The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
Raven named Big 12 Preseason Freshman of the Year
10.12.2006 | Women's Basketball
IRVING, Texas -- Two University of Texas women's basketball players were singled out for preseason Big 12 Conference honors Thursday, as All-America 6-3 senior forward Tiffany Jackson was named to the five-member Preseason All-Big 12 Team and 6-0 freshman guard Brittainey Raven was selected Preseason Freshman of the Year, in a vote of the league's head coaches.
Oklahoma's 6-4 sophomore post Courtney Paris was named the league's Preseason Player of the Year while Baylor's 6-0 forward Bernice Mosby, a transfer from Florida, was chosen Preseason Newcomer of the Year.
Joining Paris and Jackson on the Preseason All-Big 12 Team are 5-9 senior guard Lyndsey Medders (Iowa State), 5-6 senior guard Kiera Hardy (Nebraska) and 5-10 junior guard/forward Morenike Atunrase (Texas A&M). All five were members of the 2005-06 All-Big 12 First Team.
Jackson is a preseason candidate for the State Farm Margaret Wade Trophy. Jackson is one of two seniors on head coach Jody Conradt's Longhorns squad and is the top returnee. She averaged 14.3 points, 8.7 rebounds and collected 64 steals (2.6 spg) to go with 36 blocks (1.44 bpg) last year in 25 games, missing three contests with an ankle injury. The First Team All-Big 12 standout also played a team-high 32.2 minutes per game and claimed Associated Press All-America Honorable Mention and Kodak All-America Honorable Mention honors at season's end.
A consensus high school All-American, Raven averaged 27.2 points and 5.2 assists as a senior at North Crowley High School in Forth Worth, Texas. The 6-0 guard was a member of the gold-medalist 2006 FIBA Americas Under 18 Championship Team. She played in the two national high school all-star games this past spring - the McDonald's All-America Game and the Women's Basketball Coaches Association/Nike All-America Game. Raven also was the 2006 Gatorade Circle of Champions Texas State Player of the Year and was rated as the No. 3 recruit nationally last year (by the All-Star Girls Report).
Paris ended her rookie campaign as an All-Big 12 First Team selection, Big 12 Freshman of the Year and the conference's co-Defensive Player of the Year. Paris averaged 21.9 points, 15 rebounds, 3.3 blocks and shot .614 from the field in 2005-06. Mosby has one year of eligibility remaining. She averaged a team-leading 15.5 points, 8.6 rebounds and 30.3 minutes a game as a junior at Florida.
2006-07 Big 12 Conference Women's Basketball Preseason All-Big 12 Team
(coaches not allowed to vote for own players)
Preseason Player of the Year: Courtney Paris, Oklahoma, C, 6-4, So, Piedmont, Calif.
Preseason Newcomer of the Year: Bernice Mosby, Baylor, G, 6-0, Sr, Brookville, Fla./University of Florida
Preseason Freshman of the Year: Brittainey Raven, Texas, G, 6-0, Fr, Fort Worth, Texas/North Crowley HS