Key Named To Lisa Leslie Award Top 10

The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women's Basketball Coaches Association announced Friday the 10 watch list candidates for the 2022 Lisa Leslie Award, and Tennessee's Tamari Key is among them.

Named after the three-time All-American,1994 National Player of the Year and Class of 2015 Hall of Famer, the annual award in its fifth year recognizes the top centers in women's NCAA Division I college basketball. A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates in November, which has now been narrowed to 10.

Key, a 6-6 junior center from Cary, N.C., is averaging 9.7 points, 8.0 rebounds and a nation-leading 3.7 blocks per game in 24 contests for the Lady Vols. She is connecting on a robust 58.5 percent from the field and has recorded seven double-doubles this season and a triple-double that made her the first UT player to card two such efforts in a career.

With 88 blocks in 2021-22, Key already has the fifth-best season total in school history, sitting two away from third place, 11 away from second place and 25 shy of Kelley Cain's 2009-10 school record of 113. The Naismith Defensive Player of the Year candidate also has moved into third place on UT's career list with 246 swats, standing three away from second-place Sheila Frost (249) and 29 away from Candace Parker's school record of 275, set from 2005-08.

College basketball fans are encouraged to participate in Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies in each of the three rounds. In late February, the watch list of 10 players for the 2022 Lisa Leslie Center of the Year Award will be narrowed to five. In March those finalists will be presented to Ms. Leslie and the Hall of Fame's selection committee where a winner will be selected.

The winner of the 2022 Lisa Leslie Award will be presented on a to be determined date, along with the other four members of the Women's Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Nancy Lieberman Point Guard Award, the Ann Meyers Drysdale Shooting Guard Award, the Cheryl Miller Small Forward Award and the Katrina McClain Power Forward Award, in addition to the Men's Starting Five.

For more information on the 2022 Lisa Leslie Award and the latest updates, log onto www.hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophall and #LeslieAward on Twitter and Instagram. Starting Five Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies goes live today, February 11.

2022 Lisa Leslie Award Candidates*
Shakira Austin / Ole Miss
Aliyah Boston / South Carolina
Elissa Cunane / NC State
Monika Czinano / Iowa
Queen Egbo / Baylor
Mackenzie Holmes / Indiana
Tamari Key / Tennessee
Elizabeth Kitley / Virginia Tech
Ayoka Lee / Kansas State
Jenna Staiti / Georgia

*Players can play their way onto and off the list at any point in the 2021-22 season

About Lisa Leslie
Widely regarded as the best player in the country during her senior year of high school, Leslie decided to play basketball close to home at University of Southern California. While at USC, she set Pac-10 records for scoring, rebounding and blocked shots, earning All-Pac-10 honors each of her four seasons.

In 1991, she was named national freshman of the year and went on to earn All-American Honors the following three seasons. In her senior season, she won multiple national player of the year awards, including the Naismith College Player of the Year and the WBCA Player of the Year.

In the summer of 1997, the Women's National Basketball Association was launched and with it, Lisa Leslie became a household name. The Los Angeles Sparks landed the hometown star, who would go on to help them win two world championships. As an eight-time All-Star and three-time MVP, Leslie became the face of the WNBA. In 2002, she became the first player to dunk in a WNBA game.

Leslie retired as the all-time leading rebounder in WNBA history and was an eight-time First Team All-WNBA performer. Internationally, Leslie won four gold medals in Olympic competition. Since retiring from professional play, Leslie has worked as a sports commentator and analyst for several networks, while exploring fashion modeling and acting as well.

University of Tennessee Athletics

Players Mentioned

Tamari Key

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