Tennessee graduate forward Alexus Dye is among 20 players named as preseason watch list candidates for the 2022 Katrina McClain Award, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association announced on Thursday.
Named after the two-time All-American and 1987 National Player of the Year, the annual award in its fifth year recognizes the top power forwards in women’s NCAA Division I college basketball. A national committee of top college basketball personnel determined the watch list of 20 candidates.
“From the University of Georgia to Team USA, Katrina McClain was a standout power forward,” said John L. Doleva, President and CEO of the Basketball Hall of Fame. “To be named to the McClain Award watch list is a tremendous honor and we’re proud to recognize these tremendous student-athletes. As we launch our fan voting component tomorrow, we encourage fans to cast their votes alongside our distinguished selection committee.”
A 6-foot graduate transfer from Troy University, Dye was the 2021 Sun Belt Player of the Year, All-Sun Belt First Team and Sun Belt Tournament MVP with the Trojans. She started all 28 contests a year ago and led the team with 16.6 ppg. and 12.6 rpg. while shooting a team-best 49.5 percent from the field and 73.7 from the free-throw line.
The NCAA leader in double-doubles (23) and total rebounds (352), Dye also was seventh in rebounds per game (12.6) and 16th in field goals made (204). She scored in double digits in 26 games and fired in at least 15 points in 17 of them in 2020-21, averaging 23 points and 11 rebounds per game vs. Power 5 opponents/SEC teams Texas A&M and Mississippi State. In the NCAA Tournament vs. A&M, she tallied a game-high 26 points and pulled down 11 boards in Troy’s near upset of the Aggies.
Basketball fans are encouraged to participate in Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies in each of the three rounds. In late January, the watch list of 20 players for the 2022 Katrina McClain Power Forward of the Year Award will be narrowed to 10 and then in late February to just five. In March the five finalists will be presented to Ms. McClain and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee where a winner will be selected.
The winner of the 2022 Katrina McClain Award will be presented on a to-be-determined date, along with the other four 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 Cheryl Miller Small Forward Award and the Lisa Leslie Center Award, in addition to the Men’s Starting Five.
Previous winners of the Katrina McClain Power Forward of the Year Award include NaLyssa Smith, Baylor (2021), Ruthy Hebard, Oregon (2018, 2020) and Napheesa Collier, Connecticut (2019).
For more information on the 2022 Katrina McClain Award and the latest updates, log onto www.hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophall and #McClainAward on Twitter and Instagram. Starting Five Fan Voting presented by Dell Technologies will go live on Friday, October 29.
2022 Katrina McClain Award Candidates*
NaLyssa Smith / Baylor
Lauren Gustin / BYU
Lorela Cubaj / Georgia Tech
Maddi Utti / Long Beach St.
Olivia Cochran / Louisville
Naz Hillmon / Michigan
Sam Brunelle / Notre Dame
Nyara Sabally / Oregon
Taylor Jones / Oregon St.
Sania Feagin / South Carolina
Cameron Brink / Stanford
Alexus Dye / Tennessee
Dorka Juhasz / UConn
Aaliyah Edwards / UConn
Alissa Pili / USC
Bethy Mununga / USF
Maddy Siegrist / Villanova
Kari Niblack / West Virginia
Esmery Martinez / West Virginia
Raneem Elgedawy / Western Kentucky
*Players can play their way on
About Katrina McClain-Pittman:
Katrina McClain-Pittman was a prolific rebounder and terrific scorer in a career that spanned three Olympic Games and three continents. Before she earned her stripes for USA Basketball, McClain-Pittman starred at the University of Georgia where she was a two-time Kodak All-American and the WBCA National Player of the Year her senior season. She left Georgia as the school’s second all-time leading scorer and rebounder, averaging a double-double her final two seasons in Athens. The Lady Bulldogs reached the 1985 NCAA Final Four and national championship game with McClain-Pittman controlling the paint and Teresa Edwards running the offense. The two-time USA Basketball Female Athlete of the Year finished her international career with two Olympic gold medals and one bronze, three FIBA World Championships medals, and five medals at the Goodwill Games, Pan Am Games, and World University Games. In all, McClain-Pittman appeared on eleven USA Basketball rosters becoming one of the most decorated athletes in USA Basketball history. She has been inducted into the Women’s Basketball Hall of Fame, the South Carolina Athletic Hall of Fame, the Georgia State Hall of Fame, and the National High School Hall of Fame, Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
-UT Athletics
