{"id":182227,"date":"2026-04-01T15:10:16","date_gmt":"2026-04-01T15:10:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/182227\/"},"modified":"2026-04-01T15:10:16","modified_gmt":"2026-04-01T15:10:16","slug":"brooklyn-meyer-named-2026-becky-hammon-mid-major-player-of-the-year","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/182227\/","title":{"rendered":"Brooklyn Meyer Named 2026 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Presented<\/a><\/p>\n

Thanks for reading the Her Hoop Stats newsletter. We\u2019re excited to announce our partnership with <\/a>Hudl<\/a>. Hudl\u2019s industry-leading tools – Sportscode, Instat, and Fastmodel – elevate the preparation, performance, and player development of WNBA and NCAA teams.<\/p>\n

HOPEWELL, N.J. (April 1, 2026) \u2014 Her Hoop Stats is proud to announce that South Dakota State senior forward Brooklyn Meyer has been named the 2026 Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year presented by Her Hoop Stats. The award, which is in its seventh season, recognizes the best mid-major player in the country.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a>Photo Credits: South Dakota State Athletics | Graphic Credit: Morgan Reeder<\/p>\n

The Larchwood, Iowa, native caps off her Jackrabbits career with one of the most dominant seasons in program history, carrying on the tradition of elite post play in Brookings. She led South Dakota State to a fourth consecutive NCAA Tournament, securing a No. 11 seed, where the senior forward put up 29 points and seven boards on just 20 attempts from the floor in an opening-round loss to Washington.<\/p>\n

Meyer\u2019s 22.6 points per game this season is the second-highest mark in program history and the highest in the school\u2019s Division I era. For the second season in a row, she broke the Jackrabbits\u2019 Division I era record for field goal percentage, finishing this season with an elite 64.6% on more than 13 attempts per game.<\/p>\n

Meyer ranks third in program history in career points (2,097), fifth in career rebounds (850), and is tied for second in career blocks (174). Her career field goal percentage of 60.9% comfortably sets the overall program record, finishing more than three percentage points higher than the previous high and more than seven points higher than the previous Division I-era best.<\/p>\n

To be eligible for this award, players must compete in one of the 26 conferences deemed to be \u201cmid-major.\u201d The following conferences are considered high-major for the purposes of this award and thus ineligible: ACC, Big 12, Big East, Big Ten, and SEC. Additionally, players from Oregon State and Washington State remained ineligible this year.<\/p>\n

The 25-player preseason watch list was announced<\/a> in October, with the 15-player midseason watch list announced<\/a> in January. The 10 semifinalists were announced<\/a> in February, and five finalists were announced<\/a> in March. The list is fluid, and players could play their way on or off it over the course of the season.<\/p>\n

Hammon was a three-time All-American at Colorado State and led the Rams to the Sweet 16 in 1999, the program\u2019s only appearance to date. She was signed by the New York Liberty in 1999 and traded to the San Antonio Stars in 2007, where she played the rest of her career. Hammon retired in 2014 as a six-time All-Star and a two-time All-WNBA First Team honoree. In 2016, she was named one of the top 20 players in WNBA history and was named to the W25 in 2021.<\/p>\n

Hammon became the second female coach in NBA history when she began coaching for the San Antonio Spurs in 2014. Additionally, Hammon is the only woman to be a head coach in the NBA Summer League and the only woman to be a member of an NBA All-Star coaching staff. Currently, Hammon is the head coach of the Las Vegas Aces and has won the 2022, 2023 and 2025 WNBA Championships.<\/p>\n

Her Hoop Stats<\/a> was founded in 2017 to unlock better insight about women\u2019s basketball at all levels. We began as a statistics site focused on providing consistent, reliable, and easy-to-access data about women\u2019s basketball for both mobile and desktop environments. Her Hoop Stats has expanded to become a leading independent voice in the women\u2019s game, providing content through our newsletter<\/a>, podcast network<\/a>, YouTube channel<\/a>, and social media accounts (Twitter<\/a>, Bluesky<\/a>, Facebook<\/a>, Instagram<\/a>).<\/p>\n

Thanks for reading the Her Hoop Stats Newsletter. If you like our work, be sure to check out our stats site<\/a>, our podcast<\/a>, and our social media accounts on Twitter<\/a>, YouTube<\/a>, Facebook<\/a>, and Instagram<\/a>.<\/p>\n