Around Campus

Texas Players Up for National Honors

As they gear up for the approaching post-season, four Texas players are in line for All-America and National Player of the Year accolades.

The University of Texas women's basketball program attained the nation's No. 1 ranking in mid-February in the Associated Press Top 25 Poll. As of February 20, the Longhorns stood at 23-2 and were tied for first in the Big 12 Conference race with an 11-1 league record. This is UT's first No. 1 ranking in the AP Poll since December 28th of the 1987-88 season.

It's all about the "team approach", as there is not one dominant player for the Longhorns. No player is averaging more than 13.2 points or 8.0 rebounds per outing. And, that balance and remarkable play is reflected by four players who are among the "who's who" of Division I basketball. As the post-season approaches, a quartet of Longhorns are finalists for several All-America and National Player of the Year honors. In fact, Texas is the ONLY Division I school in the nation to have three players as finalists for National Player of the Year honors. The trio consists of: 6’1“senior Stacy Stephens (Winnsboro, Texas), 6’2” junior Heather Schreiber (Windthorst, Texas) and 5’6” junior Jamie Carey (Thornton, Colo.).  In addition, 6’3” freshman Tiffany Jackson, a native of Dallas who has burst onto the collegiate basketball scene, was the Big 12 Preseason Rookie of the Year and is a candidate for national All-Freshman honors.

Three National Player of the Year Awards have a preseason and finalist list which is announced as the season progresses: The State Farm Margaret Wade Trophy, the Naismith Award, and the inaugural John R. Wooden Award. In addition, Carey is up for the Lieberman Award (given to nation's best point guard) and is a candidate for National Academic All-America honors. Last year, Stephens was a finalist for the Naismith Award. These are the first National Player of the Year mentions for Schreiber and Carey.

All fans will have a chance to watch the Texas team in action during the 2004 NCAA Tournament first and seconds rounds, which will be played here in Austin!

The University of Texas will host the subregionals (first/second rounds) at the Erwin Center on Sunday and Tuesday, March 21 and 23; the field of 64 teams going to the "Big Dance" will be announced on Sunday, March 14. For ticket information, go to TexasBoxOffice.com or call 1-800-982-BEVO.

Below is a list of "who's who" in the national award hunt as of Feb. 21.

The State Farm Wade Trophy Finalists
Jamie Carey, Heather Schreiber, Stacy Stephens

Naismith Award Finalists
Jamie Carey, Stacy Stephens

John R. Wooden Award Finalists
Heather Schreiber, Stacy Stephens

Lieberman National Point Guard of the Year Finalist
Jamie Carey

Bayer Advantage Senior CLASS Award (as nation's top senior basketball player)
Stacy Stephens

CoSIDA National Academic All-America Finalist
Jamie Carey