LAS VEGAS (UNLVRebels.com) – UNLV women's basketball senior center Desi-Rae Young is one of the top-10 finalists for the 2024 Lisa Leslie Center of the Year Award, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame and the Women's Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) announced Friday.
 
Named after Leslie, who was a three-time All-American, 1994 National Player of the Year and Class of 2015 Hall of Famer, the annual award recognizes the top center in women's NCAA Division I college basketball.

👀𝑫𝑬𝑺𝑰-𝑹𝑨𝑬 𝒀𝑶𝑼𝑵𝑮 is a top-🔟 canidate for the 2024 @LisaLeslie award !!! 

🔗: https://t.co/bOTDLDTF9Y pic.twitter.com/Yh5BDD8tpv
— UNLV Lady Rebels (@UNLVLadyRebels) January 26, 2024
  

The Las Vegas native is the only Mountain West player on the list and is one of four players on the West Coast. She was selected to the 20-member preseason Lisa Leslie watch list and was just named to the 15-member midseason 2024 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year watch list. Young is a three-time All-MW honoree, the 2021 MW Freshman of the Year, the 2022 MW Player of the Year and the 2023 MW Championship MVP.
 
This season, Young leads the Lady Rebels averaging nearly a double-double of 19.9 points per game and 9.4 rebounds per game and has been named MW Player of the Week three times this season. She reached the 100^th career game and start mark in a Lady Rebels' uniform and has hit the 1,500 career point milestone. In MW play, she currently leads the conference in rebounds (10.43 per game), ranks second in scoring (23.29 per game) and field goal percentage (.625). Nationally, she ranks tied for 24^th in points per game (19.9), 30^th in field goal percentage (.565) and 41^st in rebounds per game (9.4).
 
Fans are encouraged to participate in Fan Voting, presented by Dell Technologies in the remaining rounds for the Lisa Leslie Award beginning today. For more information and to vote, click here.
 
In March, the five finalists will be presented to Leslie and the Hall of Fame's selection committee, where a winner will be selected. The winner of the 2024 Lisa Leslie Award will be presented on a to be determined date, along with the other four members of the Women's Starting Five.