STANFORD, Calif. – Five Cardinal received recognition from the league's coaches when the All-Pac-12, All-Defensive and All-Freshman teams were announced by the conference office on Tuesday morning.
DiJonai Carrington, Alanna Smith and Kiana Williams were voted to the 15-person All-Pac-12 squad and Smith was also named to the Pac-12 All-Defensive team. Lacie Hull earned a spot on the Pac-12 All-Freshman team along with Pac-12 All-Defensive honorable mention accolades and Lexie Hull was selected Pac-12 All-Freshman honorable mention.
Carrington was awarded Pac-12 honors for the first time after averaging career highs in points (13.7) and rebounds (7.6) and increasing her shooting percentages across the board. The junior has scored 20+ points three times this season and in double figures in 23 of Stanford's 29 games. She's pulled down 10 or more rebounds in eight games, put up six double-doubles and is one of four Power 5 conference players in the country under 6'0" averaging 13.0 points and 7.0 rebounds along with Sabrina Ionescu (Oregon), Anriel Howard (Mississippi St.) and Mikayla Pivec (Oregon State).
In the Cardinal's second of three top-10 wins this season, Carrington had a career-high 33 points and 13-rebounds in a 95-85 victory at No. 9 Tennessee on Dec. 18. She was 11-of-15 (.733) from the floor and 4-of-5 (.800) from deep and became just the second player in the last 20 years to have 33 points, 13 rebounds and four made 3-pointers against a ranked opponent.
Smith, who yesterday was named the Pac-12's Scholar-Athlete of the Year, is on every major watch list including the Katrina McClain Award, Wooden Award, Naismith Trophy, Wade Trophy and Senior CLASS Award, and has backed up that recognition with her play. She is shooting 51.7 percent from the field (215-of-416), 39.9 percent from behind the arc (65-of-163) and averaging a team-high 19.7 points per game to go with 8.2 rebounds and 2.4 blocks.
Smith is attempting to become just the fifth player in program history to average 20.0 points and 8.0 rebounds in a season, joining Chiney Ogwumike (2013-14 and 2012-13), Nneka Ogwumike (2011-12), Nicole Powell (2003-04) and Jeanne Ruark Hoff (1979-80 and 1978-79). She is also tracking to join Elena Delle Donne as the only players 6'4" and taller over the past 20 years to shoot better than 40 percent from 3-point range for an entire season. Delle Donne made 41.3 percent as a freshman at Delaware in 2009-10 (NCAA minimum of two made 3-pointers per game).
The 6-foot-4 Smith is 13th in school history in scoring (1,576) and second in blocks (218) and this season is 28th in the country in scoring (19.7) and 19th in blocks per game (2.45), the only player in the NCAA in the top 30 in both categories. She is one of six players to have 60+ 3-pointers and 60+ blocks in a single season across all of NCAA women's basketball since 1999-00 and with five more makes from deep would be just the second to accumulate 70 3-pointers and 70 blocks in a season. Her 71 rejections this year are second in Stanford history behind Jayne Appel's 84 in 2007-08.
Williams moved up to the full team this year after being an All-Pac-12 honorable mention pick as a freshman a year ago. She's slid over from her natural position of shooting guard to run point this season due to injury and hasn't skipped a beat. Williams is among the 10 remaining candidates for the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award, is second on the team in scoring (14.0 points per game) and had four of her five 20-point games this season in conference.
The sophomore collected her first career double-double with 21 points and 10 assists in the Jan. 6 win against UCLA, Stanford's first 20-point, 10-assist double-double since Jeanette Pohlen had 21 and 12 in a win over USC on Jan. 22, 2011. She is also averaging 4.7 assists per game, which is ninth in the conference. No Stanford player has averaged 4.5 assists in a season since Pohlen in 2010-11 (4.8).
Williams, whose 71 3-pointers last season where the second-most for a freshman in Stanford history, has made another 70 this year and is 10 away from entering the program's single-season top 10.
Lacie Hull entered the Cardinal's starting lineup 23 games ago and hasn't left. The all-freshman and all-defensive honorable mention selection is averaging 5.4 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.5 steals while often handling the defensive assignment on the opponent's most dangerous perimeter player. She had seven steals in a win over American on Nov. 24, the fourth-most in a game in Stanford history and second among the nation's freshmen this season.
Hull was named the Pac-12 Freshman of the Week on Dec. 24 after she put together a brilliant performance in Stanford's 95-85 road win at No. 9 Tennessee, scoring 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting, including 4-of-5 from deep.
Lexie Hull, who landed on the all-freshman honorable mention team, is playing her best basketball of late after missing nine games earlier this season with a left foot injury. On Monday she was named the league's freshman of the week following a weekend in which she averaged 9.0 points and 4.5 rebounds in Stanford's wins at Washington State and Washington. She was 7-of-12 from the floor (.583) and 4-of-8 from deep (.500) in the victories.
Hull burst onto the scene with 11 points and 11 rebounds in the season opener against UC Davis, becoming the first freshman in Stanford history to record a double-double in her debut. She's averaging 6.1 points, 4.8 rebounds and 2.0 steals per game this season. Hull would be fourth in the conference in steals if she had played in 75 percent of Stanford's games. She's currently at 69 percent (20 of 29).
Stanford, the No. 2 seed in the upcoming Pac-12 Tournament, has a bye into the quarterfinals and will play the winner of No. 7 Cal and No. 10 Washington State on Friday, March 8 at 6 p.m.