Clara Strack is One of 15 on the Wade Trophy Watch List

LEXINGTON, Ky. – Clara Strack is one of 15 hoopers included on the Wade Trophy Watch List, the oldest and most prestigious national player of the year award in college women’s basketball, it was announced by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association on Wednesday.

It is the seventh honor she has hauled in this season. Her seven honors are as follows, while a full list of her career honors can be found on UKathletics.com/ClaraStrack.

• 2026-27 Wade Watch List (One of 15)
• 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, a 6-5 center out of Buffalo, New York, began her senior season with an impressive stat line against Morehead State on Monday. In just 22 minutes, she put up a team-lead 17 points, nine rebounds, six blocks, three assists and a steal. In fact, she became just the second Division I women’s basketball player to have that stat line in 22 minutes or less since 2002-03 (also Breanna Stewart of UConn against Houston on Jan. 7, 2014).

The Wildcat, who is already turning more heads this year than ever before, is one of just two Lisa Leslie Center of the Year finalists from a year ago returning to the college women’s basketball scene in 2026-27.

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.

About the Wade Trophy
First awarded in 1978 by the American Alliance for Health, Physical Education, Recreation and Dance (AAHPERD), now known as SHAPE America, the Wade Trophy has been presented to the WBCA NCAA Division I Player of the Year since 2001. The Wade Trophy is named in honor of the late, legendary Delta State University head coach Lily Margaret Wade, who won three consecutive national championships with the Lady Statesmen.

The Wade Watch list of candidates for the Wade Trophy is composed of players selected by the WBCA NCAA Division I Awards Committee. The committee will review the list midseason to determine if additional players will be added based on their play during the first half of the 2026-27 season. The winner of the award will be announced in April during the 2027 WBCA Convention in Columbus, Ohio — site of the 2027 NCAA Women’s Final Four.

The 15 players on the watch list are as follows:

Mikayla Blakes (Vanderbilt)
Madison Booker (Texas)
Jaloni Cambridge (Ohio State)
Aaliyah Chavez (Oklahoma)
Audi Crooks (Oklahoma State)
Joyce Edwards (South Carolina)
Toby Fournier (Duke)
Hannah Hidalgo (Notre Dame)
Kymora Johnson (Virginia)
Liv McGill (Oklahoma State)
Olivia Olson (Michigan)
Clara Strack (Kentucky)
Sarah Strong (Connecticut)
JuJu Watkins (USC)
Mikaylah Williams (LSU)

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