Elissa Cunane Named to Wooden Award Midseason Watch List
1/6/2021 6:32:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Junior center averaging 16.2 points, 58.2 percent shooting through 10 games
LOS ANGELES – For the second season in a row, NC State women's basketball junior Elissa Cunane has been featured on the John R. Wooden Award Midseason Top 25 Watch List, as announced by the Los Angeles Athletic Club Wednesday evening.
Chosen by a poll of national college basketball experts based on their performances during the 2020-21 season thus far, the list is made up of 25 student-athletes who are front-runners for the sport's most prestigious honor that recognizes the National Player of the Year.
Last year, Cunane was one of the 15 players selected for the Wooden Award National Ballot at the conclusion of the season. She joins Dana Evans (Louisville) as the only two ACC players included in this year's Midseason Top 25.
The Wolfpack center averages a team-leading 16.2 points, 58.2 percent (57-of-98) from the floor and 7.5 rebounds per game and has helped lead the third-ranked NC State squad to a 10-0 record to start the 2020-21 campaign. Her efficiency has increased in conference play where she has averaged 18.6 points, 63.5 percent (33-of-52) from the field and 8.8 rebounds in the Pack's 5-0 start to league action.
Cunane put together a streak of three-straight double-double performances from Dec. 9 (Elon) to Dec. 17 (Wake Forest), and she has scored 20+ points in three outings and double figures in all but one game. She most recently posted a season-high 24 points against Boston College on Sunday, with her 9-of-9 mark from the field ranking as the best single-game shooting performance by a Wolfpack player in Reynolds Coliseum.
Her performances continue to add to an already-successful career for Cunane, who is in the midst of her third season with the Pack. In the 2020-21 season opener, the Summerfield, N.C., native reached the 1,000 career point milestone after needing just 12 points to hit that mark after her sophomore campaign. She became the ninth active ACC player, the only active junior in the conference and the 35th player in program history to reach that milestone. It took her just 67 career games and 43 career starts.
Cunane was a Third Team All-American in 2019-20, as named by the Associated Press and the U.S. Basketball Writers Association. She is also currently on the early watch lists for the 2021 Jersey Mike's Naismith Trophy, the 2021 Wade Trophy, and the 2021 Lisa Leslie Award that honors the best center in college women's basketball.
The Los Angeles Athletic Club will send the final National Ballot of 15 players to nearly 1,000 voters, with the Wooden Award All-American Team set to be announced the week of the Elite Eight. The winner of the 2021 John R. Wooden Award will be presented by Wendy's following the NCAA Tournament in April.
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