Who should be B1G Player of the Year? | The Boneyard

Who should be B1G Player of the Year?

Who should be B1G Player of the Year?

  • Jaloni Cambridge

  • Lauren Betts

  • Kiki Rice

  • Olivia Olson

  • Other

Results are only viewable after voting.
bballnut90

bballnut90

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Jaloni Cambridge: 22.5 points, 51.2% FG, 5.5 rebounds, 4.5 assists, 2.1 steals, team is 10-2 and in 3rd place

Lauren Betts: 16.2 points, 57.7% FG, 7.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists, 2.0 blocks, team is 12-0 and in 1st place

Kiki Rice: 15.1 points, 49.8% FG, 6.5 rebounds, 4.7 assists, team is 12-0 and in 1st place

Olivia Olson: 18.8 points, 47.7% FG, 5.8 rebounds, 2.4 assists, 1.9 steals, team is 11-1 and in 2nd place


I'd pick Cambridge at this juncture but see a realistic case for Betts. Cambridge is probably the most under publicized star in women's basketball right now. She's emerged as a star for Ohio State.
 
I don't know that I'd vote for Betts for MVP of UCLA over Rice. I haven't seen them much, but Betts seems to me to have regressed since last year.
 
I voted Cambridge, but believe Betts' 'regression' has more to do with playing on a strong, balanced team than with her personal play.

She now shares floor with Rice, Jaquez, Leger Walker, Dugalic - all double digit scorers, and even her freshman sister Sienna.
 
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packwrap said:
I voted Cambridge, but believe Betts' 'regression' has more to do with playing on a strong, balanced team than with her personal play.

She now shares floor with Rice, Jaquez, Leger Walker, Dugalic - all double digit scorers, and even her freshman sister Sienna.
Expand ...
I'm voting for Cambridge but fully expect to see Betts win media awards at the end of the year. She's the face of that all-starrish lineup and they'll float each other up.
 
I would guess a 3-horse race: Cambridge, Olson and Betts, and perhaps a split BIG media and coaches vote. Barring a strong statistical finish, Betts would be an unusual choice by recent standards. Since Maryland joined the BIG, there have been 13 BIG POYs (2 shared awards), with all POY winners being in the top 3 in scoring in conference play.


BIG PlayBIG PlayBIG Play
season Player PPG RANKPTS WinSharesBIG POY
2014-15 Kelsey Mitchell 1st24.53rdYes
2014-15 Amanda Zahui B. 3rd20.72ndYes
2015-16 Rachel Banham 1st30.35thYes
2016-17 Kelsey Mitchell 1st23.54thYes
2017-18 Megan Gustafson 1st28.11stYes
2017-18 Kelsey Mitchell 3rd23.73rdYes
2018-19 Megan Gustafson 1st28.91stYes
2019-20 Kathleen Doyle 3rd19.65thYes
2020-21 Naz Hillmon 2nd25.25thYes
2021-22 Caitlin Clark 1st28.71stYes
2022-23 Caitlin Clark 1st271stYes
2023-24 Caitlin Clark 1st32.61stYes
2024-25 JuJu Watkins 1st24.42ndYes


Betts is currently 12th in the league in scoring in BIG games:


BIG PlayBIG PlayBIG Play
season Player PPG RANKPTS WinSharesBIG POY
2025-26 Jaloni Cambridge 1st26.42nd?
2025-26 Olivia Olson 6th20.13rd?
2025-26 Lauren Betts 12th17.85th?
2025-26 Kiki Rice23rd14.31st?

Last year, Betts was 2nd in BIG-games scoring, and 1st in WinShares.
 
BigTenGuy said:
I would guess a 3-horse race: Cambridge, Olson and Betts, and perhaps a split BIG media and coaches vote. Barring a strong statistical finish, Betts would be an unusual choice by recent standards. Since Maryland joined the BIG, there have been 13 BIG POYs (2 shared awards), with all POY winners being in the top 3 in scoring in conference play.


BIG PlayBIG PlayBIG Play
seasonPlayerPPG RANKPTSWinSharesBIG POY
2014-15Kelsey Mitchell1st24.53rdYes
2014-15Amanda Zahui B.3rd20.72ndYes
2015-16Rachel Banham1st30.35thYes
2016-17Kelsey Mitchell1st23.54thYes
2017-18Megan Gustafson1st28.11stYes
2017-18Kelsey Mitchell3rd23.73rdYes
2018-19Megan Gustafson1st28.91stYes
2019-20Kathleen Doyle3rd19.65thYes
2020-21Naz Hillmon2nd25.25thYes
2021-22Caitlin Clark1st28.71stYes
2022-23Caitlin Clark1st271stYes
2023-24Caitlin Clark1st32.61stYes
2024-25JuJu Watkins1st24.42ndYes


Betts is currently 12th in the league in scoring in BIG games:


BIG PlayBIG PlayBIG Play
seasonPlayerPPG RANKPTSWinSharesBIG POY
2025-26Jaloni Cambridge1st26.42nd?
2025-26Olivia Olson6th20.13rd?
2025-26Lauren Betts12th17.85th?
2025-26Kiki Rice23rd14.31st?

Last year, Betts was 2nd in BIG-games scoring, and 1st in WinShares.
Expand ...
Wow I didn’t realize Cambridge’s B1G numbers were so high. Great insight.
 
BigTenGuy said:
I would guess a 3-horse race: Cambridge, Olson and Betts, and perhaps a split BIG media and coaches vote. Barring a strong statistical finish, Betts would be an unusual choice by recent standards. Since Maryland joined the BIG, there have been 13 BIG POYs (2 shared awards), with all POY winners being in the top 3 in scoring in conferen


BIG PlayBIG PlayBIG Play
seasonPlayerPPG RANKPTSWinSharesBIG POY
2014-15Kelsey Mitchell1st24.53rdYes
2014-15Amanda Zahui B.3rd20.72ndYes
2015-16Rachel Banham1st30.35thYes
2016-17Kelsey Mitchell1st23.54thYes
2017-18Megan Gustafson1st28.11stYes
2017-18Kelsey Mitchell3rd23.73rdYes
2018-19Megan Gustafson1st28.91stYes
2019-20Kathleen Doyle3rd19.65thYes
2020-21Naz Hillmon2nd25.25thYes
2021-22Caitlin Clark1st28.71stYes
2022-23Caitlin Clark1st271stYes
2023-24Caitlin Clark1st32.61stYes
2024-25JuJu Watkins1st24.42ndYes


Betts is currently 12th in the league in scoring in BIG games:


BIG PlayBIG PlayBIG Play
seasonPlayerPPG RANKPTSWinSharesBIG POY
2025-26Jaloni Cambridge1st26.42nd?
2025-26Olivia Olson6th20.13rd?
2025-26Lauren Betts12th17.85th?
2025-26Kiki Rice23rd14.31st?

Last year, Betts was 2nd in BIG-games scoring, and 1st in WinShares.
Expand ...
But, they’re was not a team that went undefeated in the conference play during any of those listed years

That could change the recent standards if UCLA continues its run
 
This really comes down to: do you reward the best individual season or the best player on the best team?

Historically, the voters have leaned toward the top scorer, but this year feels different. I wouldn’t be surprised if they go with Betts, rewarding her impact on the best team rather than pure scoring output.

When Maryland first joined the Big Ten and was dominating the league, they somehow never produced a Player of the Year. That’s despite having more than a few deserving candidates — Bri Jones and Shatori Walker-Kimbrough among them. Team success alone clearly wasn’t enough back then.

So if the criteria is shifting now, it raises the question: what actually matters most to the voters, and why does it seem to change depending on the year?
 
.-.
GoChips20 said:
This is what I think happens as well.

I’ll say this for Cambridge: she’s doing more to lift her team than Hannah Hidalgo in a much tougher conference, and not sure I’d say she has a talent advantage to work with.

(I think Hidalgo is a top 5 player FWIW)
Expand ...
Cambridge also has a better supporting cast than Hidalgo.
 
GoChips20 said:
This is what I think happens as well.

I’ll say this for Cambridge: she’s doing more to lift her team than Hannah Hidalgo in a much tougher conference, and not sure I’d say she has a talent advantage to work with.

(I think Hidalgo is a top 5 player FWIW)
Expand ...
I agree. I think that Notre Dame would be a team well below 0.500 in the B1G.
 
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