Aug. 12, 2005

LOS ANGELES - Maryland's Shay Doron and Crystal Langhorne were among 30 of the nation's top preseason candidates for the 2005-06 Women's Wooden Award, college basketball's most prestigious honor. Maryland is one of just six schools to have two candidates.

Other teams with two preseason candidates are Connecticut, LSU, UCLA, Duke and North Carolina. Seven ACC players are also on the watch list, the most for any conference.

The list is composed of 30 student-athletes who, based on last year's individual performance and team records, are the early frontrunners for college basketball's most coveted trophy. The candidates are composed of returning players, although transfers, freshmen and other players who excel throughout the season will be evaluated and considered for both the Midseason top 20 list and the national ballot.

Entering her junior year, Doron (Great Neck, N.Y./Christ the King) is making her second appearance on the preseason watch list. Last season, she led the Terps in scoring with 17.6 points per game, which was also among the top three in the ACC. She was named Kodak/WBCA Honorable Mention All-American and first team all-conference. This summer, she was named Most Valuable Player of the Division B European Championship after leading her native Israel to a gold medal and the country's first-ever women's international tournament title. She went on to earn MVP honors at the Maccabiah Games in Isreal, after leading the USA to gold.

A sophomore this fall, Langhorne (Willingboro, N.J./Willingboro) is also coming off of a spectacular summer where she was also named Most Valuable Player after the USA U-19 team won gold at the FIBA U-19 World Championship in Tunis, Tunisia. A tri-captain of the USA squad, she was voted the ACC's Freshman of the Year after averaging 17.2 ppg, as well as leading the conference with 10.6 rebounds per game and 18 double-doubles.

In mid-January, the Wooden Award Committee will release the Midseason top 20 list, followed in March by the official voting ballot, consisting of approximately 15 top players. The 2006 award ceremony, which include the presentation of the Men's and Women's Wooden Award, the Wooden Award All-American Teams and the Legends of Coaching Award, will be held at the Los Angeles Athletic Club on April 8, 2006, and will be broadcast live on a national CBS telecast.

2005-06 Wooden Award Preseason All-American Team - Top 30 Candidates (Based on a preseason poll. Players listed alphabetically.)

Seimone Augustus*  6'1"  Sr. G    LSU
Nikki Blue         5'8"  Sr. G    UCLA
Lindsay Bowen      5'7"  Sr. G    Michigan State
Jazz Covington     6'3"  Jr. C    Louisville
Monique Currie*    6'0"  Sr. G    Duke
Jessica Davenport* 6'5"  Jr. C    Ohio State
Shay Doron         5'9"  Jr. G    Maryland
Megan Duffy        5'7"  Sr. G    Notre Dame
Candice Dupree     6'2"  Sr. F    Temple
Emily Faurholt     5'11" Sr. F    Idaho
Sylvia Fowles      6'5"  So. C    LSU
Katie Gearlds      6'1"  Jr. G    Purdue
Erin Grant         5'8"  Sr. G    Texas Tech
Tasha Humphrey     6'3"  So. F    Georgia
Tiffany Jackson    6'3"  Jr. F    Texas
Tamara James       5'10" Sr. G/F  Miami
Crystal Langhorne  6'3"  So. C/F  Maryland
Erlana Larkins     6'2"  So. F    North Carolina
Ivory Latta        5'6"  Jr. G    North Carolina
Shawntinice Polk   6'5"  Sr. C    Arizona
Cappie Pondexter   5'9"  Sr. G    Rutgers
Armintie Price     5'9"  Jr. G    Mississippi
Noelle Quinn       6'0"  Jr. G    UCLA
Khara Smith        6'2"  Sr. F    DePaul
Kim Smith          6'1"  Sr. F    Utah
Ann Strother       6'3"  Sr. G    Connecticut
Barbara Turner     6'0"  Sr. G/F  Connecticut
Candice Wiggins    5'11" So. G    Stanford
Mistie Williams    6'3"  Sr. F    Duke
Sophia Young       6'1"  Sr. F    Baylor

* Indicates player was a 2004-2005 John R. Wooden Award All-American.