ESPN women’s basketball writer Graham Hays came out with his list of the top-10 candidates for the 2020-21 season’s Player of the Year award on Monday.
Coming in at No. 5 was Iowa State’s Ashley Joens.
Joens finished her sophomore season with some of the best numbers in the Big 12. Totaling 20.5 points and 10.9 rebounds per game, finishing in the top-five in the league in both categories.
She was the only player in the nation to average over 20 points and 10 rebounds per game.
Hays went on to praise Joens’ versatility and mentioned her game against Oklahoma where she returned to the court after dislocating her shoulder.
“She is versatile enough that she ranked third nationally in free throw attempts and showed off 3-point range and accuracy,” Hays wrote. “She even built a bit of legend by returning from a dislocated shoulder to lead the Cyclones to a win.”
As of right now, it looks like Joens will have a solid shot to compete for the National Player of the Year award as a junior, and the Cyclones should be much closer to the spotlight this season.
The team has the highest-rated recruiting class in school history coming to her aide in the upcoming year.
Not to mention, they’ll face the top-ranked team in the nation in South Carolina at Hilton Coliseum.
