2025 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Preseason Watch List

25 players representing 22 teams named to preseason watch list

Hopewell, N.J. (October 9, 2024) – We are proud to announce the 25-player watch list for the 2025 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year Award presented by Her Hoop Stats. The Becky Hammon Award was first given out in 2020, with South Dakota’s Ciara Duffy being named the inaugural winner. Gonzaga’s Yvonne Ejim won the most recent award in 2024.

Below are the 25 watch list members, listed in alphabetical order by school. This year’s watch list includes representatives from 22 teams and 15 conferences. Three teams — Fairfield, Norfolk State and South Dakota State — placed two players on the watch list. 

Three conferences — the AAC, MAAC and Summit League — placed three players on the preseason list. Five players become the first to represent their school on any Hammon Award watch list: Delanie Crawford (Tulsa), Akasha Davis (Lamar), DeeDee Hagemann (Memphis), Bella Smuda (Liberty), and Harmoni Turner (Harvard).  All stats only include games against Division I opponents unless otherwise noted.

Graphic via Morgan Reeder

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Chellia Watson, Buffalo, Gr., G
2023-24 Stats: 23.2 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 3.3 APG, 1.1 SPG
Previous Appearances: First Appearance

Watson became just the second MAC player to post averages of at least 23 points, five rebounds and three assists with fewer than three turnovers per game in the HHS Era (since 2009-10). The only other such season by a MAC player was Dyaisha Fair in 2020-21.

Emma Ronsiek, Colorado St., Gr., F
2023-24 Stats: 16.8 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 2.7 APG, 1.2 BPG, 1.0 SPG
Previous Appearances: First Appearance

Ronsiek joins her sister Hannah in Fort Collins after four strong years at Creighton. Ronsiek is one of just seven players to average at least 13 points, five boards and 2.5 assists per game in each of the last three seasons (min. 20 games).

Katie Dinnebier, Drake, Sr., G
2023-24 Stats: 18.1 PPG, 6.9 APG, 2.4 SPG
Previous Appearances: 2024 Preseason, Midseason, Semifinalist & Finalist

Last season, Dinnebier recorded the first season of at least 18 points, 6.5 assists and two steals per game since 2017-18. Among the eight such seasons since 2009-10, Dinnebier’s 53.9% shooting from the field clears the next-best player (Courtney Vandersloot in 2009-10) by more than five percentage points.

Megan McConnell, Duquesne, Sr., G
2023-24 Stats: 13.1 PPG, 8.6 RPG, 4.6 APG, 1.9 SPG
Previous Appearances: 2024 Preseason

McConnell is a workhorse who does a little bit of everything. Her 38.5 minutes per game last season led the nation, and she was the only player to average at least 13 points, 8.5 boards, 4.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game.

Meghan Andersen, Fairfield, So., RR
2023-24 Stats: 14.9 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 1.4 BPG, 1.3 SPG
Previous Appearances: 2024 Midseason & Semifinalist

Even after slowing down in February of her freshman season, Andersen was one of the nation’s top two-way scorers. She was the only Division I player to shoot at least 60% on 2-pointers and 35% on 3-pointers on at least five attempts per game inside and outside the arc.

Janelle Brown, Fairfield, Gr., G
2023-24 Stats: 14.1 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 3.6 APG, 2.4 SPG
Previous Appearances: First Appearance

Brown had a breakout year, playing with efficiency that is rare for a 5-foot-6 guard. She recorded just the second season since 2009-10 of at least 62% from inside the arc and 45% from deep on at least 75 attempts from both. The only other player to do it was a fellow 5-foot-6 guard playing in Connecticut: Moriah Jefferson for UConn in 2014-15.

Emani Jefferson, FGCU, R-Sr., S
2023-24 Stats: 16.6 PPG, 5.9 RPG, 3.8 APG, 2.0 SPG
Previous Appearances: 2024 Semifinalist

Jefferson thrived in the FGCU system, becoming one of just two players last season to average at least 2.5 offensive rebounds, 3.5 assists and 1.5 steals per game.

Yvonne Ejim, Gonzaga, Gr., F
2023-24 Stats: 19.7 PPG, 8.7 RPG, 2.3 APG, 1.0 BPG, 1.4 SPG
Previous Appearances: 2024 Preseason, Midseason, Semifinalist, Finalist & Winner, 2023 Midseason, Semifinalist & Finalist

Ejim, the reigning winner of the Hammon Award, was one of just four players to average at least 19 points, eight boards and two assists per game last season. Even more importantly, Ejim showed up big in the biggest games, dropping a combined 54 points, 19 rebounds and five blocks on Arizona and Stanford.

Harmoni Turner, Harvard, Sr., G
2023-24 Stats: 19.3 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 4.3 APG, 2.2 SPG
Previous Appearances: First Appearance

Turner returns to Harvard for her senior season as the Ivy League’s leading returning scorer. She is coming off of just the second season in the Ivy League since 2009-10 averaging at least 15 points, six rebounds and four assists per game, which she also did in 2022-23.

Akasha Davis, Lamar, Sr., F/C
2023-24 Stats: 15.2 PPG, 11.1 RPG, 1.2 SPG
Previous Appearances: First Appearance

Davis was one of just three players last season to average at least 15 points and five offensive rebounds per game. Among those three players, Davis’ 1.4 turnovers and 2.4 fouls are both the lowest of the group.

Bella Smuda, Liberty, R-Sr., C
2023-24 Stats: 15 PPG, 9.9 RPG, 2.3 BPG
Previous Appearances: First Appearance

Smuda joins Liz Kitley as the only two players last season to average at least 15 points, nine boards, and two blocks per game while shooting at least 55% from the floor.

Adrianna Smith, Maine, Sr., F
2023-24 Stats: 16.4 PPG, 10.8 RPG, 4.7 APG, 1.4 SPG
Previous Appearances: First Appearance

Adrianna Smith has shown an unusual combination of rebounding and facilitating as the only player in Division I to average at least 10 rebounds and 4.5 assists per game. Only one other player has accomplished this feat in the past seven seasons. This is made even more impressive in the context of Maine’s pace, which was the 15th-slowest in the country last season.

DeeDee Hagemann, Memphis, Sr., G
2023-24 Stats: 12.3 PPG, 5.2 APG, 1.0 SPG
Previous Appearances: First Appearance

Hagemann is a steady and efficient guard, posting a 2.84 assist-to-turnover ratio last season to rank seventh among players with at least 150 assists. Among those seven players, Hagemann’s 1.30 points per scoring attempt was the highest by a wide margin.

Anastasiia Boldyreva, Middle Tenn., Sr., C
2023-24 Stats: 14.5 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 2.9 BPG
Previous Appearances: First Appearance

Boldyreva was one of just four players last season to average at least 14 points, eight rebounds and 2.75 blocks per game in at least 30 games. She is the only Conference USA player to post those numbers over a full season since 2009-10.

Katelyn Young, Murray St., Gr., F
2023-24 Stats: 19.5 PPG, 7.9 RPG, 2.2 APG
Previous Appearances: 2024 Preseason & Midseason, 2023 Preseason & Midseason, 2022 Midseason & Semifinalist

Young adjusted excellently to Murray State’s major increase in pace, holding her scoring volume and efficiency steady after the Racers’ pace increased from 279th nationally up to 6th. Even with that much change, she recorded her third consecutive season averaging at least 19 points and 7.5 rebounds on at least 50% shooting. Only one other player has even two such seasons.

Diamond Johnson, Norfolk St., Gr., G
2023-24 Stats: 19.8 PPG, 5.5 RPG, 2.8 APG, 3.9 SPG
Previous Appearances: 2024 Preseason, Midseason & Semifinalist

After missing 10 games in transfer portal limbo, Johnson put up gaudy numbers last season, including a whopping 3.9 steals per game. That ranked third among players to play at least 20 games.

Kierra Wheeler, Norfolk St., Sr., F
2023-24 Stats: 17.5 PPG, 9.6 RPG, 1.4 BPG, 1.4 SPG
Previous Appearances: 2024 Midseason

Wheeler was one of just two players last season to average at least 17.5 points, 9.5 rebounds, one block and one steal while averaging fewer than three turnovers per game.

Ny'Ceara Pryor, Sacred Heart, Jr., G
2023-24 Stats: 19.1 PPG, 7.2 RPG, 4.6 APG, 3.4 SPG
Previous Appearances: 2024 Preseason

If any player were to record a quadruple-double this season, it would be Pryor. Over the past two seasons, nobody has recorded more five-steal games than Pryor’s 21. Keep an eye out for their Jan. 25 meeting with Niagara, whose opponents averaged 10 steals per game last season thanks to their lightning-quick pace.

Grace Larkins, South Dakota, Sr., G
2023-24 Stats: 16.6 PPG, 7.7 RPG, 4.8 APG, 1.6 SPG
Previous Appearances: 2024 Preseason

When everything is clicking for Larkins, she can put up some of the most impressive box scores in the nation. No game showed this better than her performance in the second round of the WNIT against Northern Arizona, where she totaled 34 points, 12 rebounds, four steals and a block. No other player posted that line in 2023-24, and only two other players have recorded such a game in the last five seasons.

Brooklyn Meyer, South Dakota St., Jr., F
2023-24 Stats: 16.8 PPG, 7.6 RPG, 1.9 APG, 1.8 BPG
Previous Appearances: First Appearance

Meyer was one of the nation’s biggest breakout players last season, raising her scoring average from 5.6 points in 2022-23 to 16.8 in 2023-24. She also set career highs in rebounds, assists, steals and blocks. She was one of just 12 players last season to increase their scoring average by at least 11 points and their rebounding by at least 3.5 boards per game.

Paige Meyer, South Dakota St., Sr., G
2023-24 Stats: 15.4 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 4.0 APG, 1.6 SPG
Previous Appearances: First Appearance

Meyer saw a slight dip in her 3-point percentage but was still one of just two players to shoot at least 54% from 2-point range and 42% from deep on at least 200 attempts inside the arc and 75 attempts beyond the arc.

Delanie Crawford, Tulsa, Sr., G
2023-24 Stats: 19 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 2.7 APG, 1.1 SPG
Previous Appearances: First Appearance

Crawford was pivotal to Tulsa’s ascendance last season into one of the nation’s most dangerous 3-point shooting teams. Her 39.3% clip from behind the arc was the second-highest among players to attempt at least 250 3-pointers.

Jordyn Jenkins, UTSA, R-Sr., F
2023-24 Stats: 17.1 PPG, 6.8 RPG, 1.1 BPG, 1.3 SPG
Previous Appearances: 2024 Preseason, 2023 Preseason

Jenkins returned from injury in the middle of February and was playing limited minutes in her 12 games back. Despite averaging just 22.4 minutes per game and coming off the bench in 10 of those 12, Jenkins still managed to average 17.1 points per game and 6.8 rebounds. Her 30.5 points per 40 minutes ranked fourth among players with at least 250 minutes played.

Rachael Rose, Wofford, Sr., G
2023-24 Stats: 23.8 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 5.6 APG, 2.2 SPG
Previous Appearances: 2024 Midseason, Semifinalist & Finalist

Last season, Rose recorded a stat line of at least 20 points, five rebounds, four assists and no more than three turnovers in 18 of her 26 games. That 69.2% of games played was by far the highest rate in Division I, with Hannah Hidalgo’s 25.7% in second place.

Allyson Fertig, Wyoming, Sr., C
2023-24 Stats: 14.2 PPG, 8.5 RPG, 1.7 BPG
Previous Appearances: 2024 Preseason

Fertig was a consistent force for Wyoming, recording seven games of at least 16 points, 10 boards and two blocks while shooting at least 55% from the field. Only Cameron Brink had more such games. 

Award Eligibility & Schedule

To be eligible for this award, players must compete in one of the 26 conferences deemed to be mid-major. The following conferences are considered high-major for the purposes of this award and thus ineligible: ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, and SEC. Additionally, players from Oregon State and Washington State are ineligible this year as membership in the Pac-12 evolves.

The 15-player midseason watch list will be announced in January, followed by 10 semifinalists announced in February. The five finalists will be announced in early March, with the winner announced around the Final Four. The list is fluid, and players may play their way on or off it over the course of the season.

About Becky Hammon

Hammon was a three-time All-American at Colorado State and led the Rams to the Sweet 16 in 1999, the program’s only appearance to date. She was signed by the New York Liberty in 1999 and traded to the San Antonio Stars in 2007, where she played the rest of her career. Hammon retired in 2014 as a six-time All-Star and a two-time All-WNBA First Team honoree. In 2016 she was named one of the top 20 players in WNBA history and was recently named to the W25.

Hammon became the second female coach in NBA history when she began coaching for the San Antonio Spurs in 2014. Additionally, Hammon is the only woman to be a head coach in the NBA Summer League and the only woman to be a member of an NBA All-Star coaching staff. Currently, Hammon is the head coach of the Las Vegas Aces and won the 2022 and 2023 WNBA Championships.

About Her Hoop Stats

Her Hoop Stats was founded in 2017 to unlock better insight about women's basketball at all levels. We began as a statistics site focused on providing consistent, reliable, and easy-to-access data about women's basketball for both mobile and desktop environments. Her Hoop Stats has expanded to become a leading independent voice in the women's game providing content through our newsletter, podcast network, YouTube channel, and social media accounts (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram).