CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association announced today the 20 watch list candidates for the 2022 Lisa Leslie Award. Named after the three-time All-American,1994 National Player of the Year and Class of 2015 Hall of Famer, the annual award in its fifth year recognizes the top centers in women’s NCAA Division I college basketball. A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates.

Virginia graduate student center Eleah Parker  was named to the list. Parker played three seasons at Penn before transferring to UVA. She is a two-time Ivy League Defensive Player of the Year and the 2019 Big 5 Player of the Year. In her three seasons with the Quakers, she averaged 12.9 points per game and 8.4 rebounds per game. She was also named to the Lisa Leslie Award Watch List ahead of the 2019-20 season.

College basketball fans are encouraged to participate in Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies in each of the three rounds. In late January, the watch list of 20 players for the 2022 Lisa Leslie Center of the Year Award will be narrowed to 10 and then in late February to just five. In March the five finalists will be presented to Ms. Leslie and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee where a winner will be selected.

The winner of the 2022 Lisa Leslie Award will be presented on a to-be-determined date, along with the other four members of the Women’s Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Nancy Lieberman Point Guard Award, the Ann Meyers Drysdale Shooting Guard Award, the Cheryl Miller Small Forward Award and the Katrina McClain Power Forward Award, in addition to the Men’s Starting Five.

Previous winners of the Lisa Leslie Center of the Year Award include Aliyah Boston, South Carolina (2020-21), Megan Gustafson, Iowa (2019) and A’ja Wilson, South Carolina (2018).

For more information on the 2022 Lisa Leslie Award and the latest updates, log onto www.hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophall and #LeslieAward on Twitter and Instagram. Starting Five Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies goes live today, October 29.

2022 Lisa Leslie Award Candidates*

Queen Egbo Baylor
Sara Hamson BYU
Jenna Staiti Georgia
Mackenzie Holmes Indiana
Monika Czinano Iowa
Ayoka Lee Kansas State
Hannah Gusters LSU
Jessika Carter Mississippi St.
Elissa Cunane NC State
Shakira Austin Ole Miss
Aliyah Boston South Carolina
Kamilla Cardoso South Carolina
Francesca Belibi Stanford
Tamari Key Tennessee
Ila Lane UC Santa Barbara
Olivia Nelson-Ododa UConn
Eleah Parker Virginia
Elizabeth Kitley Virginia Tech
Nancy Mulkey Washington
Bella Murekatete Washington St.

 

*Players can play their way onto and off the list at any point in the 2021-22 season