Pac-12 Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Year

Pac-12 Women's Basketball Player of the Year
Awarded forthe most outstanding basketball player in the Pac-12 Conference
CountryUnited States
First awarded1987
Currently held byCameron Brink, Stanford

The Pac-12 Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Year is a dormant basketball award given to the Pac-12 Conference's most outstanding player. The award was first given following the 1986–87 season, the first year in which the league then known as the Pacific-10 Conference (Pac-10) officially sponsored women's sports.

Two bodies voted for players of the year. The league's head coaches selected a winner since the award's inception, while media members who cover Pac-12 women's basketball presented their own version of the award in the 2009–10 season.[1] As is the case with the corresponding men's award, coaches were not allowed to vote for their own players.[2]

Ten players have won the award more than once, but only two, Candice Wiggins of Stanford and Sabrina Ionescu of Oregon, have won three times, and only Ionescu has won all three awards consecutively. Six players have won a major end-of-season national award in the year that they won the conference award. Four of them are from Stanford: Jennifer Azzi claimed the Naismith Award and Wade Trophy in 1990; Kate Starbird won the Naismith Award in 1997; Wiggins received the Wade Trophy in 2008; and Chiney Ogwumike won the Wooden Award in 2014.[3] The others are Kelsey Plum of Washington, who won all three major awards in 2017,[4][5][6] and Ionescu, who received the Wade Trophy and Wooden Award in 2019[7][8] and all three major awards in 2020.[9][10][11]

There have been four shared awards. Starbird and Tanja Kostić of Oregon State tied for the coaches' award in 1996. In 2015, Reshanda Gray of California won the coaches' award and Ruth Hamblin of Oregon State won the media award. The following year, Jamie Weisner of Oregon State won the coaches' award outright and shared the media award with Jillian Alleyne of Oregon. Most recently, Stanford teammates Cameron Brink and Haley Jones shared honors in 2022, with Brink receiving the media award and Jones the coaches' award.

For most of the award's history, the list of honorees has been dominated by Stanford, which has had 12 players earn a total of 20 awards. The rest of the conference has had 17 players earn a total of 19 awards. However, Stanford's 2022 awards were the Cardinal's first since the 2013–14 season. Three of the then-Pac-12 members have never had a winner: established members Arizona State and Washington State, plus 2011 arrival Colorado.

The Pac-12 lost all but two of its members after the 2023–24 season, leading the remaining members, Oregon State and Washington State, to become affiliates of the West Coast Conference in most sports, including women's basketball, in 2024–25 and 2025–26.[12] However, in a span of less than three weeks in September 2024, the Pac-12 added six new members effective in 2026–27—Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, Gonzaga, San Diego State, and Utah State.[13][14][15] With eight confirmed members, conference play is expected to resume in 2026, with the award to again be presented starting in 2027.

Key

† Co-Players of the Year
* Awarded a national Player of the Year award:
Wade Trophy (1977–78 to present)
Naismith College Player of the Year (1982–83 to present)
John R. Wooden Award (2003–04 to present)
C Pac-12 coaches selection (2010–present)
M Media selection (2010–present)
Player (X) Denotes the number of times the player has been awarded the Pac-12 Player of the Year award at that point

Winners

Season Player School Position Class Reference
1986–87 Lauri Landerholm Oregon Guard[16] Senior[17]
1987–88 Cheri Nelson USC
1988–89 Jennifer Azzi Stanford Guard[18] Junior
1989–90 Jennifer Azzi* (2) Stanford Guard[18] Senior
1990–91 Sonja Henning Stanford Guard[18] Senior
1991–92 Val Whiting Stanford Junior
1992–93 Val Whiting (2) Stanford Senior
1993–94 Natalie Williams UCLA Senior
1994–95 Tanja Kostić Oregon State Forward[19] Junior
1995–96† Tanja Kostić (2) Oregon State Forward[19] Senior
Kate Starbird Stanford Guard[18] Junior
1996–97 Kate Starbird* (2) Stanford Guard[18] Senior
1997–98 Adia Barnes Arizona Senior
1998–99 Maylana Martin UCLA Junior
1999–2000 Shaquala Williams Oregon Guard[16] Sophomore
2000–01 Felicia Ragland Oregon State Guard[20] Junior[20]
2001–02 Nicole Powell Stanford Forward[18] Sophomore
2002–03 Giuliana Mendiola Washington Guard[21] Junior
2003–04 Nicole Powell (2) Stanford Forward[18] Senior
2004–05 Candice Wiggins Stanford Guard[18] Freshman
2005–06 Candice Wiggins (2) Stanford Guard[18] Sophomore
2006–07 Devanei Hampton California Sophomore
2007–08 Candice Wiggins* (3) Stanford Guard[18] Senior
2008–09 Jayne Appel Stanford Junior
2009–10 Nneka Ogwumike Stanford Forward[18] Sophomore
2010–11 Jeanette Pohlen Stanford Guard[22] Senior[22]
2011–12 Nneka Ogwumike (2) Stanford Forward[18] Senior
2012–13 Chiney Ogwumike Stanford Forward[18] Junior
2013–14 Chiney Ogwumike* (2) Stanford Forward[18] Senior
2014–15 † Reshanda GrayC California Forward Senior [23]
Ruth HamblinM Oregon State Center Junior [24]
2015–16 † Jillian AlleyneM Oregon Forward Senior [1]
Jamie WeisnerC, M Oregon State Guard Senior [2][1]
2016–17 Kelsey Plum* Washington Guard Senior [25][26]
2017–18 Sabrina Ionescu Oregon Guard Sophomore [27][28]
2018–19 Sabrina Ionescu* (2) Oregon Guard Junior [29][30]
2019–20 Sabrina Ionescu* (3) Oregon Guard Senior [31][32]
2020–21 Aari McDonald Arizona Guard Senior [33]
2021–22 † Cameron BrinkM Stanford Forward Sophomore [34]
Haley JonesC Guard Junior [35]
2022–23 Alissa Pili Utah Forward Junior [36][37]
2023–24 Cameron Brink (2) Stanford Forward Senior [38][39]

Winners by school

School (year joined)[a 1] Winners Years
Stanford (1959) 21 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996†, 1997, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2022 (×2)†, 2024
Oregon (1964) 6 1987, 2000, 2016†, 2018, 2019, 2020
Oregon State (1964) 5 1995, 1996†, 2001, 2015†, 2016†
Arizona (1978) 2 1998, 2021
California (1959) 2 2007, 2015†
UCLA (1959) 2 1994, 1999
Washington (1959) 2 2003, 2017
USC (1959) 1 1988
Utah (2011) 1 2023
Arizona State (1978) 0 —
Colorado (2011) 0 —
Washington State (1962) 0 —

Footnotes

  1. ^ For purposes of this table, the "year joined" reflects the year that each team joined the conference now known as the Pac-12 as currently chartered. Although the Pac-12 claims the Pacific Coast Conference (PCC), founded in 1915, as part of its own history, that conference disbanded in 1959 due to infighting and scandal. That same year, five PCC members established the Athletic Association of Western Universities (AAWU) under a new charter that functions to this day. The Player of the Year Award was not established until 1987, by which time the conference membership included all of the final members of the PCC except for Idaho, plus 1978 arrivals Arizona and Arizona State.

References

General

  • List of winners through 2014–15: "Conference Honors: Player of the Year". 2015–16 Pac-12 Conference Women's Basketball Media Guide. Pac-12 Conference. p. 69. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  • Classes of winners: All award winners but four—Landerholm (1987), Nelson (1988), Ragland (2001), and Pohlen (2011)—were on the conference's All-Freshman Team. Extrapolating from the conference's list of All-Freshman Team members allows a Player of the Year's class to be determined. "Conference Honors: All-Freshman Team". 2015–16 Pac-12 Conference Women's Basketball Media Guide. Pac-12 Conference. p. 68. Retrieved March 2, 2016.

Specific

  1. ^ a b c "Media votes Alleyne, Weisner Players of the Year" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 2, 2016. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
  2. ^ a b "Pac-12 announces women's basketball honors" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. February 29, 2016. Archived from the original on March 2, 2016. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  3. ^ "National Honors". 2015–16 Pac-12 Conference Women's Basketball Media Guide. Pac-12 Conference. p. 63. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  4. ^ "Washington's Kelsey Plum Named 2017 Citizen Naismith Trophy Winner" (Press release). Atlanta Tipoff Club. April 1, 2017. Retrieved April 2, 2017.
  5. ^ "Wade Trophy Winner Kelsey Plum of Washington Headlines 2017 WBCA NCAA Division I Coaches' All-American Team" (Press release). Women's Basketball Coaches Association. April 1, 2017. Retrieved April 2, 2017.
  6. ^ "Kelsey Plum Wins 2017 John R. Wooden Award" (Press release). Washington Huskies. April 7, 2017. Retrieved April 7, 2017.
  7. ^ "Wade Trophy Winner Sabrina Ionescu Headlines 2019 WBCA NCAA Division I Coaches' All-America Team" (Press release). Women's Basketball Coaches Association. April 4, 2019. Retrieved April 4, 2019.
  8. ^ "Winners Named for John R. Wooden Award During College Basketball Awards Presented by Wendy's on ESPN2" (Press release). Los Angeles Athletic Club. April 12, 2019. Retrieved April 12, 2019.
  9. ^ "Ionescu and Toppin Named 2020 Citizen Naismith Trophy Winners" (Press release). Atlanta Tipoff Club. April 3, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2020.
  10. ^ "Wade Trophy Winner Sabrina Ionescu Headlines 2020 WBCA NCAA Division I Coaches' All-America Team" (Press release). Women's Basketball Coaches Association. April 2, 2020. Retrieved April 2, 2020.
  11. ^ "Oregon's Sabrina Ionescu Wins 2020 John R. Wooden Award Presented by Wendy's" (Press release). Los Angeles Athletic Club. April 7, 2020. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  12. ^ Forsman, Cole (2023-12-21). "West Coast Conference votes to add Washington State, Oregon State in non-football sports". Gonzaga Nation. Retrieved 2023-12-22.
  13. ^ "Ushering in a new era, the Pac-12 Conference strengthens its legacy by welcoming four respected academic and athletic universities" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. September 12, 2024. Retrieved September 12, 2024.
  14. ^ "Pac-12 Conference and Utah State University Unite to Advance the New Era of the 100-Year-Old Legacy" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. September 24, 2024. Retrieved September 24, 2024.
  15. ^ "Pac-12 Conference and Gonzaga University Unite to Build a Basketball Powerhouse, Advancing the New Era of the Conference's 100-Year Legacy" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. September 30, 2024. Retrieved October 1, 2024.
  16. ^ a b "Awards and Honors" (PDF). Oregon Women's Basketball 2015–16 Media Guide. Oregon Ducks. p. 44. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  17. ^ "Oregon's 1,000-Point Scorers" (PDF). Oregon Women's Basketball 2015–16 Media Guide. Oregon Ducks. p. 58. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  18. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n "Nine Pac-12 All-Century" (Press release). Stanford Cardinal. February 29, 2016. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
  19. ^ a b "Year-By-Year Results" (PDF). 2015–16 Oregon State Women's Basketball Media Guide. Oregon State Beavers. pp. 95–96. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 7, 2016. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  20. ^ a b "All-Time Greats: Felicia Ragland" (PDF). 2015–16 Oregon State Women's Basketball Media Guide. Oregon State Beavers. p. 123. Archived from the original (PDF) on March 7, 2016. Retrieved March 2, 2016.
  21. ^ "Meet the Huskies" (PDF). 2003–04 Washington Women's Basketball Media Guide. Washington Huskies. p. 26. Retrieved March 4, 2016.
  22. ^ a b "Women's Basketball: 2010–11 Roster". Stanford Cardinal. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
  23. ^ "2014-15 Pac-12 Women's Basketball Honors" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 3, 2015. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
  24. ^ "2014-15 Women's Basketball Media Honors" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 4, 2015. Retrieved March 3, 2016.
  25. ^ "2016-17 Pac-12 Women's Basketball honors" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. February 28, 2017. Archived from the original on March 1, 2017. Retrieved February 28, 2017.
  26. ^ "2016-17 Pac-12 Women's Basketball media honors" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 1, 2017. Archived from the original on March 2, 2017. Retrieved March 1, 2017.
  27. ^ "Pac-12 Announces Annual Women's Basketball Awards" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. February 27, 2018. Archived from the original on February 28, 2018. Retrieved February 27, 2018.
  28. ^ "2017-18 Pac-12 Women's Basketball Media Awards Announced" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. February 28, 2018. Retrieved February 28, 2018.
  29. ^ "Pac-12 Announces Annual Women's Basketball Awards" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 5, 2019. Archived from the original on March 6, 2019. Retrieved March 5, 2019.
  30. ^ "2018-19 Pac-12 Women's Basketball Media Awards Announced" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 6, 2019. Retrieved March 6, 2019.
  31. ^ "2019-20 Annual Pac-12 Women's Basketball Conference Honors Announced" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 3, 2020. Archived from the original on March 3, 2020. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  32. ^ "2019-20 Pac-12 Women's Basketball Media Awards Announced" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 4, 2020. Retrieved March 4, 2020.
  33. ^ "2020-21 Pac-12 Women's Basketball All-Conference honors and Annual Performance Awards presented by Nextiva" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 1, 2021. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
  34. ^ "2021-22 Pac-12 Women's Basketball Media Awards announced" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 2, 2022. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  35. ^ "2021-22 Pac-12 Women's Basketball All-Conference honors and Annual Performance Awards, presented by Nextiva" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 1, 2022. Retrieved March 3, 2022.
  36. ^ "2022-23 Pac-12 Women's Basketball All-Conference honors and Annual Performance Awards, presented by Nextiva" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. February 28, 2023. Retrieved February 28, 2023.
  37. ^ "2022-23 Pac-12 Women's Basketball Media Awards announced" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 1, 2023. Retrieved March 1, 2023.
  38. ^ "2023-24 Pac-12 Women's Basketball All-Conference honors and Annual Performance Awards, presented by Nextiva" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 5, 2024. Archived from the original on March 5, 2024. Retrieved March 5, 2024.
  39. ^ "2023-24 Pac-12 Women's Basketball Media Awards announced" (Press release). Pac-12 Conference. March 6, 2024. Retrieved March 6, 2024.