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Three players named to Wade Watch List

Oct 8, 2013

WALNUT CREEK, Calif. - Three Pac-12 women’s basketball players representing two teams were named to the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association’s 2013-14 preseason “Wade Watch” list of candidates for the prestigious award, the WBCA announced today. 

A pair of honorees represent CALIFORNIA as Gennifer Brandon and Brittany Boyd were named to the 25-member list. The Golden Bears are one of four teams with multiple representatives. Two-time All-American Chiney Ogwumike of STANFORD was also named to the list.

In its 37th year, the Wade Trophy is named in honor of the late, legendary three-time national champion Delta State University coach, Lily Margaret Wade. Regarded as "The Heisman of Women's Basketball," the award is presented annually to the NCAA Division I Player of the Year by the National Association of Girls and Women in Sport (NAGWS) and the WBCA.

The preseason list is composed of top NCAA Division I women's basketball players who best embody Wade's spirit from 18 different institutions and seven conferences. A committee of coaches, administrators and media from across the United States compiled the list using the following criteria: game and season statistics, leadership, character, effect on their team, and overall playing ability.

Boyd and Brandon return after helping the Golden Bears to the program’s first-ever NCAA Women’s Final Four appearance last year. Cal also claimed its first-ever Pac-12 regular-season title, which it shared with the Cardinal. Boyd and Brandon are the team’s top-returning scorers, each averaging over 12.0 points per game. Brandon also averaged 11.1 rebounds per game last year.

Ogwumike led the Conference in scoring and rebounding last year, posting 22.4 points and 12.9 rebounds per game. The Cardinal advanced to the NCAA Sweet Sixteen, falling by just two points and missing out on a sixth-straight trip to the NCAA Women’s Final Four. Ogwumike, who was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year and Pac-12 Defensive Player of the Year, led Stanford to a seventh-straight Pac-12 Tournament title. It is Ogwumike’s third-straight appearance on the preseason watch list.

Over 100 Pac-12 women’s basketball games will be televised this year, a league record, on the Pac-12 Networks and ESPN. The Pac-12 Tournament returns to KeyArena in Seattle, March 6-9.

For more information on the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) and the Wade Trophy, visit www.wbca.org.