For Power 4 conferences and many mid-major leagues, the regular season of women’s college basketball is over. With a whole lot of games and data to reflect on, we can begin to determine who the best players in the nation were this season.
Three players were unanimous First Team choices for USA TODAY Sports’ 2025-26 All-Americans: UConn sophomore forward Sarah Strong, Notre Dame junior guard Hannah Hidalgo and Vanderbilt guard Mikayla Blakes.
Texas junior forward Madison Booker and UCLA senior center Lauren Betts rounded out the first-team choices.
Strong, Booker and Betts each helped their teams win their conference tournaments, with Strong and Booker winning MOP awards for the Big East and SEC competitions. Hidalgo powered Notre Dame to a trip to the semifinals, while Blakes and Vanderbilt were surprisingly upset in the quarterfinals by Ole Miss.
A total of 15 players received votes from USA TODAY Sports staffers Heather Burns, Meghan Hall, Cydney Henderson and Mitchell Northam. Four SEC players were selected to first and second teams, while two more were honorable mentions. Here’s who else made the cut and who got honorable mention:
First-team All-Americans
Mikayla Blakes, Vanderbilt | Sophomore, Guard
Unanimously voted SEC Player of the Year by the USA TODAY Network, Blakes has powered Vanderbilt on a historic season. Behind Blakes’ 27 points per game — which leads the nation — the Commodores are likely to be a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament, the first time since 2009 they’ve been a top four seed. Vandy started the season on a 20-game win streak and proved they belonged in the list of championship contenders by picking up victories over Michigan, Texas, LSU and Kentucky. Blakes joined Caitlin Clark and Kelsey Plum as the only players since 2009 to average at least 27 points, four assists and three rebounds a game while shooting north of 45% from the floor. That’s pretty good company for one of the sport’s rising stars.
Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame | Junior, Guard
Now the two-time ACC Player and Defensive Player of the Year, Hidalgo absolutely carried the short-handed Fighting Irish this season on both ends of the floor. She’s third in the nation in scoring with 25.2 points per game and first in steals with 5.4. In the ACC Tournament, Hidalgo broke Notre Dame’s single-season steals record and is 19 away from tying Chastadie Barr of Lamar’s all-time mark for the NCAA record. Earlier this season, in a game against Akron, Hidalgo set the Irish’s single game scoring record with 44 points and broke the NCAA’s single-game steals record with 16. In the NCAA Tournament, Notre Dame will go as far as Hidalgo takes them.
Sarah Strong, UConn | Sophomore, Forward
Widely considered to be the frontrunner for National Player of the Year, the soft-spoken sophomore has been the bus driver for UConn’s undefeated 34-0 season. She’s shooting 60.1% from the floor, 42.7% from behind the arc and 87.3% from the free throw line — the only player to do it in single season since 2009 when these stats first began to be gathered. Strong also ranks first nationally in PER, win shares and defensive rating, all while averaging 18.5 points, 7.6 rebounds and 4.1 assists per game. It’s difficult to argue that there’s been a more efficient player than Strong this season.
Madison Booker, Texas | Junior, Forward
Texas won the SEC Championship — and Vic Schaefer finally beat Dawn Staley in a postseason game — for the first time Sunday in Greenville, South Carolina, and Booker was a big reason why. The do-it-all forward scored a career-high 31 points in the Longhorns’ semifinal win over Ole Miss, and then piled up 18 points, four rebounds and two assists in Texas’ comfortable title game victory of the Gamecocks. Booker averages 18.9 points, 6.5 rebounds and 3.8 assists per game, and also ranks second nationally in defensive win shares. Texas is a contender for the national championship for the second straight season with her leading the way.
Lauren Betts, UCLA | Senior, Center
The anchor of a UCLA team with its sights set on the national championship, the imposing 6-foot-7 Betts has been a superb rim protector, rebounder and inside scorer for the Bruins. Likely to be a lottery pick in the upcoming WNBA draft, she’s averaging 16.4 points, 8.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 1.9 blocks in just 26.9 minutes per game this season. If she played more in blowouts — like UCLA’s 51-point win over Iowa in the Big Ten title game — her stats would be even more impressive. The Bruins will continue to lean on her as they aim to play in the Final Four for the second consecutive season.
Second-team All-Americans
Joyce Edwards, South Carolina | Sophomore, Forward
The leading scorer for the regular season SEC champions, Edwards is posting 19.6 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. She also ranks 11th in win shares with 6.4. South Carolina is 22-0 when Edwards scored at least 17 points, a record that includes wins over LSU, Ole Miss, Kentucky, Duke and USC.
Olivia Miles, TCU | Senior, Guard
In her final season of college basketball, Miles is averaging a career-best 19.6 points per game and is also seventh nationally in assists with 6.4. Miles also has five triple-doubles this season, making her one of three players in the history of Division I women’s college basketball to post that many in one year.
Azzi Fudd, UConn | Senior, Guard
Arguably the best 3-point shooter in the sport, Fudd is making 3.1 3-pointers per game — which ranks fifth nationally — and ranks seventh in the country in shooting percentage from beyond the arc with a 44.6% clip. Among the 18 players taking at least six 3-point attempts per game this season, none of them are knocking them down at Fudd’s rate.
Audi Crooks, Iowa State | Junior, Center
Second in the nation in scoring with 25.5 points per game, Crooks is one of the best inside scorers in the country, as evidenced by her 64.7% shooting clip from the floor. She ranks inside the top 10 nationally in PER, effective field goal percentage, points per scoring attempt, offensive win shares and usage percentage. Iowa State won’t have a high seed in the NCAA Tournament, but Crooks’ presence makes them a dangerous matchup.
Clara Strack, Kentucky | Junior, Center
The only player in the country averaging at least 17 points, 10 rebounds and two blocks per game, Strack has been the focal point on both ends of the floor for a Kentucky team that’s going to be a tough out in March Madness. In the SEC Tournament, the 6-foot-5 Strack showed off her range too, knocking down a career-best five 3-pointers in a win over Georgia.
Honorable mentions: Raven Johnson (South Carolina), Maggie Doogan (Richmond), Jaloni Cambridge (Ohio State), Toby Fournier (Duke), Cotie McMahon (Ole Miss)
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