Three Lady Vols were named to the 2025-26 Women’s Basketball Preseason Top 50 Watch List on Tuesday.
Talaysia Cooper, Janiah Barker and Zee Spearman were named to the list, selected by a preseason poll of national college basketball experts. The list includes 50 student-athletes who are frontrunners for the most prestigious honors in college basketball, the Wooden Award All-American Team and the Wooden Award Most Outstanding Player.
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Tennessee is one of four schools with multiple players on the list, joining South Carolina, LSU and UCLA.
Players on the list are considered strong candidates for the 2026 John R. Wooden Award Women’s Player of the Year. Players not selected to the list remain eligible for inclusion on the award’s midseason and late-season watch lists, as well as the national ballot with the top 15 players.
Cooper averaged 16.9 points, 5.6 rebounds, 3.2 assists and 3.1 steals per game last year. She is leading the Lady Vols with 18.3 points and 8.0 rebounds per game during the 2025-26 season.
Barker is averaging 13.0 points and 4.8 rebounds per game this season. She is in her first season at Tennessee after transferring from UCLA.
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Spearman has started every game for the Lady Vols this season. She is averaging 11.5 points and 7.8 rebounds per game.
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This article originally appeared on Vols Wire: Three Lady Vols named to Wooden Award Preseason Watch List
