Wooden Award Luncheon kicks off 2025-2026 college basketball season

LOS ANGELES, CA -- Each year, the John R. Wooden Award is presented to the most outstanding men's and women's college basketball players who have shown impacts on and off the court, plus high academic achievements. 

Before the announcement of the new Wooden Award winners for this upcoming season, college programs from across Southern California came together to kick off the 2025-2025 basketball season with the Wooden Award Luncheon. Programs in attendance included UCLA men’s basketball coach Mike Cronin, UCLA women’s basketball coach Cori Close, USC women’s basketball coach Lindsay Gottlieb as well as many of the men’s and women’s basketball coaches at San Diego State, UC Irvine, UC San Diego, UC Riverside, UC Santa Barbara, Cal State Fullerton, Long Beach State, LMU, Pepperdine, CSUN, USD, Cal Baptist University, Cal Poly SLO and Cal State Bakersfield. 

The women's college programs were the first to kick off the Luncheon during the breakfast portion, and expressed their eagerness to begin the upcoming basketball season. USC women’s basketball coach Lindsay Gottlieb expressed her praise of the Wooden Award Luncheon and how meaningful it is to the women's Southern California basketball community to be a part of such a prestigious event. 

"It's just an honor to be a part of something with your family's name on it, the legacy, and just really proud to represent USC," Coach Gottlieb said. 

The Luncheon also included the announcement of the 2026 John R. Wooden Award Legends of Coaching Recipient, Purdue Head Coach Matt Painter. 

The "Legends of Coaching" honor recognizes coaches who exemplify Coach Wooden's high standard of coaching success and personal integrity. The award, established by the Wooden Award Board in 1999, selects honorees based on character, success on the court, graduation rates of student-athletes in their basketball programs, coaching philosophy, and alignment with the goals of the John R. Wooden Award. 

UCLA men's basketball Head Coach Mick Cronin also spoke to the media after the Luncheon concluded and gave his insight on how his Bruins will fare for the 2025-2026 season, especially with the new faces on the court.

"To have the best team, you have to have the best players. It's hard to have the best players if you're young," Coach Cronin said. "We're older by design; hopefully that's going to help us."