McCoughtry Named to the Wooden Award Watch List
November 06, 2008 | Women's Basketball
Nov. 6, 2008
Louisville, Ky. - Richard "Duke" Llewellyn, Wooden Award Chairman and founder, announced the 2008-09 preseason candidates for the Women's Wooden Award All-American Team and Player of the Year trophy today. Louisville senior Angel McCoughtry highlights the list of the 30 players selected, based on last year's individual performance and team records, are the early frontrunners for college basketball's most prestigious honor.
McCoughtry is one of seven players that were named to the preseason list last season. She was named a preseason Associated Press All-American earlier this week. She finished her junior season leading the BIG EAST in scoring (23.3), rebounding (9.5), and steals (4.1). She was named a WBCA/State Farm All-American for the second straight year as a junior.
The breadth of talent across the country is shown by the number of NCAA Division I schools (25) and conferences (10) highlighted on the list. The Big East boasts eight candidates, followed by the ACC (5), Big 12 (4), Pac-10 (3), SEC (3), Atlantic 10 (2), Big Ten (2), Conference USA (1), Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (1) and the West Coast Conference (1).
In mid-January, the Wooden Award Committee will release the Midseason Top 20 list, followed in March by the National Ballot, consisting of approximately 15 top players who have proven to their universities that they are also making progress toward graduation and maintaining a cumulative 2.0 GPA. The Women's Wooden Award All-American Team will be announced the week of the "Elite Eight" round during the NCAA Tournament.
The 33rd annual Wooden Award ceremony, which will include the announcement of the Men's and Women's Wooden Award, and the presentation of the Wooden Award All-American Teams and the Legends of Coaching Award to Rick Barnes from The University of Texas, will be held at The Los Angeles Athletic Club in April, 2009.
2008-09 John R. Wooden Award Preseason Top 30 List - Women's Category
Women's All-American Team - Top 30 Candidates
(Based on a preseason poll. Players listed alphabetically.)
Player First Player Last Height Position Class University
Jessica Adair 6-4 C/F Sr. George Washington
Jayne Appel 6-4 F/C Jr. Stanford
Chante Black 6-5 F/C Sr. Duke
DeWanna Bonner 6-4 G Sr. Auburn
Heather Bowman 6-2 F Jr. Gonzaga
Tina Charles 6-4 C Jr. Connecticut
Marissa Coleman 6-1 G/F Sr. Maryland
Allyssa DeHaan 6-9 C Jr. Michigan State
Krystal Ellis 5-9 G Sr. Marquette
Rachele Fitz 6-0 F Jr. Marist
Devanei Hampton 6-3 F/C Sr. California
Ashley Houts 5-6 G Jr. Georgia
Jareica Hughes 5-3 G Jr. UTEP
Jantel Lavender 6-4 C So. Ohio State
Shalee Lehning 5-9 G Sr. Kansas State
Rashanda McCants 6-1 G/F Sr. North Carolina
Angel McCoughtry 6-1 F Sr. Louisville
Renee Montgomery 5-7 G Sr. Connecticut
Maya Moore 6-0 F So. Connecticut
Courtney Paris 6-4 C Sr. Oklahoma
Ta'Shia Phillips 6-6 C So. Xavier
Epiphanny Prince 5-9 G Jr. Rutgers
Andrea Riley 5-5 G Jr. Oklahoma State
Takia Starks 5-8 G Sr. Texas A&M
Kristi Toliver 5-7 G Sr. Maryland
Kia Vaughn 6-4 C Sr. Rutgers
Ashley Walker 6-1 F Sr. California
Christina Wirth 6-1 F Sr. Vanderbilt
Monica Wright 5-11 G Jr. Virginia
Shavonte Zellous 5-11 G Sr. Pittsburgh
