McCoughtry and Bingham Nab BIG EAST Accolades

Oct. 23, 2008

NEW YORK - Louisville's Angel McCoughtry and Candyce Bingham were selected to the preseason All-BIG EAST team by the league's 16 head coaches at Thursday's BIG EAST media day.

Connecticut sophomore all-American Maya Moore was named the 2008-09 BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year, while Rutgers' April Sykes was picked as the BIG EAST Preseason Freshman of the Year. Coaches were not permitted to vote for their own players.

The Cardinals will rely on Preseason All-BIG EAST Team selections McCoughtry and Bingham, a pair of senior fowards. McCoughtry was named a WBCA All-American and an Associated Press All-America Second Team selection. For the second straight year in league play, she led the conference in scoring (23.3 ppg) and rebounding (9.5 rpg) and is a two-time All-BIG EAST First Team member. Bingham was named an All-BIG EAST Second Team pick and was second on the team in scoring and rebounding with 13.8 points and 7.7 rebounds per game.

Moore was the 2007-08 BIG EAST Player and Freshman of the Year. She became the first player - men's or women's - in conference history to grab both honors in the same season. The forward had an exceptional rookie season as she was named BIG EAST Freshman of the Week a league-record 10 times and was named BIG EAST Player of the Week on March 3 becoming the first freshman - male or female - to win both awards in the same week. Moore averaged a team-best 17.8 points, grabbed a team-second 7.6 rebounds and had a 54.3 shooting percentage.

Sykes hails from Starkville, Miss., where she earned 2008 Mississippi Gatorade Player of Year honors. Named a Parade Magazine All-America First Team member and a USA Today All-USA Girls Hoops Second Team honoree, Sykes was one of 12 players selected to the WBCA All-America Team. Sykes, a versatile player who can play guard and forward, led the Mississippi High School Athletic Association (MHSAA) in scoring the last two seasons, averaging 25.5 points. She also averaged 10.6 rebounds and 2.0 blocks per game as a senior at East Oktibbeha High School.

UConn is also led by 2008-09 Preseason All-BIG EAST Team members Renee Montgomery and Tina Charles. Montgomery, a senior, will look to return to her natural position of point guard this season after shifting to the shooting guard slot when teammate Mel Thomas went down with a season-ending knee injury last January. Montgomery was third on the team in scoring at 14.1 points per game, and second on the team in assists at 3.9 per contest. On the defensive end, she grabbed a team-best 72 steals. Charles, a junior center, rotated in and out of the starting lineup late in the season, as she averaged 14.2 points and a team-high 9.2 rebounds per game. Montgomery and Charles were named to the Associated Press All-America Third Team squad. Montgomery was a WBCA All-America First Team selection and Charles was an honorable mention pick.

The Scarlet Knights are represented by junior Epiphanny Prince, the team's top returning scorer, and senior Kia Vaughn, the top rebounder from a year ago. Prince is the team's most potent scoring threat as she averaged 13.8 points and drained a team-best 43 triples. Prince was named a 2007-08 Associated Press All-America Third Team member, as well as to the All-BIG EAST First Team. Vaughn, an All-BIG EAST Second Team member a year ago, led the team in rebounding (8.3 rpg) for the third straight year.

Pittsburgh will be led by senior guard Shavonte Zellous, a two-time All-BIG EAST First Team selection and a member of this year's Preseason All-BIG EAST Team. She has led the Panthers in scoring in each of the last two seasons, averaging 18.2 points, 5.4 rebounds and 32.1 minutes. She became Pitt's 14th 1,000-point scorer in school history and is on pace to become one of three 2,000-point scorers at the school.

Coming off the league's first WNIT Championship title, Marquette senior Krystal Ellis returns for her senior season at point guard and as a Preseason All-BIG EAST selection. Ellis is a two-time All-BIG EAST pick and was named the WNIT MVP after the team's run through the postseason tournament. For the second consecutive season, Ellis led the team in scoring, averaging 19.4 points per game, a mark that ranked second in the league.

USF's senior Shantia Grace is named to the Preseason All-BIG EAST Team after a standout season a year ago. Named to the All-BIG EAST Second Team last year, Grace played last season at wing instead of her natural point guard position. She averaged 19.1 points and 4.0 assists and was named a Frances Pomeroy Naismith Candidate.

Senior Chandrea Jones of Syracuse grabbed a spot on the 2008-09 Preseason All-BIG EAST Team, a first for Syracuse since the 2003-04 season (when Julie McBride was a second team honoree). A guard, Jones led the team in scoring at 15.1 points per game and was an All-BIG EAST Second Team member a year ago. Last season, Jones set a school record when she hit 23 consecutive free throws late in the season.

Returning to the DePaul lineup is junior Deirdre Naughton. A guard, Naughton averaged 15.1 points and made a team-leading 67 3-pointers. Named 2007-08 All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention, she is a Preseason All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention pick heading into this season.

Notre Dame senior Lindsay Schrader also has been named 2008-09 Preseason All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention. Schrader averaged 10.3 points and a team-high 6.2 rebounds in her first year back after a season-ending knee injury in 2006-07. Schrader earned All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention last year.

Laura Kurz played her first season at Villanova in 2007-08 after transferring from Duke and had an impact immediately. A senior this season, Kurz averaged a team-best 14.9 points and was tops on the team, shooting 49.5 percent from the field and 43.8 percent from 3-point range. She also led the team's rebounding effort with a 6.4 average and was named an All-BIG EAST Second Team selection.

2008-09 Preseason BIG EAST Honors2008-09 Preseason Player of the Year
Maya Moore, Connecticut, So., F2008-09 Preseason Freshman of the Year
April Sykes, Rutgers, Fr., G/F (Starkville, Miss.)2008-09 Preseason All-BIG EAST Team
Candyce Bingham, Louisville, Sr., F
 *Tina Charles, Connecticut, Jr., C
*Krystal Ellis, Marquette, Sr., G
Shantia Grace, USF, Sr., G
Chandrea Jones, Syracuse, Sr., G
*Angel McCoughtry, Louisville, Sr., F
Renee Montgomery, Connecticut, Sr., G
*Maya Moore, Connecticut, So., F
*Epiphanny Prince, Rutgers, Jr., G
Kia Vaughn, Rutgers, Sr., C
*Shavonte Zellous, Pittsburgh, RS-Sr., G2008-09 Preseason All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention
Laura Kurz, Villanova, Sr., F
Deirdre Naughton, DePaul, Jr., G
Lindsay Schrader, Notre Dame, Sr., G* - unanimous selection

University of Louisville Athletics

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