JuJu Watkins, Paige Bueckers top Wooden Award finalists
April 2 - Southern California sophomore guard JuJu Watkins and UConn senior guard Paige Bueckers head the list of finalists for the 2025 John Wooden Award that goes to women's college basketball's most outstanding player, the Los Angeles Athletic Club announced Tuesday night.
UCLA junior center Lauren Betts, Texas sophomore forward Madison Booker and Notre Dame sophomore guard Hannah Hidalgo also have been named Wooden Award finalists. The quintet also has earned spots on the 10-person Wooden All-America team.
Watkins, who already has earned the Associated Press Player of the Year award, averaged 23.9 points, 6.8 rebounds and 3.4 assists before tearing the anterior cruciate ligament in her right knee during the NCAA Tournament's second round.
Bueckers, who won the 2021 Wooden Award as a freshman, provides 20.1 points, 4.8 assists and 4.4 rebounds for a UConn squad that plays UCLA on Friday in the second Final Four semifinal in Tampa, Fla.
Betts has led UCLA to its first Final Four with 20.0 points, 9.6 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game. Booker paces Final Four-bound Texas with 16.5 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.8 assists and 1.6 steals.
Hidalgo averaged 23.8 points, 5.0 rebounds, 3.7 steals and 3.6 assists per game for the Fighting Irish.
Joining the five finalists on the Wooden All-America team are Kentucky's Georgia Amoore, Florida State's Ta'Niya Latson, Notre Dame's Olivia Miles, LSU's Aneesah Morrow and TCU's Hailey Van Lith.
Latson led the nation with 25.2 points per game while Morrow paced all rebounders with 13.5 per game.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Daily Mail
37 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
Former Prairie View A&M college football player dies at 22
Former Prairie View A&M college football player Jackson Bailey has died at the age of 22, the school announced on Tuesday. Bailey, who began his college career at Arizona before transferring to Louisiana-Monroe, was on Prairie View's roster for the 2023-24 season. In a statement on the athletic department's website, the school did not disclose a cause of death for Bailey. 'The Prairie View A&M University Department of Athletics extends its deepest condolences to the family, friends, teammates, and fraternity brothers of Jackson 'Jacks' Bailey, a cherished member of the Panther football program and the PVAMU community,' the statement began. 'Jackson joined the football team for the 2023–24 season. Although he did not appear in any official games, his presence and energy were felt deeply within the locker room and across campus. A proud member of Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity, Inc. – Zeta Beta Chapter, Jackson exemplified brotherhood, resilience, and purpose. The statement went on to say that Bailey 'brought a light-hearted and grounded spirit to everything' before touching on his faith. 'His favorite words to live by were: 'God got me.' These words guided his path on and off the field.'
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Reports: Rays acquire RHP Forrest Whitley from Astros
June 13 - The Tampa Bay Rays acquired right-hander Forrest Whitley from the Houston Astros in exchange for cash considerations, multiple media outlets reported Friday. Whitley, once a top-10 prospect in baseball, was designated for assignment by the Astros on Sunday. Houston selected him with the No. 17 pick of the 2016 MLB Draft out of high school in San Antonio and gave him a $3.148 million signing bonus, but he failed to reached expectations. Now 27, he didn't debut in Houston until the 2024 season and made three relief appearances, giving up no earned runs in 3 1/3 innings. This season, Whitley appeared in five games for Houston, with opponents scoring 10 earned runs on nine hits and six walks in 7 1/3 innings. He has no decisions with a 12.27 ERA. In 117 minor league appearances (65 starts) he had a 17-20 record with a 4.75 ERA over 306 2/3 innings. He struck out 421 batters and walked 160. --Field Level Media
The Independent
7 hours ago
- The Independent
Michael Johnson speaks out on Grand Slam Track's future amid meet cancellation
Michael Johnson 's Grand Slam Track is cancelling its fourth and final meet of the inaugural season in Los Angeles to avoid major financial losses. The economics of the LA event and Grand Slam Track's deal with UCLA had become financially unviable, leading to the decision to cancel. New investors are expected to be announced next week, and organisers believe making the best short-term financial decision is key to the project's long-term outlook. The Los Angeles leg will not be replaced, but organisers are confident that Grand Slam Track will continue in 2026, with LA likely to be on the circuit. Ticket sales have been slow, and sponsorship and broadcast revenues have not met expectations, with the cancellation saving organisers around £2.2m in prize money and travel expenses. Michael Johnson explains why he cancelled Grand Slam Track meet in LA
