DePaul University Athletics
Held Named to Naismith Trophy Watch List
11/17/2020 9:03:00 AM | WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
Blue Demon junior among top 50 candidates for prestigious award
ATLANTA – Lexi Held becomes the second Blue Demon this season to be selected to a prestigious national award watch list.
The 2021 Women's Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy Watch List announced Tuesday by the Atlanta Tipoff Club named the junior sharpshooter among its top 50 candidates. The watch list is headlined by 2020 finalist Rhyne Howard of Kentucky and the 2020 Jersey Mike's Naismith High School Girls Trophy winner Paige Bueckers, now a freshman at Connecticut.
Held was honored last season as the 2020 BIG EAST Tournament Most Outstanding Player after scoring a career-high 31 points in the title-game victory over Marquette.
The All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention selection scored 16 points a game in conference action and was tied for second in the league with 78 three-pointers in overall games. She was No. 9 in overall scoring, averaging 15.4 points in all games as a sophomore.
The Lexington, Ky. product scored 20 or more points nine times including 26 points against Xavier, 25 versus Marquette and 23 against Creighton. She made five 3-pointers in four games and was often at her best in crunch time.
She saved her best for last, going 10-of-14 from the field and 5-of-6 from deep in the BIG EAST tournament title game. In just two seasons, Held has already scored 761 points. She scored 494 last year and is just 239 away from the 1,000-point plateau.
This was the second national accolade for coach Doug Bruno's program in the last seven days. Last week, teammate Sonya Morris was named to the Ann Meyers Drysdale watch list for the top 20 shooting guards in the country.
The Naismith list of 50 players represents 11 conferences with the Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC having nine players each. UConn, which has won more Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophies (10) than any other school, leads the group with four players followed by 2019 NCAA champion Baylor and Stanford with three candidates apiece.
"The competition for the 2021 Women's Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy will intensify as more players enter the competition throughout the season, but these 50 candidates are the early contenders to watch," said Eric Oberman, executive director of the Atlanta Tipoff Club. "While last season was unlike any college basketball season we've experienced, we hope these athletes have the opportunity to compete through their entire schedule this season and showcase the full breadth of their abilities and talent."
The midseason 30 team will be announced in early February. Players who do not make the watch list are still eligible to be selected for the midseason 30 team. The competition will be narrowed down to 10 national semifinalists on March 2, 2021, and four finalists will be named on March 19. The winner of the 2021 Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy for Women's Player of the Year will be announced on April 3.
"As we sponsor the collegiate honor for the first year, Jersey Mike's is excited to partner with the Naismith Trophy," said Rich Hope, Jersey Mike's Franchise Systems, Inc. chief marketing officer. "We look forward to following these great athletes throughout the season and honoring one of these talented players as the winner of the 2021 Women's Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy."
2021 Women's Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy Preseason Watch List
Aliyah Boston, South Carolina
Sam Brunelle, Notre Dame
Paige Bueckers, UConn
DiJonai Carrington, Baylor
Jessika Carter, Mississippi State
Charli Collier, Texas
Zia Cooke, South Carolina
Elissa Cunana, North Carolina State
Rennia Davis, Tennessee
Chelsea Dungee, Arkansas
Dana Evans, Louisville
Aleah Goodman, Oregon State
Vivian Gray, Texas Tech
Arella Guirantes, Rutgers
Lauren Heard, TCU
Lexi Held, DePaul
Naz Hillmon, Michigan
Rhyne Howard, Kentucky
Lexie Hull, Stanford
Rickea Jackson, Mississippi State
Ashley Joens, Iowa State
Haley Jones, Stanford
N'Dea Jones, Texas A&M
Taylor Jones, Oregon State
Dorka Juhász, Ohio State
Ayoka Lee, Kansas State
Kiara Lewis, Syracuse
Natasha Mack, Oklahoma State
Tiana Mangakahia, Syracuse
Aari McDonald, Arizona
Nancy Mulkey, Rice
Olivia Nelson-Ododa, UConn
Michaela Onyenwere, UCLA
Ashley Owusu, Maryland
Ali Patberg, Indiana
Chelsey Perry, Tennessee-Martin
Lasha Petree, Bradley
Alissa Pili, USC
Lindsey Pulliam, Northwestern,
Cate Reese, Arizona
DiDi Richards, Baylor
Destiny Slocum, Arkansas
NaLyssa Smith, Baylor
Taylor Soule, Boston College
Jill Townsend, Gonzaga
Maddi Utti, Fresno State
Hailey Van Lith, Louisville
Evina Westbrook, UConn
Christyn Williams, UConn
Kiana Williams, Stanford
The 2021 Women's Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy Watch List announced Tuesday by the Atlanta Tipoff Club named the junior sharpshooter among its top 50 candidates. The watch list is headlined by 2020 finalist Rhyne Howard of Kentucky and the 2020 Jersey Mike's Naismith High School Girls Trophy winner Paige Bueckers, now a freshman at Connecticut.
Held was honored last season as the 2020 BIG EAST Tournament Most Outstanding Player after scoring a career-high 31 points in the title-game victory over Marquette.
The All-BIG EAST Honorable Mention selection scored 16 points a game in conference action and was tied for second in the league with 78 three-pointers in overall games. She was No. 9 in overall scoring, averaging 15.4 points in all games as a sophomore.
The Lexington, Ky. product scored 20 or more points nine times including 26 points against Xavier, 25 versus Marquette and 23 against Creighton. She made five 3-pointers in four games and was often at her best in crunch time.
She saved her best for last, going 10-of-14 from the field and 5-of-6 from deep in the BIG EAST tournament title game. In just two seasons, Held has already scored 761 points. She scored 494 last year and is just 239 away from the 1,000-point plateau.
This was the second national accolade for coach Doug Bruno's program in the last seven days. Last week, teammate Sonya Morris was named to the Ann Meyers Drysdale watch list for the top 20 shooting guards in the country.
The Naismith list of 50 players represents 11 conferences with the Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC having nine players each. UConn, which has won more Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophies (10) than any other school, leads the group with four players followed by 2019 NCAA champion Baylor and Stanford with three candidates apiece.
"The competition for the 2021 Women's Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy will intensify as more players enter the competition throughout the season, but these 50 candidates are the early contenders to watch," said Eric Oberman, executive director of the Atlanta Tipoff Club. "While last season was unlike any college basketball season we've experienced, we hope these athletes have the opportunity to compete through their entire schedule this season and showcase the full breadth of their abilities and talent."
The midseason 30 team will be announced in early February. Players who do not make the watch list are still eligible to be selected for the midseason 30 team. The competition will be narrowed down to 10 national semifinalists on March 2, 2021, and four finalists will be named on March 19. The winner of the 2021 Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy for Women's Player of the Year will be announced on April 3.
"As we sponsor the collegiate honor for the first year, Jersey Mike's is excited to partner with the Naismith Trophy," said Rich Hope, Jersey Mike's Franchise Systems, Inc. chief marketing officer. "We look forward to following these great athletes throughout the season and honoring one of these talented players as the winner of the 2021 Women's Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy."
2021 Women's Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy Preseason Watch List
Aliyah Boston, South Carolina
Sam Brunelle, Notre Dame
Paige Bueckers, UConn
DiJonai Carrington, Baylor
Jessika Carter, Mississippi State
Charli Collier, Texas
Zia Cooke, South Carolina
Elissa Cunana, North Carolina State
Rennia Davis, Tennessee
Chelsea Dungee, Arkansas
Dana Evans, Louisville
Aleah Goodman, Oregon State
Vivian Gray, Texas Tech
Arella Guirantes, Rutgers
Lauren Heard, TCU
Lexi Held, DePaul
Naz Hillmon, Michigan
Rhyne Howard, Kentucky
Lexie Hull, Stanford
Rickea Jackson, Mississippi State
Ashley Joens, Iowa State
Haley Jones, Stanford
N'Dea Jones, Texas A&M
Taylor Jones, Oregon State
Dorka Juhász, Ohio State
Ayoka Lee, Kansas State
Kiara Lewis, Syracuse
Natasha Mack, Oklahoma State
Tiana Mangakahia, Syracuse
Aari McDonald, Arizona
Nancy Mulkey, Rice
Olivia Nelson-Ododa, UConn
Michaela Onyenwere, UCLA
Ashley Owusu, Maryland
Ali Patberg, Indiana
Chelsey Perry, Tennessee-Martin
Lasha Petree, Bradley
Alissa Pili, USC
Lindsey Pulliam, Northwestern,
Cate Reese, Arizona
DiDi Richards, Baylor
Destiny Slocum, Arkansas
NaLyssa Smith, Baylor
Taylor Soule, Boston College
Jill Townsend, Gonzaga
Maddi Utti, Fresno State
Hailey Van Lith, Louisville
Evina Westbrook, UConn
Christyn Williams, UConn
Kiana Williams, Stanford
Players Mentioned
G
/ WOMEN'S BASKETBALL
G
/ WOMEN'S BASKETBALLDePaul Women's Basketball vs. Providence Game Highlights - 3.6.26
Friday, March 06
DePaul Women's Basketball at Georgetown Game Highlights - 3.1.26
Monday, March 02
DePaul Women’s Basketball vs. Butler Postgame Press Conference.
Thursday, February 26
DePaul Women’s Basketball Game Highlights vs. Butler - 02.25.26
Thursday, February 26