Holmes Makes Third-Straight Appearance On Lisa Leslie Preseason Award Watch List
SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Graduate student forward Mackenzie Holmes is one of 20 players on the 2024 Lisa Leslie Award preseason watch list, announced by Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA). The award recognizes the top centers in women’s NCAA Division I college basketball.
Holmes appears on the Lisa Leslie award preseason watch list for the third consecutive season and was a Top 10 finalist in 2022-23. A three-time first team All-American last season, she is a unanimous preseason all-Big Ten honoree from the coaches and was also selected by the media vote, enters her fifth and final season with the Hoosiers in 2023-24. The Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year and a unanimous selection for All-Big Ten first teams as a senior, the Gorham, Maine native averaged 22.3 points (second in B1G), a team-high 7.8 rebounds and shot a NCAA second-best 68.0 percent from the floor.
Holmes led the Hoosiers in scoring on 25 occasions as a senior while posting double figures in 31 games, scoring 20 points 19 times and three 30-point scoring efforts. Her nine double-doubles led the team, as six of her double-doubles occurred in conference play which ranks eighth all-time in a single season. She also led the league in blocks (58) and blocks per game (1.9) and averages 1.1 steals (35) per game. Holmes is now in the top five in scoring in school history (1,897) and second in all-time blocks (208).
Fans are encouraged to participate in Fan Voting, presented by Dell Technologies, in each of the three rounds starting today, October 200. In late January, the watch list of 20 players for the 2024 Lisa Leslie Award will be narrowed to 10, and then in late February, to just five. In March, the five finalists will be presented to Leslie and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee, where a winner will be selected. The winner of the 2024 Lisa Leslie Award will be presented on a to be determined date, along with the
other four members of the Women’s Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the
Nancy Lieberman Award (Point Guard), Ann Meyers Drysdale Award (Shooting Guard), Cheryl Miller Award (Small Forward), and the Katrina McClain Award (Power Forward), in addition to the Men’s Starting Five. The Hoosiers have additional candidates on the Ann Meyers Drysdale award (Sara Scalia) and Cheryl Miller award (Yarden Garzon).