Onyenwere Named to Cheryl Miller Award Top 20 Watch List

Springfield, Mass. – Senior forward Michaela Onyenwere has been named to the Cheryl Miller Award Top 20 Watch List, the Naismith Memorial Hall of Fame and the Women's College Basketball Association (WBCA) announced Wednesday. The award is presented annually to the nation's best small forward.
 
"Michaela is the beat forward in the country in my opinion," said The Michael Price Family UCLA Women's Head Basketball Coach Cori Close. "But what makes her even more amazing is that she is one of the best teammates in the country. Competitive, driven, and others-centered and sacrificial at the same time. She is ELITE on and off the court. She deserves everything coming her way."
 
Onyenwere had an impressive junior campaign in 2019-20, leading the Bruins to a 26-5 overall record and a 14-4 mark in Conference play. She earned AP Third-Team All-America honors after leading the team with a career-high 18.9 points per game. She posted her second-straight season with 500+ points and garnered All-Conference accolades for the second time. She put up 10 double-doubles this past season, including a dominant 26 point-15 rebound performance in UCLA's victory over USC in the second round of the Pac-12 Tournament (Mar. 6). Onyenwere went on to earn a spot on the Pac-12 All-Tournament team, averaging 20 points and 10.5 rebounds during the team's tourney run. She is already 19th on UCLA's all-time scoring list and could join UCLA's 2,000-point club if her season scoring rate continues.
 
Fans are encouraged to participate in Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies in each of the three rounds of consideration for the nominees. The current watch list of 20 players will be narrowed to 10 in February, and then five finalists will be presented to Meyers Drysdale in early March. The winner of the 2021 Ann Meyers Drysdale Award will be presented on Friday, April 9, 2021, along with the rest of the Women's Starting Five.
 
Women's Starting Five Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies is scheduled to go live on Friday, Nov. 13. Fan voting helped Onyenwere advance to the Cheryl Miller Award Top 10 last season.
 
2021 Cheryl Miller Award Candidates*
Taylor Soule -- Boston College
Summer Hemphill -- Buffalo
Evina Westbrook -- Connecticut
Aubrey Griffin -- Connecticut
Grace Berger -- Indiana
Ashley Joens -- Iowa State
Rhyne Howard -- Kentucky
Elizabeth Balogun -- Louisville
Angel Reese -- Maryland
Rickea Jackson -- Mississippi State
Erica Johnson -- Ohio
Erin Boley -- Oregon
Brea Beal -- South Carolina
Haley Jones -- Stanford
Mia Davis -- Temple
Rennia Davis -- Tennessee
Kayla Wells -- Texas A&M
Vivian Gray -- Texas Tech
Michaela Onyenwere -- UCLA
Ivana Raca -- Wake Forest