Tennessee women’s basketball senior Zee Spearman has been named to the Cheryl Miller Small Forward of the Year Preseason Top 20 Watch List, the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame announced on Wednesday afternoon.
The Cheryl Miller Award, in its ninth year, honors the top small forward in Division I women’s college basketball. It is named after the three-time Naismith Player of the Year and Class of 1995 Hall of Famer.
The 6-foot-4 forward from Dacula, Ga., appeared in all 34 games a year ago, starting 23 and averaging career bests of 11.7 ppg. and 6.0 rpg. Spearman shot percentages of 51.5 from the field, 30.0 from three-point range and 71.0 from the charity stripe, leading UT in rebounds (204) and finishing second on the squad in blocks (23) and sixth in three-pointers (24).
With a 1-for-10 history beyond the arc before she transferred from Miami, Spearman hit 24 of 80 attempts in her first year at Tennessee. She tied for second on the team with 23 double-figure scoring efforts and was fourth with 10 games of 15+. Scoring a career-high 25 points on 10-of-12 shooting vs. Samford, Spearman carded the No. 2 all-time total in a Lady Vol debut.
Enjoying a breakout season in 2024-25, Spearman earned the attention of USA Basketball and represented the United States over the summer at the FIBA 3×3 Nations League Americas Conference in Chile and the FIBA U23 3×3 World Cup in China. She finished as the No. 12 overall scorer in the World Cup and led USA with 32 total points in five contests there.
Fans can support their favorite player by participating in Fan Voting starting on October 31. In late January, the watch list of 20 players for the 2026 Cheryl Miller Award will be narrowed to 10, and then in late February, to just five. In March, the five finalists will be presented to Miller and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee, where winners will be selected. The selection committee for the Cheryl Miller Award are composed of top women’s college basketball personnel, including media members, head coaches, sports information directors and Hall of Famers.
The winner of the 2026 Miller Award will be presented on a to-be-determined date, along with the other four members of the Women’s Starting Five. Additional awards being presented include the Nancy Lieberman Award (Point Guard), Ann Meyers Drysdale Award (Shooting Guard), Katrina McClain Award (Power Forward) and the Lisa Leslie Award (Center).
For more information on the 2025 Cheryl Miller Award and the latest updates, visit hoophallawards.com and follow @hoophallu and #MillerAward on X and Instagram.
Fans interested in seeing the Lady Vols play should visit AllVols.com for ticket information. Big Orange supporters will have 14 opportunities to get behind their team at home, with season and single-game tickets currently on sale. Besides purchasing online, fans can also buy tickets by calling the UT Ticket Office at 1-800-332-VOLS between 8:30 a.m. and 5 p.m. ET Monday through Friday.
To keep up with the University of Tennessee women’s basketball team on social media, follow @LadyVol_Hoops on Instagram and X/Twitter, as well as /BallWithTheLadyVols on Facebook.
