ATLANTA, GA -- Texas A&M women’s basketball player Takia Starks is among 31 midseason candidates vying for the 2008 Naismith Trophy presented by AT&T as announced by the Atlanta Tipoff Club.

The Houston native is averaging a team-leading 17.4 points per game for the nationally-ranked Aggies which ranks third-best among Big 12 Conference scoring leaders. Starks, a 5-foot-8 junior guard, currently ranks seventh all-time in the A&M record books with 1,183 career points. A preseason All-Big 12 selection, she is the cousin of former NBA all-star John Starks.

The women’s list, which includes 31 candidates because of a tie, was voted on by the Atlanta Tipoff Club’s Board of Selectors which is comprised of leading basketball journalists, coaches and administrators from around the country. The board based its criteria on player performances this season, and the list was narrowed down from the preseason list of 50 candidates who were announced at the beginning of the 2007-08 season.

Once again, AT&T will give fans an unprecedented voice in selecting the winner. Fan voting, through the power and ease of text messaging, will account for 25 percent of the selection process. This program sets the standard in college athletics for integrating fans into the voting process and providing them with more input than with any other major collegiate sports award.

Fans will be eligible to cast their vote for the winner until April 5. AT&T is opening up voting to other wireless carriers allowing even more fans to participate. Other wireless carriers must opt-in for their subscribers to participate. The women’s Naismith Trophy winner will be announced at the 2008 NCAA Women’s Final Four on April 7 in Tampa, Fla.