Naismith ‘Midseason 32’ list released

Connecticut freshman Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis, Stanford sophomore Chiney Ogwumike, Notre Dame junior Skylar Diggins and Delaware junior Elena Della Donna — the past four Naismith High School Girl’s Player of the Year recipients — are all in contention for the 2012 Naismith Women’s College Player of the Year award presented by AT&T, the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced Wednesday.

They are joined by more than two dozen of the top players in women’s college basketball. Notre Dame leads the list with three nominees, and nine schools have two players each. The Big East hosts the most nominees with eight, followed by the ACC and the Big 10 at five apiece.

The midseason 32 list was compiled by the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s Board of Selectors, which based its criteria on player performances from the 2011-12 college basketball season. The Naismith Trophy will be awarded on April 1 at the NCAA Women’s Final Four in Denver.

Since 2005, presenting sponsor AT&T has set the standard in allowing fans to participate in determining the trophy winner. Through text messaging fan voting will account for 25 percent of the final results – more than any other national college basketball award.