The Big East Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Year award is given to the women's basketball player in the

Big East Conference The Big East Conference (stylized as BIG EAST) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference that competes in National Collegiate Athletic Association, NCAA NCAA Division I, Division I in 10 men's sports and 12 women's sports. H ...

voted as the top performer by the conference coaches. It was first awarded at the end of the 1982–83 season, the first in which the Big East sponsored women's basketball. The current Big East claims the history of the original Big East Conference, which split along football lines in 2013, with three members leaving to join the

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the ACC's eighteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athlet ...

, the seven members that did not field teams in

NCAA Division I FBS The NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS), formerly known as Division I-A, is the highest level of college football in the United States. The FBS consists of the largest schools in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). As ...

leaving to form a new Big East Conference, and the remaining FBS schools continuing to operate under the original Big East charter with the new name of

American Athletic Conference The American Athletic Conference (AAC), also known as The American, is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States, featuring 13 full member universities and 6 affiliate member universities that compete in t ...

(The American). The head coaches of the league's teams submit their votes following the end of the regular season and before the conference's

tournament A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concen ...

in early March. The coaches cannot vote for their own players. The first award went to Debbie Beckford of St. John's in 1983. There have been eight multiple winners so far.

Rebecca Lobo Rebecca Rose Lobo-Rushin (born October 6, 1973) is an American television basketball analyst and former professional women's basketball player in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 1997 to 2003. Lobo, at 6'4", played the cent ...

and Diana Taurasi, both of UConn; Notre Dame's Skylar Diggins; and Villanova's Maddy Siegrist each won the award twice in their careers. Shelly Pennefather of Villanova and Kerry Bascom,

Maya Moore Maya April Moore (born June 11, 1989) is an American social justice advocate and former professional basketball player. Naming her their inaugural Performer of the Year in 2017, ''Sports Illustrated'' called Moore the "greatest winner in the hist ...

, and

Paige Bueckers Paige Madison Bueckers ( ; born October 20, 2001) is an American professional basketball player for the Dallas Wings of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She played college basketball for the UConn Huskies women's basketball, ...

of UConn were all three-time winners. Pennefather and Bascom won all of their awards consecutively, while Moore and Bueckers did not. So far, voting has resulted in a tie once, in 1984 when both Jennifer Bruce and Kathy Finn won the award. Eight players have also won National Player of the Year awards.

Ruth Riley Ruth Ellen Riley Hunter (born August 28, 1979) is a retired American professional basketball player (a center), playing most recently for the Atlanta Dream in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Her Notre Dame team won the NCAA ...

Sue Bird Suzanne Brigit Bird (born October 16, 1980) is an American former professional basketball player who played her entire career with the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Bird was drafted first overall pick by t ...

, Diana Taurasi,

, and

are all recipients of the

Naismith College Player of the Year The Naismith College Player of the Year is "the most prestigious national award presented annually to the men's and women's college basketball players of the year," as chosen by the Atlanta Tipoff Club's Board of Selectors. It is named in honor o ...

award. Shelly Pennefather, Lobo, Jennifer Rizzotti, Bird, Taurasi, Moore, and Bueckers are all recipients of the

Wade Trophy The Wade Trophy is an award presented annually to the best upperclass women's basketball player in National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) NCAA Division I, Division I competition. It is named after three–time national champion Delta State ...

. Moore and Bueckers are also recipients of the John R. Wooden Award. UConn, a founding member of the original Big East that moved to The American with the conference split and joined the current Big East in 2020, has the most all-time awards, with 20, and the most individual winners, with 12. Apart from UConn, the only current Big East members with more than one winner are Villanova, with three players who combined to win six awards; DePaul, with three players who each won one award; and Creighton and Marquette, each with two players who claimed one award. Three current Big East members have yet to have a winner—

Seton Hall Seton Hall University (SHU) is a Private university, private Catholic Church, Catholic research university in South Orange, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1856 by then-Bishop James Roosevelt Bayley and named after his aunt, Saint Elizab ...

, which was a charter member of the Big East in 1979, and

Butler A butler is a person who works in a house serving and is a domestic worker in a large household. In great houses, the household is sometimes divided into departments, with the butler in charge of the dining room, wine cellar, and pantries, pantr ...

and Xavier, both of which joined the Big East at its 2013 relaunch.

Key

Winners

Winners by school

References

{{Big East Conference Women's Basketball Player of the Year navbox Awards established in 1983 * NCAA Division I women's basketball conference players of the year

Key

Winners

Winners by school

See also

References