ATLANTA -- Texas sophomore T.J. Ford and Connecticut junior Diana Taurasi won the Naismith Awards on Monday as the top college basketball players in the country.

Ford, a 5-foot-10 guard, leads the Longhorns in scoring (15), assists (7.4), and steals (1.96) per game. Last year, he was the first freshman in NCAA history to lead the nation in assists with 8.27 per game. He ranks second on Texas' all-time career assist list with 495.

"My teammates should share in this honor, as none of our program's success would be possible without them,'' Ford said. "This honor means a lot to me. When I took a look at the list of names who have won the award in the past, I was humbled. It does show that hard work pays off.''

Taurasi, a 6-foot guard, leads the Huskies with 16.5 points, 4.7 assists and 1.2 blocks per game this season. She is 12th on UConn's all-time scoring list with 1,452 points.

The Naismith Awards, in their 35th year, honor basketball's inventor -- Dr. James Naismith. The awards program was founded by the Atlanta Tipoff Club.

Past winners include Michael Jordan (1984), Larry Johnson (1991) and Tim Duncan (1997).