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USC’s JuJu Watkins Earns Spot On Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 Watch List
January 10, 2024 | Women's Basketball
Freshman is the nation’s second leading scorer in her first season with the Women of Troy.
USC women's basketball's freshman standout JuJu Watkins has earned more national acclaim as one of 25 players picked to the Wooden Award Midseason Watch List, as announced today (Jan. 10) on ESPN2 by the Los Angeles Athletic Club. Chosen by a poll of national college basketball experts based on their performances during the 2023-24 season thus far, Watkins is among an elite group of frontrunners for the sport's most prestigious honor.
Watkins has led USC in scoring in every game she's played, and has tied the Pac-12 record for Freshman of the Week selections with honors in every week that the Trojans have competed. She's currently the No. 2 scorer in the nation, averaging 26.1 points per game, with five 30-point outings already to her name. She's beaten Cheryl Miller's USC record of 30-point games as a freshman, and her 32-point debut in USC's upset of then-No. 7 Ohio State marked the most points by any USC freshman in her debut.
An all-around force to reckon with, Watkins is second on the team in rebounding with 7.3 rebounds per game, and she leads the Trojans in assists (3.7 per game), steals (2.4 per game) and 3-pointers made (28) — all while shooting 44.5 percent from the field, 42.4 percent from 3-point range and 79.3 percent from the free-throw line. She also has a spot on the Naismith Award Watch List, and was a Pac-12 Player of the Week this season.
The Pac-12 leads all conferences with six Wooden Award Midseason Watch List selections, followed by the ACC and SEC with five selections each, the Big Ten with four selections, the Big 12 with three selections and the Big East with two selections.
The players on the list are considered strong candidates for the 2024 John R. Wooden Award Women's Player of the Year presented by Principal. Players not chosen to the preseason or midseason list are still eligible for the Wooden Award™ National Ballot. The National Ballot consists of 15 top players who have proven to their universities that they meet or exceed the qualifications of the Wooden Award. Voters will rank in order 10 of those 15 players when voting opens prior to the NCAA Tournament and will allow voters to take into consideration performance during early round games. The Wooden Award All American Team™ will be announced the week of the "Elite Eight" round of the NCAA Tournament. The winner of the 2024 John R. Wooden Award will be presented by Principal following the NCAA Tournament in April.
About the John R. Wooden Award
Created in 1976, the John R. Wooden Award Program hosts the most prestigious honors in college basketball recognizing The Wooden Award Most Outstanding Player for men and women, The Wooden Award All America Teams for men and women and the annual selection of the Wooden Award Legend of Coaching recipient. Honorees have proven to their university that they meet or exceed the qualifications of the John R. Wooden Award as set forth by Coach Wooden and the Wooden Award Steering Committee, including making progress towards graduation and maintaining at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA. Previous winners include Larry Bird ('79), Michael Jordan ('84), Tim Duncan ('97), Kevin Durant ('07), Candace Parker ('07; '08), Maya Moore ('09; '11), Breanna Stewart ('15; '16), and last year's recipients, Caitlin Clark of Iowa and Zach Edey of Purdue.
Since its inception, the John R. Wooden Award has contributed nearly one million dollars to the universities' general scholarship fund in the names of the Wooden Award All American recipients and has sent more than 1,000 underprivileged children to week-long college basketball camps. Additionally, the John R. Wooden Award partners with the Special Olympics Southern California (SOSC) each year to host the Wooden Award Special Olympics Southern California Basketball Tournament. The day-long tournament brings together Special Olympics athletes and Wooden Award All Americans and coaches in attendance. It is hosted at the Los Angeles Athletic Club during the John R. Wooden Award Weekend.
The Legends of Coaching Award presented by Principal will be presented to University of Kentucky coach John Calipari, along with the Wooden Award Men's and Women's Players of the Year on April 12, 2024. For up-to-date information on the Wooden Award, please go to www.woodenaward.com and follow the Wooden Award on Facebook at www.facebook.com/woodenaward and @WoodenAward on Twitter and Instagram.
Watkins has led USC in scoring in every game she's played, and has tied the Pac-12 record for Freshman of the Week selections with honors in every week that the Trojans have competed. She's currently the No. 2 scorer in the nation, averaging 26.1 points per game, with five 30-point outings already to her name. She's beaten Cheryl Miller's USC record of 30-point games as a freshman, and her 32-point debut in USC's upset of then-No. 7 Ohio State marked the most points by any USC freshman in her debut.
An all-around force to reckon with, Watkins is second on the team in rebounding with 7.3 rebounds per game, and she leads the Trojans in assists (3.7 per game), steals (2.4 per game) and 3-pointers made (28) — all while shooting 44.5 percent from the field, 42.4 percent from 3-point range and 79.3 percent from the free-throw line. She also has a spot on the Naismith Award Watch List, and was a Pac-12 Player of the Week this season.
The Pac-12 leads all conferences with six Wooden Award Midseason Watch List selections, followed by the ACC and SEC with five selections each, the Big Ten with four selections, the Big 12 with three selections and the Big East with two selections.
The players on the list are considered strong candidates for the 2024 John R. Wooden Award Women's Player of the Year presented by Principal. Players not chosen to the preseason or midseason list are still eligible for the Wooden Award™ National Ballot. The National Ballot consists of 15 top players who have proven to their universities that they meet or exceed the qualifications of the Wooden Award. Voters will rank in order 10 of those 15 players when voting opens prior to the NCAA Tournament and will allow voters to take into consideration performance during early round games. The Wooden Award All American Team™ will be announced the week of the "Elite Eight" round of the NCAA Tournament. The winner of the 2024 John R. Wooden Award will be presented by Principal following the NCAA Tournament in April.
About the John R. Wooden Award
Created in 1976, the John R. Wooden Award Program hosts the most prestigious honors in college basketball recognizing The Wooden Award Most Outstanding Player for men and women, The Wooden Award All America Teams for men and women and the annual selection of the Wooden Award Legend of Coaching recipient. Honorees have proven to their university that they meet or exceed the qualifications of the John R. Wooden Award as set forth by Coach Wooden and the Wooden Award Steering Committee, including making progress towards graduation and maintaining at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA. Previous winners include Larry Bird ('79), Michael Jordan ('84), Tim Duncan ('97), Kevin Durant ('07), Candace Parker ('07; '08), Maya Moore ('09; '11), Breanna Stewart ('15; '16), and last year's recipients, Caitlin Clark of Iowa and Zach Edey of Purdue.
Since its inception, the John R. Wooden Award has contributed nearly one million dollars to the universities' general scholarship fund in the names of the Wooden Award All American recipients and has sent more than 1,000 underprivileged children to week-long college basketball camps. Additionally, the John R. Wooden Award partners with the Special Olympics Southern California (SOSC) each year to host the Wooden Award Special Olympics Southern California Basketball Tournament. The day-long tournament brings together Special Olympics athletes and Wooden Award All Americans and coaches in attendance. It is hosted at the Los Angeles Athletic Club during the John R. Wooden Award Weekend.
The Legends of Coaching Award presented by Principal will be presented to University of Kentucky coach John Calipari, along with the Wooden Award Men's and Women's Players of the Year on April 12, 2024. For up-to-date information on the Wooden Award, please go to www.woodenaward.com and follow the Wooden Award on Facebook at www.facebook.com/woodenaward and @WoodenAward on Twitter and Instagram.
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