UConn's Fudd, Strong, Named All-Americans

STORRS, CT — University of Connecticut graduate student guard Azzi Fudd and sophomore forward Sarah Strong were named First Team All-Americans by the U.S. Basketball Writers Association on Tuesday.

Fudd is putting together the best season of her collegiate career in her final year at UConn, averaging a career-high 17.7 points per game while shooting .489 from the field, .446 from 3-point range and .951 from the free-throw line. She has also set single-season career highs in rebounds (87), assists (101) and steals (85).

Fudd was named the 2026 Big East Scholar-Athlete of the Year and earned unanimous All-Big East First Team honors. She was also selected to the 2026 Big East All-Tournament Team after helping lead the Huskies to the conference tournament title. Nationally, Fudd ranks second in 3-pointers made (104) and seventh in 3-point percentage (44.6). Against Top 25 opponents, she is averaging 24.4 points per game while shooting .500/.468/1.000.

She is a finalist for the AAU Sullivan Award and the Katrina McClain Award, and has been named to the late-season watch lists for both the Naismith Trophy and the John R. Wooden Award.

Strong, meanwhile, was a unanimous selection as Big East Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year. She also earned unanimous All-Big East First Team honors and a spot on the conference’s All-Defensive Team.

Strong is averaging 18.5 points per game while shooting .601 from the field, .427 from beyond the arc and .873 from the free-throw line. She has scored in double figures in 47 consecutive games and leads UConn in points, rebounds, blocks and steals. She is the first Huskies player to record 100 steals in a season since Gabby Williams in 2016-17.

Nationally, Strong ranks sixth in steals (111), 24th in assist-to-turnover ratio (2.21) and 10th in field goal percentage (60.1). She also leads the nation in several advanced metrics, including win shares (11.0), defensive win shares (4.8), offensive rating (134.1), defensive rating (65.3) and player efficiency rating (46.8).

Strong has been named National Player of the Year by The Athletic and ESPN. She is also on the late-season watch lists for the Naismith Trophy and the Naismith Defensive Player of the Year award, in addition to being a finalist for the Katrina McClain Award and earning a spot on the Wooden Award ballot.

Top-seeded UConn (34-0) will host No. 16 seed UTSA Roadrunners women's basketball (18-15) in the first round of the NCAA Division I Women's Basketball Tournament on Saturday at 3 p.m. on ABC.