Leger-Walker named to Wooden Award Preseason Watch List

LOS ANGELES – Washington State women's basketball junior Charlisse Leger-Walker has been named to The John R. Wooden Award® presented by Wendy's® announced the Women's Preseason Top 50 Watch List, as announced by ESPN.com Tuesday, Nov. 15.

It is the second-straight season that Leger-Walker has been one of 50 players selected to the Wooden Award Preseason Watch List. She is the only Washington State women's basketball player in program history to be named to a Wooden Award Watch List. Leger-Walker has seen her name pop up on a few award preseason watch lists already this year, as she was also selected to the Naismith Trophy and Ann Meyers Drysdale Award watch lists.

Leger-Walker has gotten the 2022-23 campaign off to a hot start, as the 5-10 guard currently leads the Pac-12 Conference in scoring at 25.0 points per game through three contests so far. Leger-Walker scored a career-high 35 points in last Friday's come-from-behind win at San Francisco. The guard from Waikato, New Zealand scored 26 of her 35 points in the second half against the Dons.

This past Sunday, Leger-Walker tied the WSU program record for quickest to 1,000 career points, as she scored her 1,000th career point in 57 career games, tying Jeanne Eggart. Her performance during the opening week of the season earned Leger-Walker the first Pac-12 Player of the Week Award of the 2022-23 campaign.

The players on the preseason watch list are considered strong candidates for the 2023 John R. Wooden Award Women's Player of the Year presented by Wendy's. Players not chosen to the preseason list are still eligible for the Wooden Award™ midseason list, late season list, and the National Ballot. The National Ballot consists of 15 top players who have proven to their universities that they meet or exceed the qualifications of the Wooden Award. Nearly 1,000 voters will rank in order 10 of those 15 players when voting opens prior to the NCAA Tournament and will allow voters to take into consideration performance during early round games. The Wooden Award All American Team™ will be announced the week of the "Elite Eight" round of the NCAA Tournament. The winner of the 2023 John R. Wooden Award will be presented in Los Angeles in April.

Washington State jumps back into action this Friday, Nov. 18, when the Cougars travel to Laie, Hawai'i for the Northshore Showcase. Friday's tilt will feature a matchup against BYU, tip-off is set for 5 p.m. PT. The Cougars will then take on Troy, Monday, Nov. 21, at 3 p.m. PT to close out the Northshore Showcase. Check back with WSUCougars.com for a full preview of the Northshore Showcase.

For more information on the Washington State women's basketball team, follow @WSUCougarWBB on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.