2021/22 WEABL Awards – Individual honours announced
- Updated: March 29, 2022
After yesterday’s release of the WEABL All-Conference First and Second teams, individual players and coaches have now been honoured from across the league.
Selected by the teams themselves, programmes were able to nominate their own players for respective awards to draw up an initial shortlist, which was then voted on to finalise this year’s winners.
MVP
It’s back to back WEABL MVP awards for Whitehouse after the Sheffield guard picked up this honour in 2019/20.
With no play in 2020/21 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Whitehouse showed that she hasn’t lost a step despite the break, recording a team-high 15.4PPG to go with 13.4RPG.
Her performances allowed Sheffield to seal a third-place finish in a competitive Northern conference.
Upon receiving the award, Whitehouse said: “I’m grateful for the recognition by the WEABL to receive this award and the opportunity to play this year.
“It’s been an exciting season with tough competition from all the teams throughout. I’m proud of how much our team has grown and developed throughout the year and it’s been a pleasure being a part of this journey with all of them.”
With CoLA going unbeaten throughout the regular season, it’s no surprise that the London programme have contributed this season’s Southern conference MVP.
Forward Isi Ozzy Momodu has been impressive throughout,
averaging a double-double of 11.9PPG and 10.4RPG. Her efforts were also good for a top ten spot in the league’s efficiency charts, closing with a score of 15.7.
Coach of the Year
The Sheffield College can celebrate a pair of awards this year, with Whitehouse being joined by Coach of the Year winner Will Hopper.
Hopper of course has overseen the development of his young guard to another MVP campaign, with Jasmine Graham also winning the conference’s Most Improved Player award.
On court, Sheffield went 4-4 and narrowly missing out on second spot as they were edged out by Charnwood via a tiebreaker.
Given his history in the WEABL, this winner will come as no surprise.
Taking his fifth award in the last six years (15/16, 16/17, 18/19, 19/20, 21/22), CoLA Jackson Gibbons has continued his streak as one of the most well respected developers of young players in the country.
Going a perfect 12-0 across the regular season, Gibbons has overseen the growth of players like MVP Isi Ozzy-Momodu, plus All-Conference 1st teamer Funmi Amode and 2nd team selection Molly Lavin.
Defensive Player of the Year
There’s further recognition for Ozzy-Momodu as the CoLA standout has also been earmarked as the Southern conference’s Defensive Player of the Year, with Derby’s Vanessa Obanor getting the nod in the North.
The 6’2″ CoLA forward pulled down 4.6 defensive rebounds per game this season (10.4RPG total), anchoring a defence that allowed just 36.4 points per game.
Obanor only started playing basketball in the last few years but has made an immediate impact at this level, with 9.4 defensive rebounds per game (14.9RPG total), 1.6SPG and 2.0BPG.
Most Improved Player
Sheffield go back for another helping of awards, this time picking up MIP honours thanks to Jasmine Graham, whilst JMA’s Jessie Ford is the coaches’ choice in the South.
Graham developed an effective one-two punch with MVP Whitehouse, pushing Sheffield to a .500 record on the season. She enjoyed a well-rounded stat line of 12.6PPG, 7.0RPG and 1.6SPG.
Although JMA would miss the post season, third year standout Ford came on significantly throughout the campaign. Dropping 12.8PPG to go with 5.8RPG across 12 games, the forward’s development clearly caught the eye of rival coaches across the conference.
U17 Player of the Year
Awarded to the best Year 12 players from across the league, Charnwood’s Erin Powell and Barking’s Fatmata Janneh have both been recognised.
Janneh has been a multi-competition star across the WEABL and WNBL this season, with her Academy numbers of 22.6PPG and 11.6RPG standing out for obvious reasons.
Powell is another player that has started this stage of her basketball journey in impressive fashion, with the first year forward averaging a useful 10.3PPG and 13.0RPG for the Riders.
The WEABL playoff final between Nottingham Academy Wildcats and City of London Academy will take place at Manchester’s National Basketball Performance Centre tomorrow, with a 2:30pm tip.
The event is free to enter but fans are required to make sure they have a ticket for capacity reasons.
Tickets can be purchased by clicking HERE
The game will also be live on the Basketball England YouTube channel, which can be viewed by clicking HERE.
