WACO, Texas — Baylor's top defender is getting noticed nationally as the reigning winner of one of women's college basketball's top awards.
Lady Bear Guard Didi Richards was named Tuesday to the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year award's watch list. The award is given by the Atlanta Tip-off Club.
Richards is the reigning winner of the award, winning it in the coronavirus-shortened 2019-20 season after holding her opponents to 26.2% shooting.
This season, the senior is averaging 1.7 steals per game and keeping her defensive assignments to 32.9% shooting, according to Synergy.
This all comes after a collision in preseason practice sent Richards to the hospital with a Spinal Cord Injury without Radiographic Abnormality and held her out of Baylor's season opener. She returned to action just 38 days removed from her injury.
Also on the watch list:
- Aliyah Boston, South Carolina
- Veronica Burton, Northwestern
- Kate Cain, Nebraska
- Charli Collier, Texas
- Elissa Cunane, NC State
- Arella Guirantes, Rutgers
- Sara Hamson, BYU
- N'dea Jones, Texas A&M
- Natasha Mack, Oklahoma State
- Aari McDonald, Arizona
- Nancy Mulkey, Rice
- Olivia Nelson-Ododa, UConn
- Chasity Patterson, Kentucky
- Sage Stobbart, UC Davis
Also on KCENTV.com:
