CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – Virginia fourth-year guard Kymora Johnson is one of 15 players selected to the Wade Watch List on Wednesday (Nov. 4).
The 2026-27 season marks the 50th anniversary of the Wade Trophy, the oldest and most prestigious national player of the year award in women’s college basketball, presented by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association.
Johnson makes her first appearance on the Wade Watch List and has also been named to the Nancy Lieberman and Naismith Player of the Year Watchlists. A Preseason All-ACC selection, Johnson comes off a junior season in which she averaged 19.5 points, 5.9 assists and 4.5 rebounds per game in 2025-26 and was one of just three players in NCAA Division I to average at least 19 points and 5.5 assists on the year. In the NCAA tournament, Johnson averaged 22 points, 5.7 assists and 6.2 rebounds to guide Virginia to its first Sweet Sixteen appearance in 26 years as UVA became the first team in history to reach the Sweet Sixteen after playing in the First Four.
She set program records for three pointers in a single game (10), single season (103) and career with 231. Her 41 points against Winthrop also marked the second-highest single-game total in program history and her career total of 1,725 points ranks ninth in program history.
2026-27 Wade Trophy Watch List
|
Name |
Institution |
Position |
Height |
Current Year |
|
Mikayla Blakes |
Vanderbilt |
Guard |
5-8 |
Junior |
|
Madison Booker |
Texas |
Forward |
6-1 |
Senior |
|
Jaloni Cambridge |
Ohio State |
Guard |
5-7 |
Junior |
|
Aaliyah Chavez |
Oklahoma |
Guard |
5-10 |
Sophomore |
|
Audi Crooks |
Oklahoma State |
Center |
6-3 |
Senior |
|
Joyce Edwards |
South Carolina |
Forward |
6-3 |
Junior |
|
Toby Fournier |
Duke |
Forward |
6-2 |
Junior |
|
Hannah Hidalgo |
Notre Dame |
Guard |
5-7 |
Senior |
|
Virginia |
Guard |
5-7 |
Senior |
|
|
Liv McGill |
Oklahoma State |
Guard |
5-9 |
Junior |
|
Olivia Olson |
Michigan |
Guard |
6-1 |
Junior |
|
Clara Strack |
Kentucky |
Center |
6-5 |
Senior |
|
Sarah Strong |
Connecticut |
Forward |
6-2 |
Junior |
|
JuJu Watkins |
USC |
Guard |
6-2 |
Senior |
|
Mikaylah Williams |
LSU |
Guard |
6-0 |
Senior |
The Wade Watch list of candidates for the Wade Trophy is composed of players selected by the WBCA NCAA Division I Awards Committee. The committee will review the list midseason to determine if additional players will be added based on their play during the first half of the 2026-27 season. The winner of the award will be announced in April during the 2027 WBCA Convention in Columbus, Ohio — site of the 2027 NCAA Women’s Final Four.