University of Tennessee Athletics
Cooper On Wooden Late Midseason Watch List
February 11, 2025 | Women's Basketball
The Los Angeles Athletic Club's John R. Wooden Award®, presented by Principal, announced its 2024-25 Women's Late Midseason Top 20 Watch List today on www.WoodenAward.com, and Tennessee's Talaysia Cooper is on that list.
This marks the second player of the year watch list and the third major award for which Cooper is in consideration. She previously was named to the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Midseason Watch List and to the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watch List.
Selected by a panel of national college basketball experts, the list comprises 20 student-athletes who are frontrunners for the most prestigious honors in college basketball: the Wooden Award® All-American Team and the Wooden Award® Most Outstanding Player. The players on the list are considered strong candidates for the 2025 John R. Wooden Award® Women's Player of the Year. Players not selected for the late midseason list remain eligible for inclusion on the Wooden Award® National Ballot.
The National Ballot will feature 15 top players who have demonstrated to their universities that they meet or exceed the Wooden Award® qualifications. Wooden Award® voters will be invited to rank 10 of the 15 players on the ballot in order of preference when voting opens during the NCAA Tournament. Voters will also consider performances in the tournament's early rounds, players' contributions to their teams, and their character.
The Wooden Award All-American Team will be announced during the week of the NCAA Tournament's Elite Eight. The winners and the All Americans of the 2025 John R. Wooden Award®, presented by Principal, will be honored at the Los Angeles Athletic Club on Friday, April 11, 2025.
Cooper, a 6-foot redshirt sophomore guard, leads the No. 15/16 Lady Vols and is eighth in the SEC in points per game (17.5) and also paces the team in rebounds per game (6.0), steals per game (3.2) and blocks per game (0.8) while hitting 46 percent from the field. She also tops her squad with 10 quarters where she personally scored 10 or more points and is second in assists per contest (3.3).
She has 10 20+ scoring efforts, tallying 20 or more points in five straight contests from Nov. 16 to Dec. 14, including 33 vs. Liberty, 20 vs. Western Carolina, 22 vs. Florida State, 23 vs. Iowa and 21 vs. N.C. Central. She added other 20+ efforts with 24 vs. Richmond and LSU, 20 at Arkansas, 22 at Vanderbilt and a personal SEC-high 27 at Missouri.
The Turbeville, S.C., native is ranked No. 7 nationally in steals per game at 3.22 and No. 9 in total steals with 74, standing No. 1 in the SEC in each category. Cooper had a career-high nine steals vs. Oklahoma, tying Holly Warlick for third in school history (9, 1/24/79 at LSU). She also had seven vs. Samford, six at Missouri, five vs. N.C. Central, Richmond and Winthrop, and four vs. Middle Tennessee, Memphis and Arkansas.
About the John R. Wooden Award®
Created in 1976, the Los Angeles Athletic Club John R. Wooden Award Program™ represents the pinnacle of honors in college basketball. It recognizes the Wooden Award® Most Outstanding Player for both men and women, the Wooden Award All-America™ Teams for both men and women, and annually selects the Wooden Award® Legend of Coaching recipient. Wooden Award® All-Americans have proven to their universities that they meet or exceed the standards of the John R. Wooden Award®, as set forth by Coach Wooden and the Wooden Award® Steering Committee. These qualifications include progress toward graduation and maintaining at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA.
WOODEN AWARD LATE MIDSEASON TOP-20 CANDIDATES
Georgia Amoore | Kentucky
Lauren Betts | UCLA
Mikayla Blakes | Vanderbilt
Madison Booker | Texas
Paige Bueckers | UConn
Talaysia Cooper | Tennessee
Audi Crooks | Iowa State
Yvonne Ejim | Gonzaga
Hannah Hidalgo | Notre Dame
Aziaha James | NC State
Flau'jae Johnson | LSU
Ta'Niya Latson | Florida State
Cotie McMahon | Ohio State
Olivia Miles | Notre Dame
Aneesah Morrow | LSU
Te-Hina Paopao | South Carolina
Sedona Prince | TCU
Sarah Strong | UConn
Hailey Van Lith | TCU
JuJu Watkins | USC
This marks the second player of the year watch list and the third major award for which Cooper is in consideration. She previously was named to the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Midseason Watch List and to the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year Watch List.
Selected by a panel of national college basketball experts, the list comprises 20 student-athletes who are frontrunners for the most prestigious honors in college basketball: the Wooden Award® All-American Team and the Wooden Award® Most Outstanding Player. The players on the list are considered strong candidates for the 2025 John R. Wooden Award® Women's Player of the Year. Players not selected for the late midseason list remain eligible for inclusion on the Wooden Award® National Ballot.
The National Ballot will feature 15 top players who have demonstrated to their universities that they meet or exceed the Wooden Award® qualifications. Wooden Award® voters will be invited to rank 10 of the 15 players on the ballot in order of preference when voting opens during the NCAA Tournament. Voters will also consider performances in the tournament's early rounds, players' contributions to their teams, and their character.
The Wooden Award All-American Team will be announced during the week of the NCAA Tournament's Elite Eight. The winners and the All Americans of the 2025 John R. Wooden Award®, presented by Principal, will be honored at the Los Angeles Athletic Club on Friday, April 11, 2025.
Cooper, a 6-foot redshirt sophomore guard, leads the No. 15/16 Lady Vols and is eighth in the SEC in points per game (17.5) and also paces the team in rebounds per game (6.0), steals per game (3.2) and blocks per game (0.8) while hitting 46 percent from the field. She also tops her squad with 10 quarters where she personally scored 10 or more points and is second in assists per contest (3.3).
She has 10 20+ scoring efforts, tallying 20 or more points in five straight contests from Nov. 16 to Dec. 14, including 33 vs. Liberty, 20 vs. Western Carolina, 22 vs. Florida State, 23 vs. Iowa and 21 vs. N.C. Central. She added other 20+ efforts with 24 vs. Richmond and LSU, 20 at Arkansas, 22 at Vanderbilt and a personal SEC-high 27 at Missouri.
The Turbeville, S.C., native is ranked No. 7 nationally in steals per game at 3.22 and No. 9 in total steals with 74, standing No. 1 in the SEC in each category. Cooper had a career-high nine steals vs. Oklahoma, tying Holly Warlick for third in school history (9, 1/24/79 at LSU). She also had seven vs. Samford, six at Missouri, five vs. N.C. Central, Richmond and Winthrop, and four vs. Middle Tennessee, Memphis and Arkansas.
About the John R. Wooden Award®
Created in 1976, the Los Angeles Athletic Club John R. Wooden Award Program™ represents the pinnacle of honors in college basketball. It recognizes the Wooden Award® Most Outstanding Player for both men and women, the Wooden Award All-America™ Teams for both men and women, and annually selects the Wooden Award® Legend of Coaching recipient. Wooden Award® All-Americans have proven to their universities that they meet or exceed the standards of the John R. Wooden Award®, as set forth by Coach Wooden and the Wooden Award® Steering Committee. These qualifications include progress toward graduation and maintaining at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA.
WOODEN AWARD LATE MIDSEASON TOP-20 CANDIDATES
Georgia Amoore | Kentucky
Lauren Betts | UCLA
Mikayla Blakes | Vanderbilt
Madison Booker | Texas
Paige Bueckers | UConn
Talaysia Cooper | Tennessee
Audi Crooks | Iowa State
Yvonne Ejim | Gonzaga
Hannah Hidalgo | Notre Dame
Aziaha James | NC State
Flau'jae Johnson | LSU
Ta'Niya Latson | Florida State
Cotie McMahon | Ohio State
Olivia Miles | Notre Dame
Aneesah Morrow | LSU
Te-Hina Paopao | South Carolina
Sedona Prince | TCU
Sarah Strong | UConn
Hailey Van Lith | TCU
JuJu Watkins | USC
Players Mentioned
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