Whether you call her the “Cookie Monster” or “Steals Queen”, Helena Pueyo is finally getting her flowers. After five years at Arizona, including a trip to the NCAA National Championship game in 2021, Helena Pueyo is an All-Pac-12 and All-Defensive Team selection.
It marks the second time the Spaniard has earned All-Defensive Team honors, and the first time she has been named to the All-Pac-12 Team. This season, the fifth-year senior averaged 8.9 points, 3.7 rebounds, and 3.5 assists in a team-high 36.4 minutes per game. She also averaged 3.1 steals per game, which leads the Pac-12. Pueyo currently ranks second in Arizona history with 294 career steals, behind only Dee-Dee Wheeler’s 304. That mark puts her at seventh in Pac-12 history.
Four other Wildcats took home Pac-12 Women’s Basketball All-Conference Honors, including Esmery Martinez, Jada Williams, Breya Cunningham, and Skylar Jones.
Fellow fifth-year senior Esmery Martinez garnered an All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention and All-Defensive Honorable Mention. It marks back-to-back seasons that Martinez is an All-Pac-12 Honorable Mention. The Dominican is averaging 11.2 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game this season. Her 1.8 steals per game are currently fifth-best in the league.
Point guard Jada Williams took home All-Freshman Team honors. Willams leads Arizona’s freshmen in scoring, averaging 9.5 points per game, along with 1.7 rebounds, and 2.4 assists per game. She is also the team’s leading free throw shooter, hitting 84.9 percent of her shots from the charity stripe. Williams, who is quickly emerging as a leader for Arizona, is the first Wildcat freshman to receive Pac-12 Women’s Basketball All-Conference Honors since the 2018-19 season, when Cate Reese was named to the All-Freshman team.
Freshmen Breya Cunningham and Skylar Jones each took home All-Freshman Honorable Mention awards as well. Even battling foul trouble, Cunningham played very efficiently for the Wildcats in 20.9 minutes per game this season. She is averaging 7.5 points, 4.6 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game – good for fourth in the conference. Following an injury to former Arizona guard Kailyn Gilbert, Jones emerged into the starting lineup. Even after Gilbert returned, Jones never relinquished her starting role, starting the final 11 games of the season for the Wildcats. The 6’0″ freshman is averaging 6.0 points, 2.0 rebounds, and 1.1 assist per game, while shooting an impressive 47.6 percent from the field.
Adia Barnes and the Wildcats arrived in Las Vegas on Tuesday ahead of the final Pac-12 Women’s Basketball Tournament. Seventh-seeded Arizona will face 10th-seeded Washington in a rubber match on Wednesday, March 6, at 7:00 PM MST at the MGM Grand Garden Arena.