Award season is right here and it’s time to settle a number of issues concerning the 2024-25 girls’s faculty basketball season.
Who has been the very best participant? Who has been the very best coach? Who was probably the most impactful switch? Which freshman stood out amongst the remaining? Which staff has been the largest shock, and which squad was the largest disappointment?
Caitlin Clark was far and away the very best participant within the sport final season, but it surely has felt like an actual debate this season. Likewise, the title of high rookie appears to be a two-player race. And Coach of the 12 months appears to be large open.
Let’s break it down.
For the All-American groups, the Related Press asks its voting physique to submit three playable five-person groups. That doesn’t imply that every staff wants two guards, two forwards and a middle, however only a group of 5 gamers that might fairly take the ground collectively.
Participant of the 12 months: JuJu Watkins, USC
Watkins was second within the nation in scoring with 24.6 factors per sport this season and was sixth nationally in win shares with 6.5. As she led the Trojans to the common season title and an look within the convention match championship sport within the Large Ten, she improved her subject objective proportion, capacity to make 3-pointers, assists and blocks from a season in the past. She’s a extra environment friendly participant on offense and an general higher defender. Watkins additionally had a knack for taking part in effectively in massive video games, just like the Trojans’ pair of normal season wins over UCLA, and a December non-conference win at UConn. Watkins’ play down the stretch of the season helped USC seize its first convention title since 1994 and is more likely to make the Trojans a No. 1 seed in March Insanity for a second consecutive 12 months – the primary time that’s occurred since Cheryl Miller was taking part in for USC.
Coach of the 12 months: Kenny Brooks, Kentucky
Kentucky received a complete of six SEC video games within the earlier two seasons. Brooks got here in from Virginia Tech, introduced a proficient guard and a promising heart with him in Georgia Amoore and Clara Strack, and utterly revamped the roster and tradition round girls’s basketball in Lexington. In 12 months One among Brooks’ tenure on the sideline at Kentucky, the Wildcats went 11-5 in SEC play – their finest file for the reason that 2018-19 season. The Wildcats earned a No. 4 seed into the SEC Event and can probably host opening weekend March Insanity video games in Lexington. And Brooks’ gamers continued to get higher: Amoore, in her fifth season, posted career-bests in factors, subject objective proportion, assists and steals. With beginning roles, Strack and North Carolina switch Teonni Key had breakout seasons too. Brooks turning round a signature program like Kentucky in only one season is extremely spectacular and worthy of recognition.
Freshman of the 12 months: Mikayla Blakes, Vanderbilt
That is going to appear like a controversial choose to some as a result of Sarah Sturdy is completely worthy of this award too. However let’s take into account for a second the conditions that every participant finds themselves in: Sturdy performs for arguably probably the most iconic program within the sport alongside fellow No. 1 ranked recruits in Paige Bueckers and Azzi Fudd, and different high 15 recruits and McDonald’s All-People in KK Arnold, Ice Brady and Ashlynn Shade. Sturdy has additionally performed within the Large East – which is a two-bid league this season for the NCAA Event – the place UConn received each sport by at the very least 18 factors.
Now, let’s take into account Blakes. She performs for a staff that’s been to the NCAA Event as soon as since 2014 and he or she’s an enormous cause why the Commodores are going dancing this season along with her 23.2 factors per sport, which is sixth nationally. She performs within the SEC, which can probably have 10 groups within the NCAA Event and 6 of them internet hosting among the many high 16 seeds. Since 2009, Blakes is the one freshman to attain greater than 50 factors in a single sport twice in the identical season and he or she’s the one participant this century to have 55 factors and 5 assists in a single sport.
With out Sturdy, UConn remains to be successful the Large East comfortably. With out Blakes, Vanderbilt would discover itself on the skin of the NCAA Event bubble. Merely put, Blakes was extra vital to her staff’s success in a a lot deeper convention and put up her mightily spectacular numbers in opposition to a lot harder competitors.
Most Impactful Switch: Hailey Van Lith, TCU
Together with her delight broken by getting frolicked to dry by the LSU teaching workers within the Elite Eight sport final 12 months – the Tigers seemingly refused to place a special participant on Caitlin Clark – Hailey Van Lith discovered a brand new house at TCU and started to rebuild herself. She posted a career-best subject objective proportion, a career-high common in assists per sport, and in addition averaged 17.9 factors and 4.4 rebounds per sport. Van Lith then grew to become the emotional chief and flooring common for a Horned Frogs staff that went 31-3 – its finest file in program historical past – and received the Large 12 title for the primary time ever. TCU has by no means been to the second weekend of the NCAA Event, however with Van Lith at level guard, they’ve an excellent likelihood of a deep March Insanity run.
Greatest Shock: Tennessee
I’m undecided what number of of us thought that Kim Caldwell could be this profitable this quick in Knoxville with beforehand only one season of Division I teaching beneath her belt. Whereas the common season and convention match slate ended with a little bit of a thud for the Woman Vols – they’ve misplaced three of their final 4 video games – Caldwell’s staff embraced her most well-liked fast-paced type of play and posted their finest successful proportion in 4 seasons. Whereas she went .500 in SEC play, a signature victory over UConn in February appears to be like like proof of idea for the Caldwell period in Knoxville. Coming into March Insanity, the Woman Vols are eleventh in Her Hoop Stats Score, second nationally in offensive rebounding, and second in factors per sport.
Greatest disappointment: Stanford
There have been loads of of us who believed that the Cardinal would carry on rolling within the 2024-25 season and proceed to play like top-of-the-line applications within the sport regardless of dropping a WNBA Draft choose in Cameron Brink, a future WNBA Draft choose to the switch portal in Kiki Iriafen, dropping their Corridor of Fame coach to retirement, and altering conferences from the Pac-12 to the ACC. Whereas the Cardinal’s rival, Cal, had one among its finest years whereas taking part in half of its convention video games on the opposite facet of the nation, Stanford regressed. The Cardinal, beneath first-year head coach Kate Paye, had been picked to complete seventh within the ACC within the preseason ballot and even obtained a first-place vote. However the Cardinal went 16-14, their worst file since 1987. Stanford misplaced within the first spherical of the ACC Event to Clemson and can miss the NCAA Event for the first time for the reason that Reagan Administration.
All-People
FIRST TEAM
G – JuJu Watkins, USC
G – Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame
G – Paige Bueckers, UConn
F – Lauren Betts, UCLA
F – Aneesah Morrow, LSU
SECOND TEAM
G – Mikayla Blakes, Vanderbilt
G – Ta’Niya Latson, Florida State
G – Olivia Miles, Notre Dame
F – Sarah Sturdy, UConn
F – Madison Booker, Texas
THIRD TEAM
G – Katie Dinnebier, Drake
G – Aziaha James, N.C. State
G – Harmoni Turner, Harvard
F – Audi Crooks, Iowa State
F – Chloe Kitts, South Carolina
It’s shut, however Morrow deserves the primary staff nod over Booker. Morrow leads the nation in rebounding, is seventh in win shares, and no participant has extra double-doubles than she does.
Blakes and Sturdy weren’t solely the 2 finest freshmen within the nation, however among the many 10 finest gamers in all of ladies’s faculty basketball. They’re joined on the second staff by Booker – the bus driver for a Texas staff that may probably get a No. 1 seed within the NCAA Event – the nation’s main scorer in Latson, and maybe the sport’s finest true level guard in Olivia Miles, who had a bounce-back season after a knee harm sidelined her final 12 months.
On the third staff, Dinnebier leads the nation in assists and is eighth in scoring, and might be appointment viewing if Drake makes the NCAA Event. The identical is true for a fellow mid-major star in Harmoni Turner, who’s thirteenth nationally in scoring, seventeenth in steals and sixth in PER whereas powering the Crimson to a possible at-large bid. N.C. State received a share of the ACC common season title and performed within the convention championship this season and James’ play over the previous month is a large cause why. Crooks led the nation in subject targets made and was eleventh in PER. Within the absences of Kamilla Cardoso and Ashlyn Watkins, Kitts has arguably been probably the most constant front-court participant for the very best staff within the nation, South Carolina. Validating that time is her latest SEC Event MVP award.
