Stanford’s Powell Would Get His Vote

I don’t have a vote on this year’s Naismith Award for women’s college player of the year and I don’t know the people who do.

But if I did have a vote, it would go to Stanford’s Nicole Powell for a variety of reasons, starting with the fact she is the most complete player in the West--and maybe the country.

Those three words--in the West--are a big problem for Powell with Eastern and Midwest voters who spend the bulk of their time watching Big East, Southeastern Conference, Big 12 and Big Ten games.

Even though second-ranked Stanford is 24-1 and undefeated in the Pac-10, the Cardinal is not on TV around the country as often as Connecticut, Tennessee, North Carolina, Purdue or Oklahoma.

The one Stanford game many of those voters probably did see was the Dec. 16 battle against Tennessee, won by the Lady Vols in the final minutes. Powell didn’t have a dominant afternoon, although she led the Cardinal with 17 points.

If that is their only image of Powell this season, it’s a pity.

The 6-foot-2 sophomore, who has played every position except center, averages 15.4 points, 9.8 rebounds and 5.9 assists. The numbers rise in conference play--16.1 points, 10.2 rebounds and 6.5 assists.

Powell has three triple-doubles this season, and broke a 25-year school record with 21 rebounds against Oregon on Jan. 13. She is the conference leader in rebounds and assists. No player in Pac-10 history, male or female, has ever led the conference in both categories.

Powell’s case, however, is not helped by the national perception, true or false, that the Pac-10 is a weak league this season.

After Stanford, only Arizona State seems certain of winning 20 games.

Nonetheless, Powell is just as valuable to her team has Alana Beard is to Duke, Kelly Mazzante is to Penn State, Angie Welle is to Iowa State, Sue Bird and Diana Taurasi are to Connecticut and Chantelle Anderson is to Vanderbilt, to mention a few of the 20 finalists.

And she is more versatile.

Stanford, which was 19-11 and a second-round NCAA casualty last season, is a legitimate title contender with Powell in its lineup.

Scott Leykam, the women’s basketball sports information director at Stanford, said the school is trying to get the word out about Powell.

“We wait until the season unfolds and you see other [players’] stats unfold,” Leykam said.

“We’ve had a handful of people call to find out more about Nicole. There are more national media than regional media tracking her.

“She is getting more play this year because of where the team is. Last year, we were near the bottom of the rankings. This year, we’ve been top five.”

Since 1983, when women started receiving their own Naismith Award, only one player--USC’s Cheryl Miller--is a three-time winner. Powell probably won’t get a chance to equal that feat.

But if she continues this level of play, she should eventually join former Stanford stars Jennifer Azzi and Kate Starbird as a Naismith honoree.

The award will be given out April 5 in Atlanta.

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Mazzante is another sophomore sensation.

She leads the NCAA in scoring (25.3) and needs 52 points to break Penn State’s single-season record.

She has 632 points into tonight’s game against Michigan State.