UConn's Paige Bueckers, Notre Dame's Hannah Hidalgo, UCLA's Lauren Betts and USC's JuJu Watkins headline the women's Wooden Award late midseason top 20 list announced Tuesday night.
The award is given annually to the best college basketball player in the country.
Bueckers entered the season as a heavy favorite to win the award, which she also won in 2021, but Hidalgo has cemented herself as a top competitor for Bueckers in leading Notre Dame through dominant nonconference and conference play.
While the Huskies have struggled in some high-profile matchups, Bueckers has remained a driving force for UConn, averaging 18.8 points, 4.4 assists and 4.1 rebounds while shooting 53.1% from the floor, including 41.5% from 3.
The heavy favorite to go No. 1 in April's WNBA draft, Bueckers avoided major injury in January and continues the pursuit of an elusive national title before leaving college.
Hidalgo has quickly catapulted to the top of award conversations. As one half of what's widely considered the best backcourt in women's college basketball (alongside Olivia Miles), Hidalgo is putting up 25.9 points on 50.4% shooting, while also tallying 5.6 rebounds, 4.0 steals and 3.9 assists per game.
She has led the Irish to wins over UConn, USC, Texas and North Carolina. In December, the sophomore guard scored her 1,000th career point in just 44 games, shattering the previous record of 60 games held by Beth Morgan in the mid-1990s.
On the West Coast, Watkins entered this season amid sky-high expectations. So far, she's averaging 23.9 points, 6.7 rebounds and 3.5 assists, and from mid-November to mid-January, Watkins scored at least 20 points in 16 consecutive games.
Betts has been a crucial part to UCLA being the only remaining undefeated program in the country. She leads the Bruins with 20.2 points and 9.9 rebounds per game, while shooting 64%. Her rim protection -- 2.9 blocks per game -- has become a nuisance for opponents and gives UCLA a two-way presence that's hard to come by.
Four programs feature multiple players on the list: Notre Dame with Hidalgo and Miles, UConn with Bueckers and Sarah Strong, LSU with Flau'Jae Johnson and Aneesah Morrow, and TCU with Sedona Prince and Hailey Van Lith.
The complete women's Wooden Award late midseason top 20:
Lauren Betts, UCLA
Madison Booker, Texas
Paige Bueckers, UConn
Hannah Hidalgo, Notre Dame
Flau'Jae Johnson, LSU
Olivia Miles, Notre Dame
Aneesah Morrow, LSU
Te-Hina Paopao, South Carolina
Sedona Prince, TCU
Sarah Strong, UConn
Hailey Van Lith, TCU
JuJu Watkins, USC