Paris Claims NCAA Freshman Honor

NORMAN, Okla. -- The national honors continue to roll in for Oklahoma freshman center Courtney Paris.

The Sooner standout was named National Freshman of the Year by the United States Basketball Writers Association, which is the only organization that hands out an official award to freshmen. The USBWA also named Courtney Paris to their 2006 All-American Team.

Paris will be a consensus All-American if she makes the Kodak/WBCA All-American Team, which will be announced on Saturday, April 1.

“Freshman of the Year is a big deal to me,” said Paris. “It is a sign of my personal success and the impact I had on Oklahoma. As a team, we were able to achieve a lot of things this season and I was able to be a piece of that success.”

Complete USBWA List

The California native has already earned Wooden and Associated Press All-American honors, in addition to being a named as a finalist for the Naismith and Wooden Player of the Year Awards. As a freshman, Paris is not eligible for the Wade Trophy, which is presented by the WBCA.

The awards come in the aftermath of perhaps the best freshman season in NCAA history. Paris became the only player in NCAA history to collect 700 points, 500 rebounds and 100 blocks in a season. She also broke the 23-year old NCAA single season rebounding record with 539 boards.

Vote For Naismith Candidate Courtney Paris Cingular Wireless, the nation's largest wireless carrier, will again give fans a prominent voice in selecting the winner. Fan voting, through the power and ease of text messaging, will account for 25% of the selection process. This program sets the standard for integrating fans into the voting process and providing them with more input than with any other major collegiate sports award. Fans can text message “VOTE” to “87654” to receive the final ballot and participate in the voting process.* Voting for the Naismith Trophy Women's College Basketball Player of the Year will end on Saturday, April 1 at 9 p.m. ET.

The rookie averaged 21.9 points, 15.0 rebounds, 3.3 blocks and shot .614 from the field. Each of those marks ranked in the top-10 among all NCAA Division I players. No other player in the Division I ranked among the top-10 in more than two categories.

“I am elated for Courtney,” said OU head coach Sherri Coale. “Her numbers speak for themselves, but what really set her apart is her consistency, confidence and composure. Courtney came out every night and did what her team needed. That speaks volumes for any player, especially an 18-year old freshman.”

The USBWA also named North Carolina's Ivory Latta as the Player of the Year and UNC's Sylvia Hatchell as the Coach of the Year.

2005-06 Honors For Paris
AP All-American - First Team
Wooden All-American
USBWA All-American
USBWA National Freshman of the Year
Women's Wooden Award Finalist
Naismith Trophy Finalist
WBCA All-Region 5 Team
Big 12 Freshman of the Year
Co-Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year
All-Big 12 First Team
All San Antonio Regional Team
Big 12 Championship MVP
All-Big 12 Championship Team
All-Big 12 Defensive Team
All-Big 12 Freshman Team
WBCA Co-Player of the Month (December)
WBCA Player of the Month (March)
Three-time Big 12 Player of the Week
Nine-time Big 12 Rookie of the Week

University of Oklahoma Athletics

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