Clara Strack Named One of Five Ann Meyers Drysdale National Players of the Week
INDIANAPOLIS (USBWA) – Clara Strack has been named one of five Ann Meyers Drysdale National Players of the Week, it was announced by the USBWA on Tuesday.
Strack, University of Kentucky women’s basketball sophomore center, guided her team to 2-0 record at the Music City Classic in Nashville, Tennessee, last week, being crowned Most Valuable Player, among the six teams in the field, for her efforts.
She scored a career-high 24 points against Arizona State last Tuesday, adding 10 rebounds, three blocks and two assists. The 6-5 post player went 2-of-3 from the arc in that game, which marked her career high. Then, on her 19th birthday against No. 19/19 Illinois last Wednesday, she, once again, scored a career-high 25 points on 12-of-18 from the field. She added a career-high-tying 15 rebounds, four assists, a block and a steal. She also added another 3-pointer.
The Wildcat from Buffalo, New York, is averaging 18.3 points, 11.0 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.8 blocks in 2024-25. She has three 20-plus point games and four double-double games so far this season. She has scored in double digits in all seven games this season, while she also has delivered at least two assists in every game and made at least one block in every game.
She is ranked well among other players in the conference and the nation in several categories:
| Category | National Ranking | SEC Ranking | Value |
| Blocks Per Game | 8 | 2 | 2.86 |
| Blocks | 10 | 2 | 20 |
| Rebounds Per Game | 10 | 2 | 11.0 |
| Rebounds | 27 | 4 | 77 |
| Double-Doubles | 14 | 3 | 4 |
| Points Per Game | 63 | 8 | 18.3 |
Strack played a fundamental role in helping Kentucky earn a 7-0 start to 2024-25, defeating all seven opponents by at least 10 points for the first time since 2013-14. That stretch also includes two top-20 wins against No. 18/18 Louisville, 71-61, and against No. 19/19 Illinois, 76-53. Kentucky’s 23-point triumph over Illinois marked its largest margin of victory against an Associated Press-ranked opponent since March 4, 2016 against Florida (23 points).
Also, UK defeated each of its first two ranked opponents of the season for the first time since 2016-17, when UK took down No. 14 Miami and No. 12 Oklahoma. It also marked the first time in program history that UK has defeated two AP-ranked opponents in November.
Next up, No. 14/16 Kentucky will play at No. 16/14 North Carolina on Thursday, Dec. 5 at 5 p.m. ET in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, on ESPN2 for the SEC/Atlantic Coast Conference Challenge.
For more information on the Kentucky women’s basketball team, visit UKathletics.com or follow @KentuckyWBB on X, Instagram, and Facebook.
