The dust is still settling on women’s college basketball’s offseason as the transfer portal closed earlier this week and rosters for next season are beginning to take shape.
Major moves were made over the first few weeks of April. Oklahoma State landed two of the top players in the portal in Iowa State’s Audi Crooks and Florida’s Liv McGill. After a visit to South Carolina, Kymora Johnson decided to remain at Virginia. Tennessee reshaped its entire roster after a disappointing end to the season. And UCLA began its rebuild after sending six players from its national championship team to the WNBA.
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Dozens of talented players remain in the transfer portal, but of the players who have committed to new schools, here are 10 best fits.
Jada Williams, LSU
With Flau’Jae Johnson going to the WNBA and Jada Richard transferring to Ole Miss, Kim Mulkey needed to bolster her backcourt and find a starting point guard. Few options in the portal were better than Williams, who is coming off a career-best season at Iowa State. The 5-foot-6 guard from Kansas City was third nationally in assists with 7.7 per game and had 15.3 points and 3.5 rebounds per game while shooting 41% from the floor and 80% from the free throw line. Williams should fit in nicely with MiLaysia Fulwiley and Mikaylah Williams.
Jordan Lee, South Carolina
Following the graduations of Raven Johnson and Ta’Niya Latson, Dawn Staley had to find another guard to pair to bolster her backcourt. Enter Lee, who has been a key contributor to back-to-back Final Four trips for Texas and a glue player for the Longhorns. Lee was named to the All-Region team in Fort Worth 3 in this year’s NCAA Tournament for her performances in the Sweet 16 and Elite Eight, where she piled up 22 points, six assists, three rebounds and four steals while also providing strong defense.
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Dani Carnegie, Iowa
Iowa coach Jan Jensen went into the portal looking for another guard to pair with Chit-Chat Wright, and she found one that has already played alongside her. Carnegie and Wright starred together two seasons ago at Georgia Tech and helped the Yellow Jackets make the NCAA Tournament. This past season, Carnegie established herself as one of the best guards in the SEC, averaging 17.8 points, 5.3 rebounds and 3.2 assists per game for the Georgia Bulldogs. Carnegie, Wright and Ava Heiden will make one of the best three-pronged offensive attacks in the country.
Ellie Brueggemann, Oklahoma State
The Cowgirls brought in two elite scorers in Audi Crooks and Liv McGill who are going to command double teams often. That should create open shots for shooters like Brueggemann, who shot 44% from behind the arc this past season at Lindenwood and ranked 11th nationally in 3-pointers made per game with 2.9. Brueggemann is a three-time All-Ohio Valley Conference selection and should be a strong fit for Jacie Hoyt’s team, which ranked 11th nationally last season in total 3-pointers made.
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Vittoria Blasigh, UCF
First-year head coach Gabe Lazo is starting with a clean slate at UCF and rebuilding the roster from scratch. A veteran shooter like Blasigh should help the Knights win games this season. She spent 2025-26 at Miami, but the 5-foot-9 guard from Italy was at her best when she played for one of Lazo’s mentors, Jose Fernandez, as USF. For her career, Blasigh averages 10.2 points, 2.2 rebounds and 1.6 assists per game while shooting 40% from the floor, 36% from behind the arc and 81% from the free throw line.
Madison St. Rose, Notre Dame
An argument that St. Rose is a better player than any teammate Hannah Hidalgo had last season could be made. St. Rose should make a great Robin to the two-time ACC Player of the Year’s Batman. A 5-foot-10 guard from New Jersey — where Hidalgo also hails from — St. Rose established herself as one of the best players in the Ivy League, averaging 13.2 points, 3.4 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game at Princeton.
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Taryn Barbot, Pitt
A two-time CAA Player of the Year, Barbot is coming off a season where she was 17th nationally in scoring with 20.1 points per game. She is sticking with the coaching staff that has gotten the best out of her, following Robin Harmony from Charleston to Pittsburgh. Barbot has already proven she can play well against competition in the ACC. She led Charleston to a win over Florida State in the regular season, then scored 36 points against Duke at Cameron Indoor Stadium in the NCAA Tournament in March. Taryn’s sister Taylor Barbot is joining her at Pitt.
Achol Akot, North Carolina
In the 2024-25 season, Alyssa Ustby averaged 10.9 points and 9.5 rebounds per game playing primarily the power forward position for the Tar Heels. This past season, Nyla Harris entered that role and averaged 11.4 points and 6.9 rebounds. Now, enter Akot, who is coming off a season at Oklahoma State where she posted 12.4 points and 7.2 rebounds per game while shooting 63.3% from the floor — which was sixth-best nationally. Coach Courtney Banghart seems to have a type for this position and the 6-foot-1 Akot is a natural fit.
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Aaliyah Crump, Duke
Ranked as the fifth-best recruit in the nation in the 2025 class, Crump played in 24 games for the Longhorns as a freshman this past season, averaging 7.9 points, 2.3 rebounds and 1.4 assists in 17.4 minutes per game. Kara Lawson needed to bolster her backcourt depth after sending Taina Mair and Ashlon Jackson to the WNBA and secured the services of the 6-foot-1 guard from Minnesota. If you ask Lawson, it feels like Crump has been with the Blue Devils for a long time.
“When you talk about bringing in a player through the portal, I think it’s about connection and fit. There has to be a connection that exists between me and the player. Aaliyah and I have a strong connection already,” Lawson said. “She has the ability to stretch the floor with her three-point shot. She’s a competitor.”
Skylar Forbes, West Virginia
Forbes feels like a player who will thrive under Mark Kellogg in Morgantown. A two-time All-Big East selection, Forbes averaged 15.5 points, 4.9 rebounds, 2.3 assists and 1.8 blocks per game this past season at Marquette. The 6-foot-3 junior was also voted to the Big East’s All-Defense team, making her a natural fit for the Mountaineers’ defense-first style. She can hit big shots too, as two seasons ago she led the Big East in free throw shooting percentage with a 90.9% clip.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: 10 women’s basketball transfer portal players who are perfect for new teams
