STORRS, Conn. (August 15, 2004) — University of Connecticut juniors Ann Strother (Castle Rock, Colo.) and Barbara Turner (Cleveland, Ohio) have been named to the John R. Wooden Preseason All-America Team. The UConn duo is also among the top-30 candidates for the Wooden Award, which honors the national player of the year. Strother, a Wooden preseason candidate for the second consecutive season, posted averages of 11.0 points, 4.3 rebounds and 2.3 assists as a sophomore. She earned third All-BIG EAST mention and was selected to the NCAA Final Four All-Tournament Team. Turner is UConn’s top returning scorer after notching an average of 13.7 points per game last season while adding 4.8 rebounds and 3.0 assists. The Huskies’ primary inside presence on the offensive end, Turner led the BIG EAST with a .536 field goal percentage. As a sophomore, Turner posted double-figure points in 27 games, including four 20-plus point efforts en route to earning second-team All-BIG EAST status. She was also named to the 2004 NCAA All-East Region Team after scoring 26 points on 8-of-11 shooting in the East Regional Final vs. Penn State. A total of four players from the BIG EAST Conference were named among the 30 candidates as Notre Dame’s Jacqueline Batteast and Rutgers’ Cappie Pondexter were also mentioned. The Wooden Award will be presented on April 9 at The Los Angeles Athletic Club and will be televised live on CBS. Last year marked the first season in which a Wooden women’s national player of the year was selected. Wooden Women’s Preseason All-America Team
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