Tsineke is named to the Watch List for the second-straight season and is one of just 20 recognized.
TAMPA (Oct. 18, 2022) – The University of South Florida women’s basketball standout Elena Tsineke has been chosen as one of 20 watch list candidates for the 2023 Ann Meyers-Drysdale Award. The award is given by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association to the player recognized as the top shooting guard in women’s NCAA Division I college basketball. In its sixth year, the award is named after the first player, male or female, named to an All-America Team in four straight college seasons.
Tsineke is the only player on the list from the American Athletic Conference or a school from the state of Florida.
Click here to see the complete release from the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Tsineke is the Bulls’ top returning scorer and continues to prove that she is one of the top guards in The American and one of the most dangerous shooting guards in the nation. Last season she was tabbed an AAC First Team All-Conference selection after averaging 14.3 points per game, which was third in the conference, and shooting 38.7 percent (173-for-447) from the field and 83.7 percent (82-for-98) from the free-throw line, good for first in the league. Tsineke was also named to the AAC All-Tournament Team after averaging 17.0 points per game in the Bulls’ three contests.
The 5-foot-8 senior became the 26th player in program history to surpass the 1,000-point plateau, netting 18 points in the regular season finale against Houston on March 2, 2022, and finished the season with 1,076 points for her career, 19th on the school’s all-time scoring list. In addition, she scored in double figures in 27 games for the Green and Gold, including seven outings of 20-or-more points.
Most recently, Tsineke was tabbed The American Preseason Player of the Year and named First Team All-Conference, where she is joined by fellow First Team selection, Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu. The Bulls were also picked to finish first in The American in the preseason coaches’ poll earning nine of the 11 first-place votes.
Tsineke will have the opportunity – or the possible opportunity – to go head-to-head against six players named to the Meyers-Drysdale Watch List this season: Ja’Mee Asberry (Baylor – Possible opponent), Cameron Swartz (Georgia Tech – Opponent), Leigha Brown (Michigan – Possible opponent), Jakia Brown-Turner (NC State – Opponent), Taylor Mikesell (Ohio State – Opponent), Sonya Morris (Texas – Opponent).
College basketball fans are encouraged to participate in Fan Voting, presented by Dell Technologies, in each of the three rounds starting Friday, October 21. In late January, the watch list of 20 players for the 2023 Ann Meyers Drysdale Award will be narrowed to 10 and then in late February to just five. In March the five finalists will be presented to Meyers Drysdale and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee where a winner will be selected. The voting link will be released in the coming days and posted on South Florida’s women’s basketball social media platforms.
The winner of the 2023 Ann Meyers Drysdale Award will be presented on a to-be-determined, along with the other four members of the Women’s Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Nancy Lieberman Award (Point Guard), Cheryl Miller Award (Small Forward), Katrina McClain Award (Power Forward) and the Lisa Leslie Award (Center), in addition to the Men’s Starting Five.
Previous winners of the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award are Christyn Williams, UConn (2022), Ashley Owusu, Maryland (2021), Aari McDonald, Arizona (2020), Asia Durr, Louisville (2019) and Victoria Vivians, Mississippi State (2018).
For more information on the 2023 Ann Meyers Drysdale Award and the latest updates, visit hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophall and #MeyersAward on Twitter and Instagram.
2023 Ann Meyers Drysdale Award Candidates
Jade Loville – Arizona
Ja’Mee Asberry – Baylor (Possible opponent)
Celeste Taylor – Duke
Cameron Swartz – Georgia Tech (Opponent)
Sara Scalia – Indiana
Hailey Van Lith – Louisville
Diamond Miller – Maryland
Leigha Brown – Michigan (Possible opponent)
Jaz Shelley – Nebraska
Jakia Brown-Turner – NC State (Opponent)
Taylor Mikesell – Ohio State (Opponent)
Taylor Robertson – Oklahoma
Zia Cooke – South Carolina
Elena Tsineke – South Florida
Jordan Horston – Tennessee
Sonya Morris – Texas (Opponent)
Charisma Osborne – UCLA
Azzi Fudd – UConn
Ashley Owusu – Virginia Tech
Charlisse Leger-Walker – Washington State
Last season, South Florida posted a 24-9 overall record and a 12-3 mark in the American Athletic Conference, capping off the season with its eighth NCAA Tournament appearance, and its seventh trip to the Big Dance in the last 10 years.
Included in their 24 wins were victories over No. 9 Oregon, 71-62, and a thrilling 57-54 win over defending national champion and No. 7-ranked Stanford.
The Bulls open the 2022-23 campaign with four consecutive home games in 10 days, beginning with their season-opener against Morehead State on Monday, Nov. 7 at 5:30 p.m. (ESPN+). South Florida will also face Florida A&M on Friday, Nov. 11 (6 p.m., ESPN+), Jacksonville on Sunday, Nov. 13 (1 p.m. ESPN+) and Alabama on Wednesday, Nov. 16 (7 p.m., ESPN+) during the homestand.
All home games and conference games not televised nationally will be televised on ESPN+.
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For questions or to purchase season tickets, please visit USFBullsTix.com or call 1-800-GoBulls.
Click here for South Florida’s complete season schedule.
About USF Women’s Basketball
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South Florida recorded its 10th 20-win season during the 2021-22 campaign while playing in its sixth American Athletic Conference championship game in its nine years in the conference. The Bulls achieved their highest national ranking of the season when it checked in at No. 13 in the Nov. 30 Associated Press Top 25 Poll, and advanced to their seventh NCAA Tournament appearance in the last nine years.
USF has made 17 postseason tournament appearances and had eight NCAA Tournament berths in head coach Jose Fernandez’s 22 seasons. The all-time winningest coach in program history, Fernandez has guided USF to 10 20-win seasons, two WNIT final four appearances, the 2009 WNIT championship, and has won over 400 career games. Fernandez was named a finalist for the WBCA and semifinalist for the Naismith National Coach of the Year Awards. He was also tabbed the 2021 American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year at the conclusion of the 2020-21 campaign.
In 2021-22, the Bulls had three players recognized by The American for impressive seasons, including Elena Tsineke (All-Conference First Team), Bethy Mununga (All-Conference Second Team) and Dulcy Fankam Mendjiadeu (All-Conference Second Team).
In addition, Tsineke and Mununga were named to the American Athletic Conference All-Tournament Team.
–#GoBulls –
