Rori Harmon, Madison Booker, and Laila Phelia named to watch list for player of the year award
AUSTIN, Texas — Texas women’s basketball standouts Rori Harmon, Madison Booker, and Laila Phelia have been named to the John R. Wooden Award Preseason Women’s Top 50 Watch List, presented by Principal, the LA Athletic Club announced today.
Madison Booker, voted Preseason Player of the Year in the SEC by the league’s coaches, is coming off a stellar freshman season. She earned WBCA First Team All-America honors and was named the Cheryl Miller Small Forward of the Year.
Rori Harmon, returning after an injury ended her 2023-24 season after 12 games, was selected to the Preseason All-SEC Second Team by the media and coaches. In those 12 games, Harmon recorded 93 assists to just 14 turnovers, leading the nation in assist-to-turnover ratio. She previously earned All-America honorable mention honors and was named Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year for the 2022-23 season.
Laila Phelia begins her first season with the Longhorns after transferring from Michigan, where she played three years. A First Team All-Big Ten selection in 2023-24, Phelia has scored 1,243 points in her collegiate career and tallied double figures in 29 games last season.
The Longhorns open their season at Moody Center on Sunday, Nov. 10, at 2:00 p.m. CT.
