Rutgers women’s basketball stars Kaylene Smikle and Chyna Cornwell both earned All-Big Ten postseason honors. An announcement was made official on Tuesday by the Big Ten and Rutgers Athletics.
According to the Press Release: “Smikle was named to the All-Freshman Team (media & coaches) as well as the All-Big Ten Second Team (media & coaches). Cornwell was selected as an Honorable Mention (media) as well as Rutgers Big Ten Sportsmanship Award recipient.
“Smikle is the first player in program history to earn a spot on the All-Big Ten Second Team and the All-Freshman team in the same season. She is the first Second Team pick since 2021 (Diamond Johnson) and first All-Freshman selection since 2014 (Tyler Scaife).
“Cornwell’s Honorable mention is the first conference postseason award of her career. She is the 10th player in program history to take home the honor. RU has now earned an Honorable Mention (media) in eight consecutive seasons dating back to 2015.”
Smikle leads Rutgers and freshman in the Big Ten with 17.5 points per game in addition to averaging 19.5 points in conference play. She is the only Scarlet Knight to net 20+ points in a game this season and has accomplished the feat 13 times.
Cornwell leads the team with eight double-doubles, including three in Big Ten Play. Cornwell leads the Scarlet Knights off the boards, with 8.4 rebounds per game to rank third in the Big Ten.
Rutgers will face Northwestern tomorrow afternoon in the second game of the Big Ten Tournament opening round. The tournament tips-off with a battle between Minnesota and Penn State at 2 p.m. ET.