Gophers' Mara Braun named one of 10 finalists for Cheryl Miller Award

The award is given to the top small forward in women's college basketball.

Gophers women’s basketball sophomore Mara Braun has been named as one of the top-10 finalists for the Cheryl Miller Award, which is given to the top small forward in college basketball, the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and Women’s Basketball Coaches’ Association announced on Wednesday.

Braun leads the Gophers in scoring with 17.7 points per game — good for third in the Big Ten — and also contributes 4.6 rebounds and 3.2 assists per contest. Among her highlights this season, Braun became the third fastest in program history to reach 500 points, behind just Lindsay Whalen and Laura Coenen.

There is a fan voting portion involved in the Cheryl Miller Award. Gophers fans can show their support for Braun at hoophallawards.com, with fan vote counting as one committee vote during the selection process for the award. It starts Friday with the top-10 finalists and will continue through the remaining rounds.

Other finalists in the top 10 include Yarden Garzon (Indiana), Kiki Jefferson (Louisville), Aneesah Morrow (LSU), Jordan King (Marquette), Alyssas Ustby (North Carolina), Cotie McMahon (Ohio State), Rickea Jackson (Tennessee), Madison Booker (Texas) and McKenzie Forbes (Southern California). The finalists will be whittled down to five in March, when they’ll be presented to Miller and the Hall of Fame selection committee.