It’s unanimous. The two best players in college basketball were Duke’s Cam Boozer on the men’s side and UConn’s Sarah Strong on the women’s side.
The pair wrapped up consensus National Player of the Year honors Friday with the Wooden Award, adding to trophy cases that included the Naismith and AP Awards. They were both on every All-American list as well.
Boozer is the eighth member of the Blue Devils program to win the award, while Strong is the seventh Husky. No men's program has more Wooden Awards than Duke. No women's program has more than UConn.
Boozer also makes it back-to-back Duke freshmen to win the award alongside Cooper Flagg.
Sarah Strong was the best player in college basketball this season. (Sarah Stier via Getty Images)
As much as Boozer and Strong stood out this season, March Madness wound up being a disappointment for their respective schools. Duke crashed out of the Elite Eight in mortifying fashion with a collapse against the UConn men’s team, while UConn lost its undefeated season in a battle of the elites again South Carolina in the Final Four.
That’s likely how Boozer’s college career will end. He is one of many star freshmen expected to enter the 2026 NBA Draft, with Yahoo Sports’ Kevin O’Connor projecting him to be selected second overall behind BYU’s AJ Dybantsa.
Strong, meanwhile, is set to return to UConn for her junior season, with expectations higher than ever.
