Tina Charles was named the Big East Player of the Year, unseating her teammate and close friend Maya Moore, who won the award as a freshman and sophomore.

Moore earned the women's basketball scholar-athlete of the year award, normally reserved for seniors while UConn coach Geno Auriemma earned the Big East coach of the year for the third straight time and ninth overall. West Virginia's Mike Carey shared the conference coach of the year award with Auriemma while Georgetown's Sugar Rodgers was named the Big East Freshman of the Year.

"It definitely means a lot just with what I've went through and how I have had to grow, it was all worth it," said Charles, who enters the Big East tournament with 2,184 points and 1,272 rebounds.

Moore won the award in each of the last two seasons, becoming the first freshman - either men's or women's - to be named the Big East Player of the Year back in 2008. She won the honor again last season and had a season worthy of making it a 3-peat if not for the brilliant season enjoyed by Charles.

"Maya certainly hasn't played any less outstanding than she did the first two years and certainly hasn't done anything to say 'OK, she shouldn't be player of the year," Auriemma said. "The difference is that the two years previous Maya just overwhelmed the league and everybodfy and this year Tina took over that role."