Hammond Named to Wooden Award, Wade Watch Lists
November 25, 2014 | Women's Basketball
LOUISVILLE, Ky. - University of Louisville women's basketball senior Sara Hammond has been named to two prestigious preseason awards lists on Tuesday.
Hammond, who has helped the Cardinals to a 4-0 start, earned a spot on the John R. Wooden Award Preseason Top 30 in addition to being selected to the prestigious Wade Watch list, which was announced by the Women's Basketball Coaches Association.
A preseason all-Atlantic Coast Conference selection in the Cardinals' first season in the league, Hammond is averaging 8.5 points and 7.3 rebounds in addition to totaling 10 assists, five blocks, and two steals.
Hammond, who is rapidly approaching 1,000 career points, earned WBCA All-America honorable mention status last year while helping Louisville to the NCAA Elite Eight. The first team all-American Athletic Conference performer averaged 10.4 points and 5.9 rebounds. She shot 51 percent from the field, including a 50.6-percent clip in league play that was fifth in the AAC. She earned Preseason WNIT MVP accolades early in the season.
For her career, the Mt. Vernon, Ky., native has played in 111 games and accumulated 935 points, 606 rebounds, and 101 steals. Since arriving in 2011-12, Louisville has compiled an 89-24 record - or a .788 winning percentage - and advanced at least to the NCAA Elite Eight two of her three years.
Created in 1976, the John R. Wooden Award is the most prestigious individual honor in college basketball. It is bestowed upon the nation's best player at an institution of higher education who has proven to his or her university that he or she is making progress toward graduation and maintaining a minimum cumulative 2.0 GPA.
Players not chosen to the John R. Wooden Award preseason list are eligible for both the midseason list and the National Ballot. The National Ballot consists of 20 top players who have proven to their universities that they are making progress toward graduation and maintaining at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA. The Wooden Award All American team, consisting of the nation's top five players, will be announced the week of the Final Four.
Now in its 38th year, The Wade Trophy is named in honor of the late, legendary Delta State coach Lily Margaret Wade. During her six seasons as head coach, Wade won three consecutive national championships with the Lady Statesmen and had a 157-23 career record.
Regarded as "The Heisman of Women's Basketball," The Wade Trophy is presented annually to the WBCA NCAA Division I Player of the Year by SHAPE America - the Society of Health and Physical Educators and the WBCA. The 25-member list is made up of top NCAA Division I student-athletes who best embody the spirit of Lily Margaret Wade according to the following criteria: game and season statistics, leadership, character, effect on their team and overall playing ability.
For the latest information on Louisville women's basketball, log on to GoCards.com, or, for up-to-the-minute updates, follow the team's Twitter account at www.twitter.com/UofLWBB or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/UofLWBB.
