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USBWA National Freshman of the Year

US college basketball award From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

The USBWA National Freshman of the Year is an annual basketball honor given to college basketball's most outstanding freshman male player and female player by the United States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA), an association of college basketball journalists. Since 2011 the men's award has been called the Wayman Tisdale Award[1] while the women's award has been called the Tamika Catchings Award since 2020.[2] The award was first given following the 1988–89 season for men and 1991–92 for women.[3][4]

Awarded forthe most outstanding freshman male and female college basketball players
CountryUnited States
Presented byUnited States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA)
First award1989 (men)
1992 (women)
Quick facts Awarded for, Country ...
USBWA National
Freshman of the Year
Awarded forthe most outstanding freshman male and female college basketball players
CountryUnited States
Presented byUnited States Basketball Writers Association (USBWA)
History
First award1989 (men)
1992 (women)
Most recentCameron Boozer, Duke (men)
Jazzy Davidson, USC (women)
WebsiteOfficial website
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There has never been a tie for the men's award, but there have been two for the women, with Tasha Humphrey (Georgia) and Candice Wiggins (Stanford) sharing the 2004–05 award, and Paige Bueckers (UConn) and Caitlin Clark (Iowa) sharing honors in 2020–21.[5][6] Five players have been named a national player of the year by receiving one of the major awards for either men or women[a] in the same season as being named the USBWA Freshman of the Year. Among men's players, Kevin Durant (Texas) was the first in 2007, followed by Anthony Davis (Kentucky) in 2012, Zion Williamson (Duke) in 2019, and Cooper Flagg (also of Duke) in 2025. The first woman to receive both honors was Bueckers in 2021.

On July 26, 2010, the USBWA announced that they would rename the men's National Freshman of the Year award after the late Wayman Tisdale, who in 1983 was named a first-team All-American as a freshman at Oklahoma.[1] The women's award was officially named in honor of Tamika Catchings on October 17, 2019.[2] As a freshman at Tennessee in 1997–98, she averaged 18.2 points for the undefeated national champion Lady Volunteers.[2] Catchings went on to be named a three-time USBWA All-American and the organization's national player of the year in 2000.[2]

Key

† Co-National Freshman of the Year
    *     Awarded a national player of the year award as a freshman:
Men – Sporting News; Oscar Robertson Trophy; Associated Press; NABC; UPI; Naismith; Wooden; Adolph Rupp Trophy; Helms
Women – Associated Press; Naismith; Wooden; WBCA

Winners

Chris Jackson[b], LSU, 1989
Katie Smith, Ohio State, 1993
Shea Ralph, UConn, 1997
Luol Deng, Duke, 2004
Marvin Williams, North Carolina, 2005
Shekinna Stricklen, Tennessee, 2009
Rhyne Howard, Kentucky, 2019
Jabari Smith, Auburn, 2022
Brandon Miller, Alabama, 2023
Mikayla Blakes, Vanderbilt, 2025
More information Season, Player ...
Men
Season Player School Position Reference
1988–89 Chris Jackson[b] LSU PG [3]
1989–90 Kenny Anderson Georgia Tech PG [6]
1990–91 Rodney Rogers Wake Forest PF [7]
1991–92 Chris Webber Michigan C [8]
1992–93 Jason Kidd California PG [9]
1993–94 Joe Smith Maryland PF / C [10]
1994–95No award[c]
1995–96
1996–97
1997–98 Larry Hughes Saint Louis SG [11]
1998–99 Quentin Richardson DePaul SF / SG [12]
1999–00 Jason Gardner Arizona PG [13]
2000–01 Eddie Griffin Seton Hall C [14]
2001–02 T. J. Ford Texas PG [15]
2002–03 Carmelo Anthony Syracuse SF [16]
2003–04 Luol Deng Duke SF [6]
2004–05 Marvin Williams North Carolina PF [7]
2005–06 Tyler Hansbrough North Carolina PF / C [17]
2006–07 Kevin Durant* Texas SF [18]
2007–08 Michael Beasley Kansas State PF [19]
2008–09 Tyreke Evans Memphis PG [20]
2009–10 John Wall Kentucky PG [21]
2010–11 Jared Sullinger Ohio State PF [1]
2011–12 Anthony Davis* Kentucky C [22]
2012–13 Marcus Smart Oklahoma State PG [23]
2013–14 Jabari Parker Duke SF [24]
2014–15 Jahlil Okafor Duke C [25]
2015–16 Ben Simmons LSU PG [26]
2016–17 Lonzo Ball UCLA PG [27]
2017–18 Trae Young Oklahoma PG [28]
2018–19 Zion Williamson* Duke PF [29]
2019–20 Vernon Carey Jr. Duke C [7]
2020–21 Cade Cunningham Oklahoma State PG [30]
2021–22 Jabari Smith Auburn PF [7]
2022–23 Brandon Miller Alabama SF [31]
2023–24 Reed Sheppard Kentucky SG / PG [32]
2024–25 Cooper Flagg* Duke SG / SF [33]
2025–26 Cameron Boozer* Duke PF [34]
Women
Season Player School Position Reference
1988–89No award[5]
1989–90
1990–91
1991–92 Niesa Johnson Alabama G [4]
1992–93 Katie Smith Ohio State SG / SF [35]
1993–94 Leslie Johnson Purdue F / C [36]
1994–95 Korie Hlede Duquesne SG [37]
1995–96 Chamique Holdsclaw Tennesse SF [38]
1996–97 Shea Ralph UConn PG [39]
1997–98 Tamika Catchings Tennessee SF [40]
1998–99 Linda Fröhlich UNLV C [41]
1999–00 LaToya Thomas Mississippi State F [42]
2000–01 Alana Beard Duke SG / SF [43]
2001–02 Jacqueline Batteast Notre Dame F [44]
2002–03 Seimone Augustus LSU SF [45]
2003–04 Tiffany Jackson Texas F [46]
2004–05† Tasha Humphrey Georgia C [47]
Candice Wiggins Stanford PG / SG [47]
2005–06 Courtney Paris Oklahoma C [48]
2006–07 Tina Charles UConn C [49]
2007–08 Maya Moore UConn PF [50]
2008–09 Shekinna Stricklen Tennessee SF / G [51]
2009–10 Brittney Griner Baylor C [52]
2010–11 Odyssey Sims Baylor PG [53]
2011–12 Elizabeth Williams Duke C / PF [54]
2012–13 Jewell Loyd Notre Dame PG / SG [55]
2013–14 Diamond DeShields North Carolina SG [56]
2014–15 Kelsey Mitchell Ohio State PG / SG [57]
2015–16 Kristine Anigwe California C / PF [58]
2016–17 Sabrina Ionescu Oregon PG [59]
2017–18 Chennedy Carter Texas A&M PG [60]
2018–19 Rhyne Howard Kentucky SG [61]
2019–20 Aliyah Boston South Carolina PF / C [62]
2020–21† Paige Bueckers* UConn PG [63]
Caitlin Clark Iowa PG [63]
2021–22 Aneesah Morrow DePaul F [5]
2022–23 Ta'Niya Latson Florida State G [64]
2023–24 JuJu Watkins USC SG [65]
2024–25 Mikayla Blakes Vanderbilt SG [66]
2025–26 Jazzy Davidson USC G [67]
Close
  • a Freshmen are ineligible for the third major player of the year award in women's basketball, the Wade Trophy.[68]
  • b Chris Jackson legally changed his name to Mahmoud Abdul-Rauf in 1991 upon his conversion to Islam.[69]
  • c No award was presented to the men from 1995 to 1997, although the USBWA website does not indicate the reason.[6]

See also

References

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