Baylor women’s basketball junior Kalani Brown is included on the Wendy’s Midseason Top 25 list for the 2018 John R. Wooden Award, the organization announced Thursday afternoon.
The John R. Wooden Award has been presented to the collegiate female basketball Player of the Year since the Women’s Award was established in 2004.
The 6-7 center leads the nation in field goal percentage, shooting 72.3 percent from the floor. Brown averages a team-high 21.5 points, 8.8 rebounds, 2.0 assists and 1.1 blocks per game.
Brown has registered 10 20-plus point scoring performances, including a 33-point effort at No. 8/9 UCLA. She also leads Baylor with seven double-doubles this season, which ranks second in the Big 12 Conference. Her career-high 21 rebounds against Lamar on Nov. 10, 2017, is the highest recorded by any conference player this season and the 12th-most in an NCAA Division I game this season.
After shattering Baylor’s single-season field goal percentage of 61.9 percent by knocking down shots at a 67.9 clip a season ago, Brown has improved her shooting percentage to 72.3 percent from the floor through 15 games. She is the career field goal percentage leader in Lady Bear history, shooting 66.6 percent through 90 games, netting 494-of-742 field goal attempts.
The Slidell, La., native became the 34th Lady Bear to reach the 1,000-career point mark with 33 points at No. 8/9 UCLA in the fourth game of the season. Brown has since climbed to No. 23 on Baylor’s all-time scoring list with 1,244 career points. She is also sixth all-time in blocks with 140 stuffs in her career.
In addition to the Wooden Award, the 2018 Preseason Big 12 Player of the Year and All-Big 12 first team honoree is in consideration for the 2018 Citizen Naismith Trophy, 2018 Wade Trophy and 2018 Lisa Leslie Award.
As a sophomore, Brown led the Lady Bears in scoring (15.4), rebounding (8.2), shot blocking (2.0) and field goal percentage (67.9). The WBCA All-American and Associated Press Honorable Mention All-American was also a unanimous All-Big 12 first team selection and Big 12 All-Defensive team honoree.
Wooden Award candidates must be full-time students in an accredited NCAA college or university, possess a 2.0 cumulative grade point average, strength of character on and off the court and excel on offense and defense. Their performance is evaluated throughout the course of the entire season.
Baylor returns to action on Sunday, Jan. 14 at Oklahoma. Tipoff is set for 1 p.m. (CT) in Norman, Okla., and the game will air live on FS1.
