The early accolade follows up the coaches' thinking last season when both of the standout DePaul guards were voted onto the All-BIG EAST First Team.
The coaches' preseason ballot also tabbed the Blue Demons for a second-place finish behind powerful Connecticut who is ranked No. 1 in the country in three preseason national polls and No. 2 in a fourth.
Morris led the Blue Demons in scoring last season averaging 19.3 points a game to rank third in the BIG EAST while her 18 point-average in league play was fourth. She was a unanimous preseason selection.
Held is the reigning BIG EAST Scholar-Athlete of the Year and is the BIG EAST's active career scoring leader with nearly 700 points in 50 BIG EAST games. She ranked eighth in both overall scoring (16.6) and in BIG EAST play (17.3) while leading the conference in steals with more than three per game.
Held finished the 2020-21 season fifth in the nation in steals with 75 while Morris was No. 11 in free throw percentage at .883.
Both became 1,000-point career scorers before concluding their junior years, and both are nominees for the prestigious Naismith Trophy Watch List this season.
UConn will take aim at a 12th national championship behind dynamic Paige Bueckers---unanimous choice as the BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year.
Bueckers made history last season as the first freshman to win the Wooden Award, Naismith Trophy, AP National Player of the Year, USBWA National Player of the Year and Nancy Lieberman Award. She was named the 2021 BIG EAST Player and Freshman of the Year and the BIG EAST Tournament Most Outstanding Player.
The dominant sophomore point guard led UConn with 20.0 points, 5.8 assists and 2.3 steals per game as well as a 46.4 field goal percentage behind the arc. She set BIG EAST freshman records for total field goals made (128), season three-point percentage (.500) and single-game assists (14).
As if that wasn't already enough, UConn coach Geno Auriemma doubled down by signing Bueckers' potential successor as the league's Freshman of the Year, Azzi Fudd. The newest Husky and No. 1 recruit in the nation last season is the coaches' unanimous pick as BIG EAST Preseason Freshman of the Year.
UConn and DePaul were the only schools returning all five starters, and it's no surprise they were picked No. 1 and No. 2 by the league's coaches who put a premium on college basketball experience.
Auriemma's juggernaut will feature Bueckers and a formidable supporting cast of Preseason All-BIG EAST selections Christyn Williams (unanimous), 6-foot, 5-inch Olivia Nelson-Ododa and 6-3 Aailyah Edwards. The Huskies list four players on their roster who stand 6-5.
The Blue Demons will back Held and Morris with returning guards Deja Church (13.3 points a game), Dee Bekelja (12.5) and 6-1 returning forward Jorie Allen.
BIG EAST All-Freshman Team guard Darrione Rogers is poised for a breakout season and could crack the starting lineup along with one of coach Doug Bruno's most talented recruits in recent years, 6-1 Aneesah Morrow of 2020 state champion Simeon who averaged 28.4 points and 14.3 rebounds and was ranked the nation's No. 20 recruit by MaxPreps and No. 45 by Prospects Nation.
More timely contributions could come from former Drake point guard Kierra Collier who is awaiting an NCAA transfer waiver, sophomore guard Kendall Holmes who missed the last 15 games with an injury and promising 6-3 forward Kaitlyn Ammons, West Virginia's top recruit last season.
Rogers and Morrow provide the Blue Demons with dynamic, difference-making recruits in back-to-back years.
Picked to finish third, Seton Hall returns three starters led by All-BIG EAST First Team performers Lauren Park-Lane and Andra Espinoza-Hunter.
Marquette was the BIG EAST runner-up last season while earning an NCAA tournament at-large berth. The Golden Eagles welcome back three starters led by All-Big EAST Second Team honoree Lauren Van Kleunen. The lineup will get an immediate boost from All-Big Ten First Team transfer Karissa McLaughlin from Purdue.
Two other teams to watch according to the league's coaches are Villanova and Creighton. Villanova features BIG EAST scoring and rebounding champion Maddy Siegrist who was also a finalist for the Katrina McClain Award after averaging 22.8 points and 9.8 rebounds per game.
Creighton was the No. 6 seed in last season's BIG EAST tournament but upset No. 3 Seton Hall in the quarterfinals. Leading the way for the Bluejays in 2021-22 is sophomore Emma Ronsiek.
Despite being picked seventh, keep an eye on a St. John's team whose four returning starters are led by unanimous Preseason All-BIG EAST guard Leilani Correa and will be bolstered by a pair of impact transfers in Notre Dame's Danielle Cosgrove and Indiana's Danielle Patterson.
BIG EAST Preseason Coaches' Poll
1. Connecticut (10) 100 points
2. DePaul (1) 90
3. Seton Hall 80
4. Marquette 74
5. Villanova 62
6. Creighton 54
7. St. John's 51
8. Providence 32
9. Georgetown 27
10. Xavier 18
11. Butler 17
(First-place votes)
BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year
Paige Bueckers, UConn, So., G*
BIG EAST Preseason Freshman of the Year
Azzi Fudd, UConn, Fr., G*
Preseason All-BIG EAST Team
Christyn Williams, UConn, Sr., G*
Olivia Nelson-Ododa, UConn, Sr., F
Aailyah Edwards, UConn, So., F
Sonya Morris, DePaul, Sr., G*
Lexi Held, DePaul, Sr., G
Lauren Van Kleunen, Marquette, Grad., F
Leilani Correa, St. John's, Jr., G*
Andra Espinoza-Hunter, Seton Hall, Grad., G/F
Lauren Park-Lane, Seton Hall, Jr., G*
Maddy Siegrist, Villanova, Jr., F*
(*unanimous selection)
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October 19, 2021 at 10:30PM
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Morris, Held Repeat on Preseason All-BIG EAST Team - DePaul Blue Demons
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