Caitlin Clark was like a runaway train for national player of the year in women's college basketball last season. Midway through 2024-25, it's more like four locomotives converging on the station at the same time.
If you want suspense, we've got it: Three guards and a center whose teams are ranked in the top 10 are all vying to be the best individual player in the country.
A sophomore leads the race, but it's not the one many thought would be the front-runner. Notre Dame's Hannah Hidalgo has edged ahead of USC's JuJu Watkins, who was the freshman of the year last season.
The two second-year stars met in November, with the Irish handing USC its only loss of the season, 74-61 behind Hidalgo's 24 points and 8 assists, while Watkins finished with 24 and 5.
Hidalgo ranks second in Division I in scoring and steals; she has scored 25 or more points in eight games for ACC-leading Notre Dame (5-0). Watkins is third in scoring, also with eight games of 25-plus points. The Trojans are 6-0 atop the Big Ten in their first season in the conference.
Trying to split hairs between Hidalgo and Watkins would be fascinating enough. But UConn guard Paige Bueckers -- the national player of the year in 2021 as a freshman and a potential No. 1 pick in April's WNBA draft -- and UCLA center Lauren Betts -- who leads the No. 1-ranked Bruins (16-0 overall, 5-0 in Big Ten) -- are also in the running.
How do the top four measure up? And who are the leading candidates for best freshman, transfer and coach? ESPN's Kendra Andrews, Charlie Creme, Alexa Philippou and Michael Voepel make their picks midway through the road to the NCAA tournament.
Hannah Hidalgo double-clutches in the air and scoops in a layup for a terrific bucket for the Fighting Irish.
Player of the year
Andrews: Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame
Creme: Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame
Philippou: Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame
Voepel: Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame
Hidalgo is one of the most feared one-on-one perimeter defenders in the country, along with being among the best scorers. Her performance against then-No. 3 USC in November was followed by two other gems against top-five teams: 30 points, 8 rebounds and 4 assists in an 80-70 overtime win against Texas on Dec. 5, and 29 points, 10 rebounds, 8 assists and 3 steals in a 79-68 victory over UConn on Dec. 12.
Hidalgo, who has adapted well to the return of point guard Olivia Miles, missed her first game at Notre Dame on Sunday for precautionary reasons after she rolled her right ankle in a victory over Wake Forest on Jan. 9. Her absence was felt, as the Irish tied a season-low with 67 points but still defeated Clemson by 9.
Hidalgo has improved her shooting percentage from last season to 50.4% overall and 45.8% behind the arc. Her accuracy from long range has bumped her to 2.5 3-pointers per game, compared to 1.4 last year. For the season, she is averaging 25.7 points, 6.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 4.1 steals. -- Voepel
Top challengers (in order)
JuJu Watkins, USC: Watkins has been impressive in her follow-up to her historic freshman season. She's shooting better (44.4% FG) and creating more plays for teammates, and she has cut down her turnovers and improved her defense (4.3 steals and blocks), making her an even more well-rounded player. She's also on pace to break Clark's all-time NCAA scoring record.
Hidalgo and Notre Dame outperformed Watkins and USC in November. But Watkins shined in the Trojans' win over Bueckers and the Huskies last month. Moments like those have huge impacts in the conversations about player of the year. -- Andrews
JuJu Watkins has a solid performance with 35 points, 3 assists and 11 rebounds in USC's win over Penn State.
Paige Bueckers, UConn: She isn't the current front-runner, but Bueckers has been remarkably impressive. She has remained a hallmark of efficiency, with an effective field goal percentage of 62.8%, a career best. The Big East isn't strong this year, but Bueckers' biggest games came in nonconference play, including 29 points against both Ole Miss and North Carolina. And in UConn's pair of losses to USC and Notre Dame, she averaged 23.5 points on 20-for-42 shooting (albeit 2-of-12 on 3-pointers).
Bueckers has missed the past two games because of a knee sprain but is expected back this week. She's 18 points away from hitting 2,000 for her career and is on track to hit that threshold faster than any player in UConn history. -- Philippou
Lauren Betts, UCLA: The junior center has transformed the Bruins from a Sweet 16-level program to the No. 1 team in the country. Reliable and consistent, Betts has scored in double figures in every game this season. Even her lowest output of 11 points accompanied 14 rebounds, 4 assists and 4 blocks in UCLA's signature win over South Carolina. Cori Close runs the Bruins' offense through Betts, and she has rewarded her coach as the sixth-most-efficient player in the country, according to HerHoopsStats.com. The 6-foot-6 Betts also anchors a defense that ranks second nationally in opponents' field goal percentage. -- Creme
Sarah Strong goes coast-to-coast for the Huskies vs. Hoyas.
Freshman of the Year
Andrews: Sarah Strong, UConn
Creme: Sarah Strong, UConn
Philippou: Sarah Strong, UConn
Voepel: Sarah Strong, UConn
Strong was the top-ranked prospect when she signed with UConn and has still managed to exceed expectations in Storrs, drawing comparisons to Breanna Stewart and Maya Moore fewer than 20 games into her collegiate career. What stands out most is her feel for the game on both ends and her versatility. Her 3-point shooting (35%) and passing (3.6 assists per game) give her guard-like qualities. Her 17.2 points per game -- on 57% shooting! -- are second best on the team behind Bueckers, and Strong's 7.9 rebounds, 2.4 steals and 1.1 blocks per game lead the Huskies in each category. She has proved herself already as Geno Auriemma's most talented frontcourt player in years.
Strong and Bueckers are one of the best duos in the country, and the freshman is the next great UConn superstar and already a top player in the nation. -- Philippou
All-Freshman Team
Mikayla Blakes, Vanderbilt, guard
Jaloni Cambridge, Ohio State, guard
Joyce Edwards, South Carolina, forward
Sarah Strong, UConn, forward
Syla Swords, Michigan, guard
Coach of the Year
Andrews: Niele Ivey, Notre Dame
Creme: Niele Ivey, Notre Dame
Philippou: Cori Close, UCLA
Voepel: Niele Ivey, Notre Dame
Notre Dame's wins over UConn and USC are two great examples of the level of basketball Ivey's program has put together this season. The Irish didn't just beat these high-caliber opponents, they won both games by double digits. Their offense has been almost unguardable, with the No. 3 Irish shooting 43.8% from 3, which is the best mark in the ACC and the nation. Much of that traces back to Ivey's development of Hidalgo and Olivia Miles, who make up what is arguably the best backcourt in college basketball.
There were expectations surrounding Notre Dame heading into the season, but what Ivey has built now has the Irish cemented in the national title conversation. -- Andrews
Top challenger: Cori Close, UCLA
UCLA has hovered as a second-weekend NCAA tournament team for years. But that seems poised to change with this season's Bruins, who are still undefeated, the best team of Close's tenure in Westwood. UCLA has been the No. 1 team in the nation since thrashing South Carolina in late November, and Close has shepherded the further emergence of stars Lauren Betts, a surefire first-team All-American, and Kiki Rice, who's playing the best basketball of her career. Through recruiting (including internationally) and working the transfer portal, Close has constructed a roster that has very few flaws and is playing like it can be the last team standing in Tampa. -- Philippou
Georgia Amoore joins SEC Now after her 18-point performance to talk about how the Wildcats are having immediate success under a new coach and many transfers.
All-Transfer Team
Georgia Amoore, Kentucky, guard
Raegan Beers, Oklahoma, forward
Kiki Iriafen, USC, forward
Hailey Van Lith, TCU, guard
Liatu King, Notre Dame, forward
Top transfer: Georgia Amoore, Kentucky
This is the most competitive category of all these awards. The nod narrowly goes to Amoore because of her play at point guard and what she has meant to the transition at Kentucky. Her move to Lexington along with her former Virginia Tech coach Kenny Brooks has resuscitated the program. And she's doing it without the level of help that the other candidates have. Iriafen plays with JuJu Watkins; Beers and King joined experienced teams at Oklahoma and Notre Dame, respectively; Van Lith has teamed with Sedona Prince at TCU.
But Amoore is one of 11 new players at Kentucky, which was a combined 24-38 the past two seasons, finishing 12th and 14th in the SEC. Now the Wildcats are 15-1 and 4-0 in conference play -- their best SEC start since 2012-13 -- with Amoore as their leading scorer and unquestioned leader. She also ranks second in the country in assists per game. -- Creme
All-America Team
Our top four picks for national player of the year make the All-America first team, but who gets the fifth spot? It was a neck-and-neck race between LSU's Aneesah Morrow, who leads Division I in double-doubles with 16, and Florida State's Ta'Niya Latson, who is the nation's top scorer at 27.7 points per game. The senior, Morrow, got the nod.
Lauren Betts, UCLA, center
Paige Bueckers, UConn, guard
Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame, guard
Aneesah Morrow, LSU, forward
JuJu Watkins, USC, guard