Alissa Pili, Lynne Roberts earn top Pac-12 honors

SALT LAKE CITY (ABC4 Sports) – Utah forward Alissa Pili and head coach Lynne Roberts earned the top Pac-12 awards Tuesday.

Pili was named the Pac-12 Player of the Year, while Roberts took home Coach of the Year honors.

Pili was also named to the All-Pac-12 team along with sophomore guard Gianna Kneepkens. Kennady McQueen and Jenna Johnson were each named as Honorable Mentions. 

Roberts is the first Utah coach to earn COTY in the Pac-12. Roberts is in her eighth season at the helm of the Utes and has led Utah to its first ever Pac-12 regular season title. She’s led the Utes to a 25-3 overall record and a 15-3 record in Pac-12 action. She has also led Utah to the highest AP rankings in school history as the Utes currently sit at No. 3 and have been ranked in the Top 10 for nine consecutive weeks. 

Pili has appeared in 27 of 28 games for the Utes and started in 26. She currently leads the Pac-12 in scoring averaging 20.6 points per game. She also leads the conference in field goal percentage (59.9) and total made field goals (223). She has scored 20 or more points in 16 different games highlighted by a season high of 30 at Oregon. 

This is the second time in her career Kneepkens has earned All-Pac-12 team honors, after being named Freshman of the Year in 2021-22. This season Kneepkens is second in the Pac-12 in three point percentage (41.6%) and third with made three pointers (62). She averages 15.3 points per game and is shooting 50.2 percent from the field and 82.8 percent from the free throw line. She also averages five rebounds per game and has amassed 61 assists. She’s scored 20 or more points six times this season. 

McQueen has been a Pac-12 honorable mention twice in her career. She ranks fifth in the Pac-12 in three point percentage with 38.1 percent. She’s averaging 9.4 points per game and 3.5 rebounds per game. McQueen has made appearances in all 28 games for the Utes. She’s scored in double-figures 10 different times. 

This is the second Pac-12 honor for Johnson as she was named to the Pac-12 All-Freshman team in 2021-22. Johnson has appeared and started in all 28 games for the Utes. She is currently averaging 12.2 points per game and shooting .496 from the field, .290 from the three and .780 from the free throw line. She’s averaging 5.1 points per game and has 70 assists on the season. 
 
Utah hits the road to Las Vegas, Nev., for the Pac-12 Tournament. Utah enters the tournament as the No. 2 seed and is slated to play Thursday, March 2, at 7 p.m. MT. The Utes will take on the winner of a first-round game between No. 7 Washington State and No. 10 California.