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Sarah Strong was already crowned the Big East Defensive Player of the Year and the Big East Player of the Year. The latest addition to the UConn star’s trophy case is even grander.
Strong was named the Naismith Player of the Year on Wednesday, becoming the first Huskies player to collect that honor since Paige Bueckers in 2021. Bueckers was a freshman at the time. Strong is a sophomore, and the forward is currently leading an unbeaten UConn team in points, rebounds, steals and blocks.
She’s averaging 18.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 3.4 steals and 1.6 blocks per game for the 38-0 Huskies, who are set to face fellow top seed South Carolina in the NCAA tournament national semifinal on Friday in Phoenix.
Strong is the eighth different UConn player to earn Naismith Player of the Year recognition since the award was introduced to the women’s game in 1983. She joins Rebecca Lobo (1995), Sue Bird (2002), Diana Taurasi (2003-04), Maya Moore (2009, 2011), Tina Charles (2010), Breanna Stewart (2014-16) and Bueckers (2021).
USC’s JuJu Watkins won the accolade last year, and Caitlin Clark took it home while starring for Iowa each of the two seasons before that.
UConn sophomore forward Sarah Strong hit the ground running as a freshman and has continued to elevate her game in Year 2 with the Huskies. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Although Strong is outside the top 35 nationally in points per game, her numbers in that department are quite impressive upon further inspection. Before March Madness, she was averaging only 26.7 minutes per contest on a team that’s No. 1 in the country in average scoring margin. Even now, four games into the NCAA tournament, the Huskies are defeating their 2025-26 opponents by 37.8 points per game.
Most of the season, they haven’t needed Strong to play as much as a typical Naismith Player of the Year candidate would, but when she’s been on the court, she’s dominated — not just as a scorer but in all facets. At the moment, she’s shooting 59.4% from the field, including 40.4% from 3, and 84.8% from the free throw line. She’s also first nationally in defensive rating (55.8) and defensive win shares (4.0), according to Her Hoop Stats.
UConn has plenty of firepower, but Strong is a big reason why the Huskies are in position to win their second straight national championship, and their 13th ever.
So far in the NCAA tournament, she’s posted 19.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4 steals and 1.8 blocks per game. When the Huskies got off to a slow start versus North Carolina in the Sweet 16, Strong responded with 11 second-quarter points that settled Geno Auriemma’s team.
In the Elite Eight, as UConn took down Notre Dame, she stuffed the stat sheet with 21 points, 7 rebounds, 5 steals and 3 blocks, all while avoiding a single turnover. She does a bit of everything for a program that’s been more than a bit above practically all of its competition this season.
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Strong was named the Naismith Player of the Year on Wednesday, becoming the first Huskies player to collect that honor since Paige Bueckers in 2021. Bueckers was a freshman at the time. Strong is a sophomore, and the forward is currently leading an unbeaten UConn team in points, rebounds, steals and blocks.
She’s averaging 18.6 points, 7.6 rebounds, 3.4 steals and 1.6 blocks per game for the 38-0 Huskies, who are set to face fellow top seed South Carolina in the NCAA tournament national semifinal on Friday in Phoenix.
Strong is the eighth different UConn player to earn Naismith Player of the Year recognition since the award was introduced to the women’s game in 1983. She joins Rebecca Lobo (1995), Sue Bird (2002), Diana Taurasi (2003-04), Maya Moore (2009, 2011), Tina Charles (2010), Breanna Stewart (2014-16) and Bueckers (2021).
USC’s JuJu Watkins won the accolade last year, and Caitlin Clark took it home while starring for Iowa each of the two seasons before that.
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UConn sophomore forward Sarah Strong hit the ground running as a freshman and has continued to elevate her game in Year 2 with the Huskies. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)
ASSOCIATED PRESS
Although Strong is outside the top 35 nationally in points per game, her numbers in that department are quite impressive upon further inspection. Before March Madness, she was averaging only 26.7 minutes per contest on a team that’s No. 1 in the country in average scoring margin. Even now, four games into the NCAA tournament, the Huskies are defeating their 2025-26 opponents by 37.8 points per game.
Most of the season, they haven’t needed Strong to play as much as a typical Naismith Player of the Year candidate would, but when she’s been on the court, she’s dominated — not just as a scorer but in all facets. At the moment, she’s shooting 59.4% from the field, including 40.4% from 3, and 84.8% from the free throw line. She’s also first nationally in defensive rating (55.8) and defensive win shares (4.0), according to Her Hoop Stats.
UConn has plenty of firepower, but Strong is a big reason why the Huskies are in position to win their second straight national championship, and their 13th ever.
So far in the NCAA tournament, she’s posted 19.5 points, 7.8 rebounds, 4 steals and 1.8 blocks per game. When the Huskies got off to a slow start versus North Carolina in the Sweet 16, Strong responded with 11 second-quarter points that settled Geno Auriemma’s team.
In the Elite Eight, as UConn took down Notre Dame, she stuffed the stat sheet with 21 points, 7 rebounds, 5 steals and 3 blocks, all while avoiding a single turnover. She does a bit of everything for a program that’s been more than a bit above practically all of its competition this season.
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