Van Lith and Jones Named to Naismith Trophy Women’s Watch List
November 04, 2022 | Women's Basketball
The Cardinals are one of four ACC schools to have multiple players on the watch list
ATLANTA — The Atlanta Tipoff Club opened the college basketball season by releasing the 50 players on the Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy Women's Watch List and the Cardinals were well represented. Junior Hailey Van Lith and graduate Morgan Jones were both on the initial 50-player watch list as Louisville was one of four ACC schools to have multiple players on the list.
This is the third consecutive season that Van Lith has been on the Naismith Watch List while Morgan Jones is on the watch list for the first time in her collegiate career. Both Jones and Van Lith have had several recognitions so far this preseason as the pair were both on the Preseason All-ACC team, both were on their respective positional watch lists (Van Lith - Meyers Drysdale Award; Jones - Miller Award) and Van Lith was also named a second team Preseason All-American by The Athletic.
Van Lith is coming off a sophomore campaign where she guided the Cardinals to their fourth Final Four in program history. She was a catalyst in the NCAA Tournament run as she totaled four-straight 20+ point games to begin the tournament. She was the only player in the 2022 NCAA Tournament to have four 20+ point games and she was named the 2022 Wichita Regional Most Outstanding Player.
Jones comes to the Cardinals after beginning her collegiate career at Florida State. While with the Seminoles, Jones was a two-time WBCA Honorable Mention All-American in her last two seasons and was also named to the All-ACC First Team in her previous two seasons. In her senior season with Florida State, Jones led the Seminoles in scoring (13.8) and was also named a second team All-American by the Senior CLASS Award.
The midseason 30 team will be announced in early January, and then the competition will be narrowed down to 10 national semifinalists in early March. Following those results, four finalists will be named on March 21, 2023, and the winner of the 2023 Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy for Women's Player of the Year will be announced on March 29, 2023.
"We have selected an elite group of athletes for the 2023 Jersey Mike's Women's Naismith Trophy watch list this year, and we look forward to keeping an eye on these stellar players and adding additional excellent players as the season progresses," said Eric Oberman, executive director of the Atlanta Tipoff Club.
ABOUT THE ATLANTA TIPOFF CLUB
Founded during the 1956-57 season, the Atlanta Tipoff Club is committed to promoting the game of basketball and recognizing the outstanding accomplishments of those who make the game so exciting. The Atlanta Tipoff Club administers the Naismith Awards, the most prestigious national honors in all of college and high school basketball. Named in honor of Dr. James Naismith, inventor of the game of basketball, the family of Naismith Awards annually recognizes the most outstanding men's and women's college and high school basketball players and coaches. Other Naismith Awards are presented to the men's and women's college basketball defensive players of the year, as well as lifetime achievement awards to basketball officials and outstanding contributors to the game. UCLA's Lew Alcindor received the first Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy in 1969, while the late Anne Donovan (Old Dominion) was the inaugural women's recipient in 1983. Corporate partners of the Naismith Awards include Jersey Mike's and Werner Ladder.
ABOUT JERSEY MIKE'S SUBS
Jersey Mike's Subs, with more than 2,300 locations open and under development nationwide, serves authentic fresh sliced/fresh grilled subs on in-store freshly baked bread — the same recipe it started with in 1956. Passion for giving in Jersey Mike's local communities is reflective in its mission statement "Giving…making a difference in someone's life." For more information, please visit jerseymikes.com or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
This is the third consecutive season that Van Lith has been on the Naismith Watch List while Morgan Jones is on the watch list for the first time in her collegiate career. Both Jones and Van Lith have had several recognitions so far this preseason as the pair were both on the Preseason All-ACC team, both were on their respective positional watch lists (Van Lith - Meyers Drysdale Award; Jones - Miller Award) and Van Lith was also named a second team Preseason All-American by The Athletic.
Van Lith is coming off a sophomore campaign where she guided the Cardinals to their fourth Final Four in program history. She was a catalyst in the NCAA Tournament run as she totaled four-straight 20+ point games to begin the tournament. She was the only player in the 2022 NCAA Tournament to have four 20+ point games and she was named the 2022 Wichita Regional Most Outstanding Player.
Jones comes to the Cardinals after beginning her collegiate career at Florida State. While with the Seminoles, Jones was a two-time WBCA Honorable Mention All-American in her last two seasons and was also named to the All-ACC First Team in her previous two seasons. In her senior season with Florida State, Jones led the Seminoles in scoring (13.8) and was also named a second team All-American by the Senior CLASS Award.
The midseason 30 team will be announced in early January, and then the competition will be narrowed down to 10 national semifinalists in early March. Following those results, four finalists will be named on March 21, 2023, and the winner of the 2023 Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy for Women's Player of the Year will be announced on March 29, 2023.
"We have selected an elite group of athletes for the 2023 Jersey Mike's Women's Naismith Trophy watch list this year, and we look forward to keeping an eye on these stellar players and adding additional excellent players as the season progresses," said Eric Oberman, executive director of the Atlanta Tipoff Club.
ABOUT THE ATLANTA TIPOFF CLUB
Founded during the 1956-57 season, the Atlanta Tipoff Club is committed to promoting the game of basketball and recognizing the outstanding accomplishments of those who make the game so exciting. The Atlanta Tipoff Club administers the Naismith Awards, the most prestigious national honors in all of college and high school basketball. Named in honor of Dr. James Naismith, inventor of the game of basketball, the family of Naismith Awards annually recognizes the most outstanding men's and women's college and high school basketball players and coaches. Other Naismith Awards are presented to the men's and women's college basketball defensive players of the year, as well as lifetime achievement awards to basketball officials and outstanding contributors to the game. UCLA's Lew Alcindor received the first Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy in 1969, while the late Anne Donovan (Old Dominion) was the inaugural women's recipient in 1983. Corporate partners of the Naismith Awards include Jersey Mike's and Werner Ladder.
ABOUT JERSEY MIKE'S SUBS
Jersey Mike's Subs, with more than 2,300 locations open and under development nationwide, serves authentic fresh sliced/fresh grilled subs on in-store freshly baked bread — the same recipe it started with in 1956. Passion for giving in Jersey Mike's local communities is reflective in its mission statement "Giving…making a difference in someone's life." For more information, please visit jerseymikes.com or follow us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
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