Teaira McCowan, Mississippi State
McCowan is averaging 16.8 points and 13.6 rebounds per game this season for the Bulldogs. She is shooting 64.1 percent from the field and 75 percent from the free-throw line. She is also a presence on the defensive end of the floor with 64 blocks on the year. She entered the season ranked first at MSU in career field-goal percentage (57) and second in career rebounds (1,015) and blocks (184). She is the second MSU player with 1,000 points, 1,000 rebounds and 180 blocks.
Last season, McCowan started all games and averaged over 30 minutes played per game on her way to becoming a WBCA Coaches’ All-American, espnW first team All-American and Naismith Defensive Player of the Year. She secured 544 rebounds, which was an SEC record and second-most in NCAA history. Her 710 points scored that season placed her fifth in MSU history. In the NCAA Tournament, she averaged 20.8 points and 18.2 rebounds per game. She is the only player in tournament history to record multiple 20-point, 20-rebound games. In her sophomore year she ranked 11th in the SEC in total rebounds and fourth in blocks. She was also named to the SEC All-Freshman Team.
Macy Miller, South Dakota State
On the season, Miller is averaging 16.8 points per game and has helped lead South Dakota State to a 21-6 record. From the field, she is shooting 53.7 percent while her accuracy from behind the 3-point arc is 43.6 percent. She is averaging 3.4 assists per game and is second on the team with 5.6 rebounds per game. Entering the season, she needed 171 points to become the career scoring leader at South Dakota State and 561 to become The Summit League’s leading scorer. She was 283 points away from 2,000 for her career and would be the sixth player in The Summit League to achieve that mark.
Miller was the 2018 Summit League Player of the Year and is a member of The Summit League All-Decade Team. She has twice been Summit League Tournament MVP, first team All-Summit League and Summit League All-Academic Team. She has been named to The Summit League’s All-Tournament Team three times. As a junior, she started all 33 games for South Dakota State and led the team and The Summit League with a 18.3 points-per-game scoring average.
The weekly Wade Watch Spotlight recognizes players on this season’s Wade Watch list of candidates for the Wade Trophy, the sport’s oldest and most prestigious national player of the year award, which the WBCA presents each year to the best player in college women’s basketball.