, Harrison is averaging 11.4 points and 8.9 rebounds for the #5/7 Lady Vols. In 13 games, the 6-foot-3 graduate of Nashville's Hillsboro High School has scored in double figures nine times and has recorded four double-doubles for a Tennessee team that has started the campaign 15-3, 5-0 in the SEC.
Harrison's numbers are even better against ranked teams. She has averaged 14.8 points and 9.8 rebounds in five contests vs. top-25 teams, including a 20-point, 12-rebound effort vs. #9/8 Oregon State and a 21-point, eight-board performance against #10/10 Texas A&M.
Others making the list include Jillian Alleyne (Oregon), Brittany Boyd (Cal), Crystal Bradford (Central Michigan), Nina Davis (Baylor), Nneka Enemkpali (Texas), Alisha Gray (North Carolina), Reshanda Gray (Cal), Dearica Hamby (Wake Forest), Bria Holmes (West Virginia), Samantha Logic (Iowa), Jewell Loyd (Notre Dame), Tiffany Mitchell (Texas A&M), Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis (UConn), Amber Orrange (Stanford), Kelsey Plum (Washington), Breanna Stewart (UConn), Courtney Walker (Texas A&M), Elizabeth Williams (Duke) and A'ja Wilson (South Carolina).
Players not chosen to the preseason team are eligible for both the midseason team and the National Ballot. The National Ballot consists of 20 top players who have proven to their universities that they are also making progress toward graduation and maintaining at least a cumulative 2.0 GPA. The Wooden Award All American Team, consisting of the nation's top five players, will be announced the week of the Final Four.
Players not chosen to the preseason list are eligible for the National Ballot. The National Ballot consists of 15-20 top players who have proven to their universities that they are also making progress toward graduation and maintaining at least a cumulative 2.0 GPA. The Wooden Award All American Team, consisting of the nation's top five players, will be announced the week of the Final Four.
The 39th annual Wooden Award ceremony will honor the Men's and Women's Wooden Award winners, and will include the presentation of the Wooden Award All American Teams and the Legends of Coaching Award, which in 2015 will go to San Diego State Head Men's Basketball Coach Steve Fisher. The event will take place the weekend of April 10-12, 2015.
Created in 1976, the John R. Wooden Award is the most prestigious individual honor in college basketball. It is bestowed upon the nation's best player at an institution of higher education who has proven to his or her university that he or she is making progress toward graduation and maintaining a minimum cumulative 2.0 GPA. Previous winners include such notables as Larry Bird ('79), Michael Jordan ('84), Tim Duncan ('97), Candace Parker ('07 and '08), Kevin Durant ('09) and Maya Moore of Connecticut ('09 and `11). Stanford's Chiney Ogwumike won the 2014 Wooden Award.
Since its inception, the John R. Wooden Award has contributed close to a million dollars to universities' general scholarship fund in the names of the All American recipients. The Award has also sent more than 1,000 underprivileged children to week-long college basketball camps in the Award's name. Additionally, the John R. Wooden Award partners with Special Olympics Southern California (SOSC) each year to host the Wooden Award Special Olympics Southern California Basketball Tournament. The day-long tournament, which brings together Special Olympic athletes and the All Americans, takes place at The Los Angeles Athletic Club the weekend of the John R. Wooden Award Ceremony.
Follow the candidates and get the latest news throughout the season by going to the Wooden Award facebook page at http://www.facebook.com/WoodenAward or twitter feed @WoodenAward. For more information on the John R. Wooden Award, please contact the Wooden Award staff at 213-630-5231 or via email at woodenaward@laac.net.
