Rutgers' Guirantes is named as finalist for Ann Meyers Drysdale Shooting Guard Award
With one game remaining on the No. 24 Rutgers women’s basketball team’s schedule before the Big Ten Tournament, fifth-year senior guard Arella Guirantes has been named a finalist for the Ann Meyers Drysdale Shooting Guard Award. The four-year-old award is named after Ann Meyers Drysdale and honors the top shooting guard in women’s Division I college basketball.
In order to be considered for the award, one “must exhibit the tenacity and scoring prowess of Class of 1993 Hall of Famer (Meyers Drysdale),” according to Rutgers Athletics.
Inducted to the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame after an illustrious career, Meyers Drysdale posted the first quadruple-double in Division I history. She posted 1,685 points and swiped 403 steals in her career at the University of California, Los Angeles.
She went on to play for the U.S. Olympics women's basketball team and eventually tried out for the Indiana Pacers. Afterward, she became the color analyst for the team and later was drafted into the Women's Professional Basketball League by the New Jersey Gems. She then went back into broadcasting, covering women’s basketball, among other sports, at the 2008, 2012 and 2016 Summer Olympics.
Guirantes has done her part for the Scarlet Knights (13-3, 9-3) this season, leading Rutgers with 20.9 points per game, while grabbing 5.9 rebounds per game. She leads the Knights with 88 assists and 32 blocks. Guirantes is second on the team with 35 steals, a key component of the Rutgers defense.
Meyers Drysdale and the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame selection committee will look over the finalists for the award and, on April 9, announce the winner.
The recent announcement keeps Guirantes’ awards nominations at five this season. She is a candidate for the John R. Wooden Award, the Wade and Naismith Trophies for National Player of the Year and the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year award. Guirantes was also named a top 10 finalist for the Senior CLASS Award.
There have been other accolades this year as well. Guirantes was named an ESPN National Player of the Week and twice received Big Ten Player of the Week. Guirantes was the third player in Knights’ history to notch a triple-double.
Guirantes and Rutgers look to finish their regular season on top with a matchup this Friday against No. 22 Ohio State.
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