St. John's University Athletics
Joel Soriano Named to John R. Wooden Award Preseason Top 50 Watch List
11/14/2023 2:00:00 PM | Men's Basketball
Soriano earns his second national preseason recognition, previously being named to the Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Award Watch List by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame
QUEENS, N.Y. – St. John's men's basketball senior center Joel Soriano has been selected to the Preseason Top 50 Watch List for the John R. Wooden Award®, presented by Principal®, given to Most Outstanding Player in college basketball, as announced on ESPN's SportsCenter on Tuesday.
It marks the second national preseason recognition for Soriano after earning a spot on the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame's Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Watch List prior to the start of the 2023-24 campaign. The 6-foot-11 center is also the third Johnnie in as many seasons to earn a spot on the John R. Wooden Award® Top 50 Watch List, joining current San Antonio Spurs standout Julian Champagnie (2021) and former Johnnie Posh Alexander (2022)
The Red Storm big man is one of nine players from the BIG EAST on this year's list. The BIG EAST is tied with the ACC for the most selections this season. Soriano is also one of 29 seniors to be named to the prestigious award watch list.
Through two games this season, the Yonkers, N.Y., native has averaged 18.5 points shooting 75.0 percent (15-20 FG) from the field to go with 10.0 rebounds per contest.
Last season, Soriano posted 25 double-doubles, which were the second-most in NCAA Division I and the most by a St. John's player since Walter Berry tallied 28 in 1985. The Yonkers, N.Y., native averaged a career-best 15.2 points and 11.9 boards per game with the latter ranking fourth in the nation. His 11.9 rebounds also paced the BIG EAST, becoming the first Johnnie since the inception of the league to be the category leader at season's end.
Created in 1976, the John R. Wooden Award Program hosts the most prestigious honors in college basketball recognizing The Wooden Award Most Outstanding Player for men and women, The Wooden Award All-America Teams for men and women and the annual selection of the Wooden Award Legend of Coaching recipient. Honorees have proven to their university that they meet or exceed the qualifications of the John R. Wooden Award as set forth by Coach Wooden and the Wooden Award Steering Committee, including making progress towards graduation and maintaining at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA.
The John R. Wooden Award®, presented by Principal®, will be presented to the winners on April 12, 2024.
John R. Wooden Award Top 50 Preseason Watch List
NAME SCHOOL
Max Abmas Texas
Trey Alexander Creighton
Armando Bacot North Carolina
Oumar Ballo Arizona
Reece Beekman Virginia
Adem Bona UCLA
Johni Broome Auburn
Boo Buie Northwestern
Donovan Clingan Connecticut
Isaiah Collier USC
L.J. Cryer Houston
Tristan da Silva Colorado
N'Faly Dante Oregon
Johnell Davis Florida Atlantic
RJ Davis North Carolina
Tucker DeVries Drake
Hunter Dickinson# Kansas
Zach Edey* Purdue
Justin Edwards Kentucky
Boogie Ellis USC
Kyle Filipowski Duke
PJ Hall Clemson
Dajuan Harris Jr. Kansas
DaRon Holmes II Dayton
Bryce Hopkins Providence
Graham Ike Gonzaga
Kam Jones Marquette
Ryan Kalkbrenner Creighton
Tyler Kolek Marquette
Aidan Mahaney St. Mary's
Kevin McCullar Jr. Kansas
Judah Mintz Syracuse
Justin Moore Villanova
Ryan Nembhard Gonzaga
Tristen Newton Connecticut
Norchad Omier Miami (FL)
Nijel Pack Miami (FL)
Tyrese Proctor Duke
Jeremy Roach Duke
Baylor Scheierman Creighton
Terrence Shannon Jr. Illinois
Jamal Shead Houston
Tolu Smith Mississippi State
Joel Soriano St. John's
Isaiah Stevens Colorado State
It marks the second national preseason recognition for Soriano after earning a spot on the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame's Kareem Abdul-Jabbar Center of the Year Watch List prior to the start of the 2023-24 campaign. The 6-foot-11 center is also the third Johnnie in as many seasons to earn a spot on the John R. Wooden Award® Top 50 Watch List, joining current San Antonio Spurs standout Julian Champagnie (2021) and former Johnnie Posh Alexander (2022)
The Red Storm big man is one of nine players from the BIG EAST on this year's list. The BIG EAST is tied with the ACC for the most selections this season. Soriano is also one of 29 seniors to be named to the prestigious award watch list.
Through two games this season, the Yonkers, N.Y., native has averaged 18.5 points shooting 75.0 percent (15-20 FG) from the field to go with 10.0 rebounds per contest.
Last season, Soriano posted 25 double-doubles, which were the second-most in NCAA Division I and the most by a St. John's player since Walter Berry tallied 28 in 1985. The Yonkers, N.Y., native averaged a career-best 15.2 points and 11.9 boards per game with the latter ranking fourth in the nation. His 11.9 rebounds also paced the BIG EAST, becoming the first Johnnie since the inception of the league to be the category leader at season's end.
Created in 1976, the John R. Wooden Award Program hosts the most prestigious honors in college basketball recognizing The Wooden Award Most Outstanding Player for men and women, The Wooden Award All-America Teams for men and women and the annual selection of the Wooden Award Legend of Coaching recipient. Honorees have proven to their university that they meet or exceed the qualifications of the John R. Wooden Award as set forth by Coach Wooden and the Wooden Award Steering Committee, including making progress towards graduation and maintaining at least a 2.0 cumulative GPA.
The John R. Wooden Award®, presented by Principal®, will be presented to the winners on April 12, 2024.
John R. Wooden Award Top 50 Preseason Watch List
NAME SCHOOL
Max Abmas Texas
Trey Alexander Creighton
Armando Bacot North Carolina
Oumar Ballo Arizona
Reece Beekman Virginia
Adem Bona UCLA
Johni Broome Auburn
Boo Buie Northwestern
Donovan Clingan Connecticut
Isaiah Collier USC
L.J. Cryer Houston
Tristan da Silva Colorado
N'Faly Dante Oregon
Johnell Davis Florida Atlantic
RJ Davis North Carolina
Tucker DeVries Drake
Hunter Dickinson# Kansas
Zach Edey* Purdue
Justin Edwards Kentucky
Boogie Ellis USC
Kyle Filipowski Duke
PJ Hall Clemson
Dajuan Harris Jr. Kansas
DaRon Holmes II Dayton
Bryce Hopkins Providence
Graham Ike Gonzaga
Kam Jones Marquette
Ryan Kalkbrenner Creighton
Tyler Kolek Marquette
Aidan Mahaney St. Mary's
Kevin McCullar Jr. Kansas
Judah Mintz Syracuse
Justin Moore Villanova
Ryan Nembhard Gonzaga
Tristen Newton Connecticut
Norchad Omier Miami (FL)
Nijel Pack Miami (FL)
Tyrese Proctor Duke
Jeremy Roach Duke
Baylor Scheierman Creighton
Terrence Shannon Jr. Illinois
Jamal Shead Houston
Tolu Smith Mississippi State
Joel Soriano St. John's
Isaiah Stevens Colorado State
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