Clara Strack, Teonni Key Chosen to Preseason All-SEC Second Team by the Coaches
BIRMINHAM, Ala. – University of Kentucky women’s basketball’s frontcourt duo Clara Strack and Teonni Key were chosen to the Preseason All-Southeastern Conference Second Team by the coaches, it was announced by the league office Wednesday.
Strack and Key were responsible for the bulk of the program’s blocks last season, a value that led the nation in the final statistics (7.0 bpg) and set a school record (218 blks). In fact, Strack and Key combined for 4.1 blocks per game at the end of last season, which alone was more than 299 NCAA DI women’s basketball teams at the conclusion of 2024-25.
That duo was so much more than blocks though, as Strack also added 15.4 points per game, 9.7 rebounds per game, which ranked second in the league, and 2.5 assists per game, while Key also contributed 11.4 points per game, 8.3 rebounds per game, which ranked seventh in the league, and 1.7 assists per game.
Strack and Key were the leading rebounders in a trio of Wildcats – coined The Triplets – that were all averaging more than 9.0 rebounds per game at one point last season, just the fifth trio in NCAA DI women’s basketball history to set that benchmark.
Furthermore, UK concluded the season as one of only two NCAA DI women’s basketball teams to have two players averaging at least 8.3 rebounds per game, while its the only school returning both pieces in 2025-26.
Clara Strack | Junior | C | 6-5
Last season, Clara Strack played and started in all 31 games, averaging 15.4 points per game, 9.7 rebounds per game (second in the SEC), 2.5 assists per game, 2.4 blocks per game (first in the SEC) and 0.8 steals per game.
She set Kentucky’s single-season school records in both blocks (73) and blocks per game (2.4). She also set Kentucky’s single-game school record for blocks in a game with eight at Ole Miss on Feb. 10
The Wildcat, who was named a finalist for the 2025 Lisa Leslie Center of the Year Award last season, had 15 double-doubles on the season, which ranked fourth in the league and 26th in the nation in the final statistics.
The Buffalo, New York, native shot 48.8 percent from the field, good for eighth in the league, and 78.6 percent from the line, which was ninth in the league. She also added 17 3s on the season, including going 3-of-5 from the arc in a ranked win at Oklahoma on Feb. 2.
Strack concluded the regular season with a combined 46 points, 23 rebounds, six assists and five blocks in a record triumph over No. 11/11 Tennessee and a late nailbiter at No. 6/6 South Carolina.
She broke two school records in the triumph over UT, one of which included the single-game school record for FG% on her 11-of-11 from the field. She also had the most field goal attempts without a miss by a DI women’s basketball player against an Associated Press Top 15 team since at least 2002-03. She also became the only DI women’s basketball player to have at least 23 points, 15 rebounds, three blocks and two assists against an AP Top 25 team since at least 2002-03.
At No. 6/6 South Carolina, Strack became the first player to have at least 23 points, eight rebounds, four assists, two blocks and a steal against USC since UConn’s Gabby Williams on Feb. 13, 2017. She also became the only player to do so in Columbia since at least 2002-03.
The Wildcat scored double digits in 26-of-31 games last season, including 17 15+ point games and nine 20+ point games.
Strack also has dished out multiple assists in 21-of-31 games last season, including a career-high eight assists against NKU on Nov. 7.
She was the only NCAA DI women’s basketball player to do each of the following at least once in a game last season (25 pts, 16 rbs, eight asts, eight blks, five stls, 3 3FGM).
She also became the only SEC player since at least 2002-03 – and the first NCAA DI player since 2009-10 – to have at least 429 pts, 266 rbs, 76 asts, 70 blks and 20 stls in a regular season. She became the only SEC player since at least 2002-03 to have at least 236 pts, 150 rbs, 41 blks, 35 asts and 12 stls in a SEC regular season.
Teonni Key | Senior | F | 6-5
Teonni Key – who averaged just 2.5 points per game and 2.5 rebounds per game in just 9.9 minutes per game in her previous two seasons at UNC – reset her career high multiple times in every category last season at Kentucky, including in points three times (last 20), rebounds six times (last 15), assists (5), field-goal makes five times (last 8), field-goal attempts four times (last 16), three-point field-goal makes three times (2), three-point field-goal attempts three times (4) and blocks three times (last 6).
Key contributed 11.4 points per game, 8.3 rebounds per game (seventh in the SEC), 1.7 blocks per game (fifth in the SEC) and 1.7 assists per game.
Her 1.7 blocks per game are third in program history.
She recorded the first double-double of her college career on 11 points and 13 rebounds against Wofford on Nov. 12, going on to record 12 total through 31 games. She even put together three straight double-doubles twice on the season.
Key scored at least 10+ points 22 times on the season, at least 15+ points seven times on the season and at least 20+ point one time on the season. She led the team in points twice, led in rebounds 13 times, led in steals nine times, and led in blocks seven times.
The Wildcats were picked to finish seventh in the league by the coaches.
The full list of Preseason SEC Awards, voted on by the coaches, is as follows:
Order of Finish
- Texas
- South Carolina
- LSU
- Oklahoma
- Tennessee
- Ole Miss
- Kentucky
- Vanderbilt
- Alabama
- Florida
- Georgia
- Mississippi State
- Texas A&M
- Missouri
- Auburn
- Arkansas
Player of the Year
Madison Booker, Texas
First Team All-SEC
Flau’jae Johnson, LSU
Mikaylah Williams, LSU
Raegan Beers, Oklahoma
Joyce Edwards, South Carolina
Ta’Niya Latson, South Carolina
Talaysia Cooper, Tennessee
Madison Booker, Texas
Mikayla Blakes, Vanderbilt
Second Team All-SEC
Essence Cody, Alabama
Liv McGill, Florida
Teonni Key, Kentucky
Clara Strack, Kentucky
Cotie McMahon, Ole Miss
Payton Verhulst, Oklahoma
MiLaysia Fulwiley, South Carolina
Rori Harmon, Texas
For more information on the Kentucky women’s basketball team, visit UKathletics.com or follow @KentuckyWBB on X, Instagram and Facebook.
