Tuesday March 3, 2015
Courtesy of TheACC.com
LINK: THE 2014-15 ALL-ACC WOMEN’S BASKETBALL TEAM ANNOUNCED
GREENSBORO, N.C. (theACC.com) – The 2014-15 All-ACC Women’s Basketball Team as selected by the Blue Ribbon Panel was announced Tuesday by Atlantic Coast Conference Commissioner John Swofford.
An All-ACC First Team and an All-ACC Second Team were voted on by the league’s Blue Ribbon Panel, which consists of national and local media members, as well as school representatives.
Notre Dame, which will enter this week’s ACC Women’s Tournament as the defending champion and number one seed, placed junior guard Jewell Loyd and freshman forward Brianna Turner on the first team. North Carolina also had two first-team selections in sophomore guard Allisha Gray and sophomore forward Stephanie Mavunga.
Also earning a spot is Duke senior post player Elizabeth Williams, who joins former Blue Devil All-American Alana Beard (2001-04) as one of only two players in conference history to be named to the All-ACC first team four times.
Florida State junior center Adut Bulgak, Georgia Tech sophomore guard Kaela Davis, Miami sophomore guard Adrienne Motley, Pitt senior guard Brianna Kiesel and Wake Forest senior forward Dearica Hamby round out the 10-member first team.
Duke freshman guard/forward Azurá Stevens, Florida State sophomore guard Leticia Romero, Louisville freshman guard Mariya Moore, Syracuse sophomore guard Alexis Peterson and Virginia junior guard Faith Randolph earned spots on the second team.
Notre Dame’s Turner, Duke’s Stevens and Louisville’s Moore were also voted to the five-member All-ACC Freshman Team, along with Florida State forward Shakayla Thomas and Virginia guard Mikayla Venson.
Notre Dame’s Loyd, Duke’s Williams and Wake Forest’s Hamby are all repeat first-team selections from last season. Georgia Tech’s Davis was named to the second team in 2014 and was also a member of last years’ All-ACC Freshman Team, along with UNC’s Gray and Miami’s Motley.
Loyd has averaged an ACC-leading 20.7 points per game and handed out 3.2 assists per contest while leading the Fighting Irish to a 28-2 season that includes a 15-1 mark in ACC play. Turner has averaged 14.2 points in her first collegiate season while shooting an ACC-best .681 from the floor and pulling down 7.6 rebounds per game.
Georgia Tech’s Davis ranks second among ACC scorers at 20.1 points per game while knocking down 60 shots from 3-point range and shooting .763 from the foul line. Wake Forest’s Hamby has averaged a double-double, ranking third in the ACC in both scoring (19.9 ppg) and rebounding (10.6 rpg).
Pitt’s Kiesel has stepped up to average 18.5 points per game for the Panthers while ranking second among conference players in assists at 4.7 per game. Miami’s Motley ranks sixth among ACC scorers at 16.9 points per game while shooting nearly 50 percent from the floor.
Duke’s Williams has again proven to be a multi-dimensional force, averaging 14.8 points and 8.7 rebounds per contest while ranking second among conference players in blocked shots at 2.9 per game. Florida State’s Bulgak has been a major player in the Seminoles’ stellar 27-3 season, ranking fourth among ACC rebounders at 10.1 per game while scoring at a 13.0 ppg clip, shooting .502 from the floor and blocking nearly two shots per game.
UNC’s Gray ranks seventh in the ACC with 16.1 points per game and is ninth in rebounding at 7.9 per contest. Mavunga averages 14 points per game for the Tar Heels and ranks seventh among ACC rebounders at 8.7 per contest.
The All-ACC second team features the ACC’s leader in free-throw percentage in Virginia’s Randolph (.903) and the leader in steals in Syracuse’s Peterson (2.4 per game). Duke’s Stevens averages 14.1 points per game, while Louisville’s Moore ranks sixth among ACC assist leaders (3.7) while scoring close to 14 points per game. Romero, a Kansas State transfer who became eligible to play for Florida State in late December, ranks second on the Seminoles in assists with 93 despite missing the first 13 game of the season. She averaged 10.1 points and 5.2 rebounds.
Florida State’s Thomas has been an immediate impact freshman, shooting nearly 53 percent from the floor while averaging 9.7 points and 5.1 rebounds. Virginia’s Venson is one of the league’s top outside shooting threats, connecting on 40 percent of her 3-point shots to rank second in the ACC.
The 38th Annual ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament tips off at 1 p.m. ET on Wednesday, March 4, and will conclude with the 1 p.m. championship contest on Sunday, March 8. The title game will be televised by ESPN, and Saturday’s noon and 2:30 p.m. semifinal games will be shown nationally via ESPNU. All 11 games on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday will be broadcast on the league’s regional sports network (RSN). The entire tournament can also be seen on ESPN3 and WatchESPN.
The ACC will announce its Player, Freshman and Coach of the Year as selected by the Blue Ribbon Panel on Wednesday (March 4). The Defensive and Sixth Player of Year will also be announced on Wednesday.
Blue Ribbon Panel All-ACC Team
First Team
Elizabeth Williams, Sr., C/F, Duke
Adut Bulgak, Jr., C, Florida State
Kaela Davis, So., G, Georgia Tech
Adrienne Motley, So., G, Miami
Allisha Gray, So., G, North Carolina
Stephanie Mavunga, So., F, North Carolina
Jewell Loyd, Jr., G, Notre Dame
Brianna Turner, Fr., F, Notre Dame
Brianna Kiesel, Sr., G, Pitt
Dearica Hamby, Sr., F, Wake Forest
Second Team
Azura Stevens, Fr., F/G, Duke
Leticia Romero, So., G, Florida State
Mariya Moore, Fr., G, Louisville
Alexis Peterson, So., G, Syracuse
Faith Randolph, Jr., G, Virginia
2015 All-ACC Freshman Team
Azura Stevens, Fr., F/G, Duke
Shakayla Thomas, Fr., F, Florida State
Mariya Moore, Fr., G, Louisville
Brianna Turner, Fr., F, Notre Dame
Mikayla Venson, Fr., G, Virginia
