Vivians Named To Wooden Award Late Season Top 20
February 17, 2016 | Women's Basketball
STARKVILLE, Miss. – On the eve of a Top-20 showdown in Humphrey Coliseum, Mississippi State sophomore Victoria Vivians was named to the Late Season Top 20 for the prestigious John R. Wooden Award.
Vivians was one of three SEC players named to the list for the award, presented annually to the player of the year in women's basketball.
The Carthage, Mississippi, native earned the honor as part of a stellar sophomore season that has seen her rate second in the SEC in scoring at 17.0 ppg. Vivians is the SEC's fourth-best scorer in league play, knocking down 15.6 ppg.
She enters Thursday's game against No. 16 Kentucky having scored double figures in seven-straight games and all but two of the team's 26 contests this season.
Of those 24 double figure games, eight have been for 20 or more points. She scored 36 points in a win at Louisiana Tech.
Vivians rates third in the SEC shooting the 3-pointer, knocking down 2.2 per contest. She is also in the league's Top 10 at the free throw line in SEC play, converting 73.8 percent of her opportunities.
She has enjoyed quite the young career for the Bulldogs, scoring 947 career points that is 13th among active SEC players and the most by a sophomore.
Vivians has also stepped up on the defensive end this season, leading MSU with 6.8 rpg and 2.0 steals in SEC play.
Created in 1976 by the Los Angeles Athletic Club, the John R. Wooden Award program features the most prestigious individual honors in college basketball. The Wooden Award Trophy is bestowed annually upon the nation's best female player who have proven to their respective universities that they are making progress toward graduation while maintaining a minimum cumulative 2.0 GPA.
Tip for Thursday's “Think Pink” game against the 16th-ranked Wildcats is set for 6 p.m. on the SEC Network.
2015-16 John R. Wooden Award Late Season Top 20
|
Name |
Height |
Class |
Position |
School |
Conference |
|
Jillian Alleyne |
6-3 |
Sr. |
F |
Oregon |
Pac-12 |
|
Ameryst Alston |
5-9 |
Sr. |
G |
Ohio State |
Big Ten |
|
Rachel Banham |
5-9 |
Sr. |
G |
Minnesota |
Big Ten |
|
Jordin Canada |
5-6 |
Soph. |
G |
UCLA |
Pac-12 |
|
Nia Coffey |
6-1 |
Jr. |
F |
Northwestern |
Big Ten |
|
Nina Davis |
5-11 |
Jr. |
F |
Baylor |
Big 12 |
|
Moriah Jefferson |
5-7 |
Sr. |
G |
Connecticut |
The American |
|
Brionna Jones |
6-3 |
Jr. |
C |
Maryland |
Big Ten |
|
Kelsey Mitchell |
5-8 |
Soph. |
G |
Ohio State |
Big Ten |
|
Tiffany Mitchell |
5-9 |
Sr. |
G |
South Carolina |
SEC |
|
Kelsey Plum |
5-8 |
Jr. |
G |
Washington |
Pac-12 |
|
Aerial Powers |
6-0 |
Jr. |
F |
Michigan State |
Big Ten |
|
Azurá Stevens |
6-6 |
Soph. |
F/G |
Duke |
ACC |
|
Breanna Stewart |
6-4 |
Sr. |
F |
Connecticut |
The American |
|
Morgan Tuck |
6-2 |
Jr. |
F |
Connecticut |
The American |
|
Brianna Turner |
6-3 |
Soph. |
F |
Notre Dame |
ACC |
|
6-1 |
Soph. |
G |
Mississippi State |
SEC |
|
|
Shatori Walker-Kimbrough |
5-11 |
Jr. |
G |
Maryland |
Big Ten |
|
Courtney Williams |
5-8 |
Sr. |
G |
South Florida |
The American |
|
A'ja Wilson |
6-5 |
Soph. |
F |
South Carolina |
SEC |
