Rice Named Preseason Wooden Award All-American

Aug. 5, 2002

Coral Gables, FL (hurricanesports.com) – University of Miami junior forward Darius Rice (Jackson, MS) has been named to the John R. Wooden Award Preseason All-America team. Rice is one of 50 student-athletes who based on last year’s individual performance and team records are the early frontrunners for college basketball’s most coveted trophy, the John R. Wooden Award.

Created in 1976, the John R. Wooden Award is the most prestigious individual honor in college basketball. It is bestowed upon the nation’s best player at an institution of higher education who has proven to his university that he is making progress toward graduation and maintaining a cumulative 2.0 GPA. Previous winners include such notables as Michael Jordan, Larry Bird, Tim Duncan and last year’s recipient, Jason Williams.

A 2001-02 second-team All-BIG EAST selection, Rice led the team in scoring for the second consecutive season averaging a team-high 14.9 points to go with 5.9 rebounds and 1.7 assists per game. Last season the Hurricanes finished 24-8 establishing a school single-season record for victories and reached the NCAA Tournament for the fourth time in the last five seasons.

Rice recorded 20-or-more points a team-high 10 times last season including three 30-point games. In addition to his BIG EAST accolades, Rice was also a 2001-02 first-team NABC All-District 6 selection.

Rice is one of seven BIG EAST players on the preseason list including Troy Bell (Boston College), Marcus Hatten (St. John’s), Brandin Knight (Pittsburgh), Emeka Okafor (Connecticut), Michael Sweetney (Georgetown) and Chris Thomas (Notre Dame).

The 2003 Award ceremony, which will include the presentation of the Wooden Award All-American team and the presentation of the Legends of Coaching Award, will be held at the Los Angeles Athletic Club on Sunday, April 13th and will be televised live nationally on Fox Sports Net for the sixth straight year.

Wooden Award PreseasonAll-American Team  - Top 50 Candidates(Based on a preseason poll.  Players listed alphabetically.)

Mario Austin 6’9″ Jr. F/C Mississippi StateMarcus Bailey 6’5″ Sr. G/F WyomingTroy Bell 6’1″ Sr. G Boston CollegeSteve Blake 6’3″ Sr. G MarylandKeith Bogans 6’5″ Sr. G KentuckyMatt Bonner 6’10” Sr. F FloridaNick Collison 6’9″ Sr. F KansasBrian Cook 6’10” Sr. F IllinoisTom Coverdale 6’2″ Sr. G IndianaWillie Deane 6’1″ Sr. G PurdueErwin Dudley 6’8″ Sr. F AlabamaChris Duhon 6’1″ Jr. G DukeCarl English 6’5″ Jr. G/F HawaiiEbi Ere 6’5″ Sr. G OklahomaT.J. Ford 5’10” So. G TexasReece Gaines 6’6″ Sr. G LouisvilleJason Gardner 5’11” Sr. G ArizonaMarcus Hatten 6’1″ Sr. G St. John’sJarvis Hayes 6’6″ Jr. G/F GeorgiaChris Hill 6’3″ So. G Michigan StateKirk Hinrich 6’3″ Sr. G KansasJosh Howard 6’6″ Sr. F Wake ForestBrandon Hunter 6’7″ Sr. F OhioLuke Jackson 6’7″ Jr. G OregonBritton Johnsen 6’9″ Sr. G UtahDahntay Jones 6’6″ Sr. F DukeJason Kapono 6’7″ Sr. F UCLABrandin Knight 6’0″ Sr. G PittsburghChris Marcus 7’1″ Sr. C/F Western KentuckyJason Maxiell 6’7″ So. F CincinnatiBrett Nelson 6’3″ Sr. G FloridaJameer Nelson 6’1″ Jr. G St. Joseph’sEmeka Okafor 6’9″ Jr. F/C ConnecticutUgonna Onyekwe 6’8″ Sr. F PennsylvaniaRickey Paulding 6’5″ Jr. G MissouriKirk Penney 6’5″ Sr. G WisconsinHollis Price 6’1″ Sr. G OklahomaJustin Reed 6’8″ Jr. F MississippiDarius Rice 6’10” Jr. F MiamiLuke Ridnour 6’2″ Jr. G OregonRomain Sato 6’5″ Jr. G/F XavierTheron Smith 6’8″ Sr. F Ball StateMike Sweetney 6’8″ Jr. F GeorgetownChris Thomas 6’1″ So. G Notre DameJames Thomas 6’8″ Jr. C TexasCory Violette 6’8″ Jr. F/C GonzagaDwyane Wade 6’4″ Jr. G MarquetteLuke Walton 6’8″ Sr. F ArizonaTravis Watson 6’8″ Sr. F/C VirginiaDavid West 6’8″ Sr. F/C Xavier