INDIANAPOLIS (USBWA) On the season's second weekly women's awards from the U.S. Basketball Writers Association, the Big East Conference dominates the selections organized under Mel Greenberg, the USBWA coordinator for women's basketball. The pool of candidates is drawn from the weekly conference citations as well as at-large additions involving an expanded governing panel focusing on women's matters that will soon be in place.
For the honorees for games ending Sunday, Dec. 12, the Ann Meyers Drysdale Women's National Player of the Week goes to Villanova junior forward Maddy Siegrist, the Tamika Catchings Women's Freshman Player of the Week honor goes to DePaul forward Aneesah Morrow and the Women's National Team of the Week citation goes to Georgia Tech for performances in the voting period.
Siegrist, a 6-1 forward from Poughkeepsie, N.Y., and a past USBWA honoree, returned from injury last week that sidelined her from six games and she promptly poured 36 points and grabbed 17 rebounds in a win at James Madison, and then followed at home and keyed the Villanova 56-52 upset of then-No. 23 Oregon State, scoring 28 points and grabbing nine rebounds. Her two-game average, leading to being named the weekly Big East player honoree, showed 32.0 ppg and 13.0 rpg, while shooting 22-of-48 from the field (.458), 4-for-10 on three-point attempts (.400), and 16-of-22 from the line (.727). Her four-game season averages are 21.3 ppg and 10.3 rpg.
Morrow, a 6-foot-1 power forward from Chicago, scored 18 points and grabbed a game high 17 rebounds in DePaul's 94-85 upset at then-No. 14 Kentucky at Rupp Arena. In half of her 10-game collegiate career she already has five double doubles to the share the conference lead and is the first frosh to win the first five Big East rookie honors of a season. Villanova's Siegrist won five straight December 2019-January 2020. Morrow, averaging 18.4 points and 12 rebounds per game, is fourth nationally in rebounding, sixth on the offensive glass, 10th in blocks, 11th in field goals, 13th in double-doubles, 14th in steals, and 17th in points.
Last Thursday, Georgia Tech ended then-No. 3 UConn's 240-game win streak against unranked teams, 57-44, knocking the Huskies to their lowest ranking since 2007 at No. 7, and after beating Furman Sunday returned to the Associated Press women's poll at 18th following the Yellow Jackets' dropout several weeks ago. Tech is the second straight national team of the week from the ACC following Duke a week ago.
Since the 1987-88 season, the USBWA has named a women's National Player of the Year. For the 2012-13 season, the national and weekly player award became named for Hall of Famer and former UCLA All-American Ann Meyers Drysdale while this is the first season the national and weekly freshman award is being given in the name of former Tennessee all-American Tamika Catchings.
At the conclusion of the regular season, the USBWA will name finalists for both individual awards, which is voted on by the entire membership of the USBWA.
The winners of the 2022 Ann Meyers Drysdale National Player of the Year and Tamika Catchings National Freshman of the Year will be announced and presented at the USBWA's annual awards event on site at the 2022 NCAA Women's Final Four in Minneapolis.
The U.S. Basketball Writers Association was formed in 1956 at the urging of then-NCAA Executive Director Walter Byers. With some 900 members worldwide, it is one of the most influential organizations in college basketball. It has selected a women's All-America team since the 1996-97 season. For more information on the USBWA and its award programs, contact executive director Malcolm Moran at 814-574-1485.
2021-22 USBWA Women's Weekly Honors
Week ending Dec. 5: Teisha Hyman, Syracuse (National); Shayeann Day-Wilson, Duke
(Freshman); Duke (Team)
· Week ending Dec.
12: Maddy Siegrist, Villanova (National); Aneesah Morrow, DePaul (Freshman); Georgia
Tech (Team)
· Week ending Dec. 19: Haley Jones,
Stanford (National); Laila Phelia, Michigan (Freshman); Michigan (Team)
·
Week ending Dec. 26: Destanni Henderson, South Carolina
(National); Rori Harmon, Texas (Freshman); South Carolina (Team)
·
Week ending Jan. 2: Ayoka Lee, Kansas State (National);
Kelbie Washington, Oklahoma (Freshman); Missouri (Team)
·
Week ending Jan. 9: Jaylyn Sherrod, Colorado (National);
Alexis Markowski, Nebraska (Freshman); Colorado (Team)
·
Week ending Jan. 16: Caitlin Clark, Iowa (National);
Aaliyah Collins, Chicago State (Freshman); Oklahoma and Oregon (Team)
·
Week ending Jan. 23: Ayoka Lee, Kansas State (National);
Alberte Rimdal, Florida (Freshman); Ole Miss (Team)
·
Week ending Jan. 30: Naz Hillmon, Michigan (National);
Aneesah Morrow, DePaul (Freshman); Drexel (Team)
·
Week ending Feb. 6: Jasmine Dickey, Delaware (National);
Azzi Fudd, UConn (Freshman); Michigan (Team)
·
Week ending Feb. 13: Maddy Siegrist, Villanova (National);
Aneesah Morrow, DePaul (Freshman); Villanova (Team)
·
Week ending Feb. 20: Aliyah Boston, South Carolina (National);
Aneesah Morrow, DePaul (Freshman); North Carolina (Team)
·
Week ending Feb. 27: Caitlin Clark, Iowa (National);
Aneesah Morrow, DePaul (Freshman); Stanford (Team)
·
Week ending March 6: Dre'Una Edwards, Kentucky (National);
Kaitlyn Chen, Princeton (Freshman); Kentucky (Team)
All-time USBWA Women's
National Weekly Honors (Since 2011-12)