Caitlin Clark headlined the list of four Naismith Player of the Year finalists released Tuesday, but one notable name was missing.
Iowa’s star junior is joined as a finalist by South Carolina senior Aliyah Boston, as well as Virginia Tech senior Elizabeth Kitley and Villanova senior Maddy Siegrist. Boston, who won the award last season, has led the Gamecocks to an undefeated record, while Siegrist leads the NCAA in scoring with 29.1 points per game.
Yet while all of these players have shined for their teams, the absence of LSU sophomore Angel Reese from their company was no less glaring.
🚨 ATTENTION🚨: Introducing the @jerseymikes Naismith Women's College Player of the Year Finalists🏀
— Naismith Awards (@NaismithTrophy) March 21, 2023
Click the 🔗 to see the list: https://t.co/3b7enTpAXE pic.twitter.com/Y4CxVqiiJj
Reese averages 23.8 points per game (fifth in Division I) and 15.7 rebounds per game (second in Division I) as a veritable double-double machine, with 27 in the regular season. She broke Sylvia Fowles’ program record for consecutive double-doubles in her first season at LSU after transferring from Maryland.
While Reese did make the list of 10 semifinalists for the Naismith award, she did not make the cut as a finalist. Neither did she make the list of semifinalists for the John R. Wooden Award, though LSU later revealed the sophomore is ineligible for that award as she does not meet all of the criteria.
Among the four finalists, Clark averages 8.6 assists per game, which puts her first in the NCAA in that category. She also ranks first in 3-pointers per game (3.38) and triple-doubles (four this season) and third in points per game (26.8). The Iowa guard is the only player in the country to average more than 20 points, five assists and five rebounds per game.
Boston likely is Clark’s greatest competition across the Player of the Year races. The South Carolina center is ranked in the top five in the country in both offensive and defensive player rating. Even in what would be considered a down year by her high standards, Boston is averaging 13.1 points and 9.7 rebounds per game.
Out of Villanova, Siegrist has not scored less than 21 points in any game this season. In seven games, she has scored 35 points or more, and she scored a career-high 50 in a February game against Seton Hall.
For Virginia Tech, Kitley won the ACC Player of the Year award for the second consecutive season. The 6-6 center is averaging 18.2 points, 10.8 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game for the Hokies, and she also became the program’s all-time leading scorer.
Villanova women’s basketball snapped UConn’s 145-game regular-season conference winning streak, downing the Huskies 72-69 on Wednesday.
UConn’s conference record dates back to 2013 and was the longest in NCAA women’s basketball history.
🚨 HISTORIC UPSET 🚨@novawbb goes into Hartford and snaps the Huskies 169-game conference win streak. pic.twitter.com/PFpz3GDOYd
— Just Women’s Sports (@justwsports) February 10, 2022
The Wildcats outshot the Huskies 51.8 percent to 48.2 percent, outrebounding the squad as well, pulling down 37 boards to UConn’s 21.
Four Villanova players scored in the double digits, led by Lior Garzon, who notched 19 points on five-for-ten shooting from the three-point line. Maddy Siegrist and Brianna Herlihy each recorded double-doubles for the Wildcats, with Siegrist netting 17 points and 12 rebounds and Herlihy adding 15 points and 10 rebounds.
Statement dub in Hartford‼️✌️ pic.twitter.com/ntJmDlrntJ
— Villanova WBB (@novawbb) February 10, 2022
Azzi Fudd’s 29 points for UConn wasn’t enough to overcome Villanova down the stretch, with Christyn Williams posting an impressive 24 points, joining Fudd in playing the entire game as the Huskies were down to just six players.
“You’ve got to lose at some point, otherwise you’re not in a good conference,” said UConn coach Geno Auriemma after the game. “Losing to a good team like Villanova, they deserved to win. I thought today, they were way more physical than us. They just worked harder at it. This was just not a good day. Losing is part of basketball, and you have to figure out how it happened and then move on and get ready for the next one.”
Villanova improved to 16-6 on the season and 10-3 in conference play, while UConn fell to 15-5 and 9-1 in the Big East after Wednesday’s matchup.
“We’re just excited. We talked about shrinking the scoring gap against UConn,” said Villanova coach Denise Dillon. “I’m so proud of this group.”