CONWAY, S.C. (theACC.com) – Syracuse senior guard Alexis Peterson has been selected as the 2016-17 Atlantic Coast Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Year by the league’s Blue Ribbon Panel.

Georgia Tech’s Francesca Pan was selected the ACC Freshman of the Year, while NC State’s Wes Moore earned ACC Coach of the Year honors.

In addition, Notre Dame junior forward Brianna Turner has been voted the Atlantic Coast Conference Women’s Basketball Defensive Player of the Year by the league’s 15 head coaches for the second consecutive season, while Florida State junior center Chatrice White received Sixth Player of the Year honors.

The ACC individual awards were announced in conjunction with the start of the 2017 ACC Women’s Basketball Tournament, which tips off later today at the HTC Center.

The ACC’s leading scorer at 23.6 points per game, Peterson has led Syracuse to a 20-9 record and a No. 21 national ranking. The Columbus, Ohio, native ranks among the top five in almost every Syracuse career offensive statistical category. The 5-foot-7 guard is a Nancy Lieberman Award finalist and has been named to the Ann Meyers Drysdale Award, Naismith Trophy, Dawn Staley Award, Wade Trophy, and John R. Wooden Award watch lists. 

Named the ACC Player of the Week a school-record four times, Peterson averaged 7.2 assists and 3.1 steals per game during the 2016-17 regular season. She has set the Syracuse single-season scoring record with 683 points heading into the ACC Tournament, and her standout performances included a 45-point explosion versus NC State that set a school single-game record and stands as the Carrier Dome’s top mark – by a man or a woman.   

Georgia Tech’s Pan ranks second on her team in scoring with an 11.0 ppg average that leads all ACC freshmen this season. She has recorded five 20-plus point games, including a career-high 25 points versus Dayton in the Junkanoo Jam in November where she was named Tournament MVP. 

In conference only games, the Italian native averaged 11.3 ppg to lead all freshmen and ranks 29th amongst all scorers in the ACC. Currently on a five-game streak scoring in double-figures, Pan has scored 20-plus points three times in the last five games. On the season, Pan has recorded 15 games scoring in double-figures and has started 27 of the 28 games in which she has appeared. Pan garnered ACC Rookie of the Week recognition five times, becoming the first Yellow Jacket since the 2010-11 season to earn five weekly honors. 

NC State’s Moore has guided the Wolfpack to a 22-7 overall record and a 12-4 mark in conference play that netted the No. 4 seed in the ACC Tournament. NC State’s 12 ACC wins are the most achieved by the program since the team went 12-4 in league play during the 1997-98 season, the same year of the program's first trip to the Final Four.

Moore guided the Wolfpack to wins over four teams ranked among the nation’s top 15 during the regular season, including victories over top-10 conference opponents Notre Dame, Florida State and Louisville. NC State, which was tabbed for a seventh-place ACC finish by both the league’s Blue Ribbon panel and head coaches in their preseason polls, heads into the ACC Tournament ranked No. 17 nationally. The ACC Coach of the Year honor is the first for Moore, who owns an 85-40 record in four seasons with the Wolfpack and a 643-210 mark in 28 years as a collegiate head coach. 

The 6-foot-3 Turner has again been an intimidating force for a Fighting Irish defensive unit that enters the ACC Tournament having limited opponents to .389 shooting from the field and just under 61 points per game. The Pearland, Texas, native leads the ACC with 77 blocked shots and has made 25 steals while pulling down 7.4 rebounds per game.

Named the ACC Player of the Week on Dec. 12, Turner stands 11th in league history with 254 career blocked shots.

White, who has come off the bench in 28 of the Seminoles’ 30 games, averaged 8.6 points and 5.3 rebounds during the regular season. The 6-foot-3 Shelby, Nebraska, native and University of Illinois transfer has blocked 42 shots. At the offensive end, White is shooting a shade less than 51 percent and has made than 79 percent of their free throw attempts.

With White’s selection, Florida State has claimed ACC Sixth Player of the Year honors four of the past five seasons. Shakayla Thomas received the nod last year and in 2015, and Chasity Clayton was the choice in 2013.

ACC Player of the Year: Alexis Peterson, Sr., G, Syracuse

ACC Freshman of the Year: Francesca Pan, Fr., G, Georgia Tech 

ACC Coach of the Year: Wes Moore, NC State

Defensive Player of the Year: Brianna Turner, Jr., F, Notre Dame

Sixth Player of the Year: Chatrice White, Jr., C, Florida State