Rayah Marshall named a Naismith Defensive Player of the Year semifinalist

USC sophomore Rayah Marshall was named a semifinalist for the Naismith DPOY award.

The USC Trojans women’s basketball team is heading into the Pac-12 Tournament all but locked into the field of 68. A couple of wins this week will improve their seed, and the turnaround from Londay Gottlieb’s team has been fantastic.

One bright spot has been Rayah Marshall, who was named as a Naismith Women’s College Defensive Player of the Year semifinalist in what has been a strong season for her.

Here is the full list of semifinalists:

  • Brea Beal, South Carolina
  • Aliyah Boston, South Carolina
  • Cameron Brink, Stanford
  • Brooke Flowers, St. Louis
  • Taiyanna Jackson, Kansas
  • Elizabeth Kitley, Virginia Tech
  • Aneesah Morrow, DePaul
  • Angel Reese, LSU
  • Celeste Taylor, Duke

Marshall has been terrific all season for USC. She is averaging 12.5 PPG with 8.9 rebounds. She is only a sophomore, too.

The Trojans begin the Pac-12 Tournament with a game Wednesday night against the Oregon State Beavers, and while that’s usually a good matchup, the Beavers just stunned Arizona on Saturday night to finish out the regular season.

If Marshall plays well over the Pac-12 Tournament and the NCAA Tournament, she could end up as a finalist for this award.

Here’s an example of how active Marshall is on the defensive end.

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