ATLANTA – Four BIG EAST women’s basketball players – UConn’s Sarah Strong, KK Arnold and Blanca Quiñonez, along with Villanova’s Jasmine Bascoe – were named to the 2026-27 Jersey Mike’s Naismith Trophy Women’s College Player of the Year Watch List, announced Thursday.

Strong, the reigning BIG EAST Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year, enters her junior season as one of the nation’s premier players following another remarkable campaign in Storrs. The 2026 Naismith Trophy winner and AP Player of the Year, Strong led UConn in scoring (18.4 ppg), rebounding (7.7 rpg) and assists (3.8 apg) while earning consensus All-America recognition. She scored in double figures in all 38 games and recorded 10 double-doubles.

Last season, Arnold averaged 4.6 assists per game and led UConn with 174 assists in 38 games. She set the program’s single-season record for assist-to-turnover ratio (4.05), ranking second nationally, and added 102 steals, the second-most on the team. Arnold scored in double figures 11 times, including a season-high 18 points against Creighton in the BIG EAST Tournament. She earned All-BIG EAST First Team, All-Defensive Team and All-Tournament Team honors in 2026.

Quiñonez ranked third on the team with 10.7 points per game while averaging 3.1 rebounds, 2.1 assists and 2.0 steals per game. She earned BIG EAST Freshman of the Year, BIG EAST Sixth Woman of the Year, All-BIG EAST Second Team and All-Freshman Team honors in 2026.

Bascoe led the BIG EAST in scoring (18.9 ppg) and assists (4.8 apg) last season, earning unanimous All-BIG EAST First Team honors for the second consecutive year. She totaled 624 points, 158 assists and 65 steals in 33 games while shooting 40.0 percent from the field and 83.9 percent from the free-throw line. Bascoe scored in double figures in 31 games, including 16 performances of 20-or-more points and two 30-point outings. She enters the 2026-27 season with 23 career games of 20 or more points and surpassed 1,000 career points during her sophomore season.