Clara Strack Named to Center of the Year Top 20 Preseason Watch List

LEXINGTON, Ky. – University of Kentucky women’s basketball senior center Clara Strack has been named to the Lisa Leslie Center of the Year Award Top 20 Preseason Watch List, it was announced by the Naismith Basketball of Fame in partnership with the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association (WBCA) on Friday.

It is the sixth honor she has hauled in this preseason, with other nods on the horizon. Her five honors are as follows, while a full list of her career honors can be found on UKathletics.com/ClaraStrack.

• 2026-27 Lisa Leslie Center of the Year Top 20 Preseason Watch List
• 2026-27 Jersey Mike’s Naismith Trophy Women’s College Player of the Year Top 50 Watch List
• 2026-27 Preseason SEC Defensive Player of the Year (USA Today)
• 2026-27 Preseason All-SEC Unanimous First Team (coaches)
• 2026-27 Preseason All-SEC Unanimous First Team (media)
• 2026-27 Preseason All-SEC Unanimous First Team (USA Today)

Strack, 6-5 senior center from Buffalo, New York, enters her senior season in 2026-27, returning to the college women’s basketball scene as one of just two Lisa Leslie Center of the Year finalists from a year ago. In 36 games last season, she averaged 16.9 points per game, 10.1 rebounds per game, 2.53 blocks per game, 1.89 assists per game and 1.22 steals per game, while also sinking 25 3s.

The Wildcat, who led her team in points, rebounds, blocks and steals, also combined for 16 double-doubles, which were 18th in the nation. Meanwhile, her 91 blocks were second in the nation and her 2.52 bpg were seventh in the nation, while both values also broke her own single-season school records. Her 365 rebounds were 13th in the nation.

Last season, she became the first player in NCAA Division I women’s basketball history to record 607 points, 365 rebounds, 91 blocks, 68 assists, 44 steals and 25 3s in one season in 2025-26. She also joined Candance Parker (2005-07) as the only two players to have at least 1,000 points, 600 rebounds, 150 blocks, 125 assists and 50 steals within their first two seasons at an SEC school.

With her career-high-tying 33 points against No. 22/22 Georgia on March 5 – a game that she also drained five 3s on 5-of-7 from the arc – she became the third fastest player to eclipse 1,000 career points in a Kentucky uniform with 1,030 points through 63 games in the Blue and White . She did so only behind WNBA No. 1 Draft Pick Rhyne Howard and WBCA Hall of Famer Valerie Still.

Players can play their way onto and off the Lisa Leslie Center of the Year Award of the Year Watch List at any point in the season.

The Lisa Leslie Award, now in its 10th year, recognizes the top center in NCAA Division I women’s college basketball. It is named after the three-time All-American, 1994 National Player of the Year, and Class of 2015 Hall of Famer.

The 20 players on the preseason watch list are as follows:

Kate Koval (Baylor)
Arianna Roberson (Duke)
Ava Heiden (Iowa)
Clara Strack (Kentucky)
Amiya Joyner (Louisville)
Ashley Sofilkanich (Michigan)
Gracie Merkle (Minnesota)
Sharnecce Currie-Jelks (Murray State)
Ciera Toomey (North Carolina)
Elsa Lemmilä (Ohio State)
Audi Crooks (Oklahoma State)
Uche Izoje (Syracuse)
Clara Silva (TCU)
Breya Cunningham (Texas)
Sienna Betts (UCLA)
Jana El Alfy (UConn)
Aaliyah Del Rosario (Vanderbilt)
Tilda Trygger (Washington)
Alex Covill (Washington State)
Khyala Ngodo (West Virginia)

For more information on the Kentucky women’s basketball team, visit UKathletics.com or follow @KentuckyWBB on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.