Grace Berger Becomes First Indiana Player to Make Cheryl Miller Award Top 10 Watchlist
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. — Indiana women's basketball junior guard Grace Berger has earned a spot on the Cheryl Miller Award Top 10 watchlist.
The watchlist was announced Wednesday morning, and Berger is the lone Big Ten player to make the cut. She is also the first player in program history to make the top 10 watchlist for this award.
Berger has had an impressive season so far, averaging 15.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and a team-high 5.8 assists per game this season. She also leads the nation with two triple-doubles on the year.
Below is the full press release:
Junior guard Grace Berger has been named to the Cheryl Miller Award Top 10 watchlist, announced on Wednesday by the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association.
The Louisville, Ky. native averages 15.6 points, 6.6 rebounds, a team-high 5.8 assists, shoots 45.8 percent from the floor, 76.7 percent from the free throw line and holds an assist-to-turnover ratio of +2.9. She currently leads the nation in triple doubles this season, recording the first two in Indiana women’s basketball history along with one double-double. In the nation, Berger’s 81 total assists ranks 11th in NCAA Division I and her+2.9 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks 22nd. She has scored in double figures in 11 games and set a new career-high 26 points on two occasions this season (at No. 14 Maryland, vs. No. 14 Ohio State).
She joins Ali Patberg (Nancy Lieberman Award) as IU’s two nominees on the Hoops Hall candidates for the “Naismith Starting Five.” Berger also earns the program’s first ever top 10 appearance on the Cheryl Miller Award.
In March, five finalists will be presented to Ms. Miller and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee. The Selection Committee for the Cheryl Miller Award is composed of top women’s college basketball personnel including media members, head coaches, sports information directors and Hall of Famers.
The winner of the 2021 Cheryl Miller Small Forward Award will be presented April 9, 2021, along with the four other members of the Women’s Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Nancy Lieberman Point Guard Award, the Ann Meyers Drysdale Shooting Guard Award, the Katrina McClain Power Forward Award, and the Lisa Leslie Center Award, in addition to the Men’s Starting Five. College basketball fans can support their favorite players by participating in Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies.
Previous winners of the Cheryl Miller Small Forward of the Year Award include Satou Sabally, Oregon (2020), Bridget Carleton, Iowa State (2019) and Gabby Williams, Connecticut (2018).
For more information on the 2021 Cheryl Miller Award and the latest updates, log onto www.hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophall and #MillerAward on Twitter and Instagram. Starting Five Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies will go live on Friday, February 5 at 1 p.m. EST on HoophallAwards.com.
2021 Cheryl Miller Award Candidates*
Grace Berger, Indiana
Ashley Joens, Iowa State
Rhyne Howard, Kentucky
Rickea Jackson, Mississippi State
Haley Jones, Stanford
Mia Davis, Temple
Rennia Davis, Tennessee
Vivian Gray, Texas Tech
Michaela Onyenwere, UCLA
Ivana Raca, Wake Forest
*Players can play their way onto and off of the list at any point in the 2020-21 season
About Cheryl Miller:
Cheryl Miller took women's basketball to a new level, literally and figuratively. With her tremendous leaping ability, athletic dexterity and grace, Miller established a legacy throughout her high school and college career that is unparalleled. Playing for Riverside Polytechnic High School (CA), in 1982, Miller set the single game scoring record of 105 points. As a collegiate forward at the University of Southern California from 1982 to 1986, Miller helped bring women's basketball to the forefront of American sports. In 1984, she led the Olympic team to gold averaging more than 16 points per game. Her superior athletic ability and engaging persona placed her among the elite in the world of college and professional athletics. In 1986, Sports Illustrated named Miller as the best male or female player in college basketball. In a spectacular career, Miller scored 3,018 total career points and was a four-time All-America. Miller was named Naismith Player of the Year three times and earned the Wade Trophy once. Miller was inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame in 1999 and the FIBA Hall of Fame in 2010. Since retiring from professional play, Miller has had a very successful career as a WNBA GM, professional and collegiate coach, and sportscaster for TNT, ESPN and NBC for the 1996 Olympics.
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