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Kansas City Adds Avery Strickland Hurst for 2026-27
9/10/2026 12:46:00 PM | Women's Basketball
KANSAS CITY, Mo. - The Kansas City Women's Basketball team and Head Coach Candi Whitaker have announced the signing of Avery Strickland Hurst for the 2026-27 season.
"We are excited about the addition of Avery! She is a proven player and winner at every level she has played," said Head Coach Candi Whitaker. "She brings the ability to score at all three levels and will be a seamless fit in our system. Avery is not only a great player, but also a high character individual who will make a tremendous impact on and off the court. We are thrilled to welcome her to UMKC."
Avery Strickland Hurst joins Kansas City after a standout 2025-26 season at Belmont, where she started all 32 games for the Bruins, averaging 13.0 points and 3.8 rebounds per game while totaling 417 points, 120 rebounds, 70 assists, 52 steals, and 30 blocks. She shot 44.2 percent from the field, while hitting 54 three-pointers. She earned All-Missouri Valley Conference Second Team and MVC All-Newcomer Team honors. Strickland Hurst was also named to the CSC Academic All-District and MVC Scholar-Athlete teams and earned MVC Newcomer of the Week honors on Feb. 2, 2026.
During the 2024-25 season at Tennessee, Strickland appeared in 19 games, averaging 1.9 points and 1.3 rebounds per game while shooting 43.8 percent from the field. She saw action in both SEC Tournament games and all three NCAA Tournament contests, including a four-rebound performance against South Florida in the NCAA First Round. She recorded a season-high nine points against N.C. Central, knocking down three three-pointers.
In her first season at Tennessee in 2023-24, Strickland Hurst appeared in 20 games, averaging 0.9 points and 0.8 rebounds per game. After missing much of the non-conference schedule due to a pair of injuries, she returned to action and made an impact in limited minutes. She recorded season highs of four points and two rebounds against No. 16/13 Ohio State, while also scoring four points against both Arkansas and Vanderbilt. Strickland Hurst added three points, two rebounds and two assists in her first SEC game at Texas A&M before making her NCAA Tournament debut in the opening round, recording three points, an assist and a steal in eight minutes.
Strickland began her collegiate career at Pitt in 2022-23, appearing in all 30 games with 11 starts. She averaged 6.2 points and 1.7 rebounds per game while leading the Panthers with 39 three-pointers. She scored a career-high 17 points against both Georgia Tech and Loyola Maryland and reached double figures four times.
A Knoxville, Tennessee, native, Strickland was a standout at Farragut High School, where she was a four-time all-district honoree and earned TSWA All-State and TSSAA All-State Tournament Team honors. As a senior, she averaged 17.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.5 steals per game while helping Farragut reach the state championship game for the first time in program history.
Catch Avery and the rest of the Kansas City Roo Women's Basketball team as they kick off their season at Municipal Auditorium in an Exhibition against Newman on Saturday, October 24th.
"We are excited about the addition of Avery! She is a proven player and winner at every level she has played," said Head Coach Candi Whitaker. "She brings the ability to score at all three levels and will be a seamless fit in our system. Avery is not only a great player, but also a high character individual who will make a tremendous impact on and off the court. We are thrilled to welcome her to UMKC."
Avery Strickland Hurst joins Kansas City after a standout 2025-26 season at Belmont, where she started all 32 games for the Bruins, averaging 13.0 points and 3.8 rebounds per game while totaling 417 points, 120 rebounds, 70 assists, 52 steals, and 30 blocks. She shot 44.2 percent from the field, while hitting 54 three-pointers. She earned All-Missouri Valley Conference Second Team and MVC All-Newcomer Team honors. Strickland Hurst was also named to the CSC Academic All-District and MVC Scholar-Athlete teams and earned MVC Newcomer of the Week honors on Feb. 2, 2026.
During the 2024-25 season at Tennessee, Strickland appeared in 19 games, averaging 1.9 points and 1.3 rebounds per game while shooting 43.8 percent from the field. She saw action in both SEC Tournament games and all three NCAA Tournament contests, including a four-rebound performance against South Florida in the NCAA First Round. She recorded a season-high nine points against N.C. Central, knocking down three three-pointers.
In her first season at Tennessee in 2023-24, Strickland Hurst appeared in 20 games, averaging 0.9 points and 0.8 rebounds per game. After missing much of the non-conference schedule due to a pair of injuries, she returned to action and made an impact in limited minutes. She recorded season highs of four points and two rebounds against No. 16/13 Ohio State, while also scoring four points against both Arkansas and Vanderbilt. Strickland Hurst added three points, two rebounds and two assists in her first SEC game at Texas A&M before making her NCAA Tournament debut in the opening round, recording three points, an assist and a steal in eight minutes.
Strickland began her collegiate career at Pitt in 2022-23, appearing in all 30 games with 11 starts. She averaged 6.2 points and 1.7 rebounds per game while leading the Panthers with 39 three-pointers. She scored a career-high 17 points against both Georgia Tech and Loyola Maryland and reached double figures four times.
A Knoxville, Tennessee, native, Strickland was a standout at Farragut High School, where she was a four-time all-district honoree and earned TSWA All-State and TSSAA All-State Tournament Team honors. As a senior, she averaged 17.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists, and 1.5 steals per game while helping Farragut reach the state championship game for the first time in program history.
Catch Avery and the rest of the Kansas City Roo Women's Basketball team as they kick off their season at Municipal Auditorium in an Exhibition against Newman on Saturday, October 24th.
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