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Mechelle Voepel
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ESPN.com- Mechelle Voepel covers the WNBA, women’s college basketball, and other college sports for espnW. Voepel began covering women’s basketball in 1984, and has been with ESPN since 1996.
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Charlie Creme
Every team in the women’s Final Four last season — national champion Stanford, runner-up Arizona and semifinalists South Carolina and UConn — added at least one transfer for the 2021-22 women’s college basketball season. The portal has become as much a part of basketball as the pick and roll, as transfers — both in and out — affect almost every program.
Adding to the amount of transfers are the extra season of eligibility that all college athletes received last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic, and the NCAA’s one-time transfer exception ratified in April that allows players to compete right away for a new school without sitting out a season.
Recent coaching changes also tend to lead toward bigger exoduses and influxes, which is the case heading into this season — especially at schools such as Syracuse (11 transfers out, seven in) and Texas Tech (10 out, five in).
Whether it’s about players looking for a fresh start, deciding to return closer to home or just opting to finish someplace different from where they started, transfers will have a big role in how this season plays out. Here are our top 25 transfers heading into 2021-22. (Note: We list players’ year by their college experience thus far; not the number seasons they might have left if they opt for an extra year of eligibility.)
1. Kamilla Cardoso, South Carolina Gamecocks, C, so.
Previous school: Syracuse Orange
2020-21 stats: 13.6 PPG, 8.0 RPG, 2.7 BPG
The Gamecocks, who reached the Final Four last season, add the 6-foot-7 Cardoso to an already stacked lineup. The ACC’s Freshman of the Year and co-Defensive POY last season, she was part of the mass exodus from Syracuse that led to coach Quentin Hillsman’s resignation. — Voepel
Previous school: Alabama Crimson Tide
2020-21 stats: 17.0 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 4.2 APG
Lewis’ decision to play her extra year of eligibility in Waco significantly aids in the transition from Kim Mulkey to Nicki Collen on the sidelines and helps replace the on-court losses of DiDi Richards, DiJonai Carrington and Moon Ursin. Lewis gives the Bears a lead guard with shooting and scoring capabilities that the Lady Bears didn’t have on either of their last two Final Four teams. — Creme
3. Dorka Juhasz, UConn Huskies, F, gr.
Previous school: Ohio State Buckeyes,
2020-21 stats: 14.6 PPG, 11.1 RPG, 1.1 APG
An already loaded rotation got upgraded even further with Juhasz moving from Columbus to Storrs. At 6-5, she brings a defensive presence and physicality that some of the last few Huskies’ teams have lacked, and she also has the ability to stretch the defense with her shooting range. — Creme
Previous school: Rutgers Scarlet Knights
2020-21 stats: 17.6 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 2.5 APG
She was in the 90/50/40 club last season, shooting 90.2% from the foul line, 51.2% from the field and 45.5% from behind the arc. The Big Ten all-freshman team honoree led Rutgers with 50 3-pointers, which adds to the four Wolfpack returners who each had 30 or more treys in 2020-21. — Voepel
Previous school: Oklahoma State Cowgirls
2020-21 stats: 17.0 PPG, 2.6 RPG, 3.8 APG
Asberry entered Oklahoma State early and already has her degree, but still has two years of eligibility left. With only one returner who made at least 20 3-pointers last season, Baylor welcomes Asberry’s success from behind the arc (78). She and fellow transfer Jordan Lewis combined had more treys (125) than Baylor had as a team (110) in 2020-21. — Voepel
Previous school: Middle Tennessee Lady Raiders
2020-21 stats: 26.5 PPG, 5.4 RPG, 5.1 APG
She was the SEC’s Sixth Woman of the Year as a freshman at Tennessee in 2018, and now returns to the league after being Conference USA Player of the Year last season. Hayes, who was second in Division I scoring average last season, will be joined on the roster by younger sisters Aislynn Hayes (Middle Tennessee) and Alasia Hayes (Notre Dame), who also transferred to Mississippi State.
7. Koi Love, Arizona Wildcats, F, jr.
Previous school: Vanderbilt Commodores
2020-21 stats: 20.8 PPG, 9.5 RPG, 1.8 APG
The 6-0 Love averaged 13.7 PPG as a part-time starter in 2019-20, her freshman year. Then the Commodores played just eight games before opting out of last season in January. So she’s just starting to come into her own, and now will do so with last season’s national runner-up. — Voepel
Previous school: Syracuse Orange
2020-21 stats: 10.5PPG, 9.1 RPG, 1.9 BPG
Engstler really began to blossom for the Orange late last season. She’s a 37.1% 3-point shooter, but her passing and rebounding skills should fit nicely next to Olivia Cochran and Liz Dixon in the Cardinals frontcourt. — Creme
Previous school: Oregon State Beavers
2020-21 stats: 11.6 PPG, 83.6RPG, 1.7 APG
Despite looking like a future Pac-12 star and the next great Oregon State wing, the 2019 Arkansas Gatorade Player of the Year and Fayetteville native wanted to play closer to home. Goforth could be a centerpiece for Mike Neighbors’ up-tempo offense for the next three years. — Creme
Previous school: USC Trojans
2020-21 stats: 14.8 PPG, 4.4 RPG, 4.3 APG
She did it all for USC last season, leading in scoring and assists and — even at 5-7 — rebounds. Having started all 54 games in two years at USC, she stays in the Pac-12 with the Ducks, who hope she meshes well with fellow point guard Te-Hina Paopao. — Voepel
Previous school: Texas Longhorns
2020-21 stats: 12.3 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 2.0 APG
Taylor’s grit and intensity was on full display and was a key reason Texas made its surprise run to the Elite Eight last March. She said getting closer to her New York home was important. At Duke, she will be an essential piece of Kara Lawson’s rebuilt roster. — Creme
12. Taylor Mikesell, Ohio State Buckeyes, G, sr.
Previous school: Oregon Ducks
2020-21 stats: 9.3 PPG, 2.4 RPG, 1.8 APG
Her college career has been a cross-country journey. Mikesell played two years at Maryland, spent last season at Oregon and is now back in her home state of Ohio. Three-point shooting is her specialty, with a combined 185 for the Terps. But she never got in a good groove with the Ducks from behind the arc, going 39 of 117. — Voepel
Previous school: LSU Tigers/Baylor Bears
2020-21 stats: 12.6 PPG, 6.6 RPG, 3.8 APG
Originally headed to LSU, where she would join her former Baylor coach, Kim Mulkey, Ursin switched gears a few months later and transferred to Tulane. A role player much of her career with the Bears, Ursin blossomed into Baylor’s second-leading scorer last year. In four years of high school in Louisiana and four more in Waco, Ursin has only been a part of 16 total losses. — Creme
14. Alexus Dye, Tennessee Lady Vols, F, gr.
Previous school: Troy Trojans
2020-21 stats: 16.6 PPG, 12.6 RPG
Dye played two junior-college seasons, two at Troy and now gets a chance in the SEC. The Lady Vols lost Rennia Davis, who led them in scoring and rebounding average, to the WNBA draft. The 6-0 Dye, the Sun Belt Player of the Year last season, should help alleviate that. She had 26 points in a close first-round loss to Texas A&M in the 2021 NCAA tournament. — Voepel
Previous school: Syracuse Orange
2020-21 stats: 12.3 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 2.0 APG
Syracuse’s leading scorer each of the past two seasons, Lewis will be playing for the third school in her six-year college career (she was at Ohio State as a freshman). With Lewis teaming with Delicia Washington and Gabby Elliott, Clemson has the potential for a dynamic and high-scoring backcourt. — Creme
16. Aliyah Matharu, Texas Longhorns, G, jr.
Previous school: Mississippi State Bulldogs
2020-21 stats: 10.2 PPG, 3.5 RPG, 1.7 APG
She’s new at Texas, but not to second-year Longhorns coach Vic Schaefer, who recruited her and then coached her as a freshman at Mississippi State. Texas lost three of its top four 3-point shooters to graduation or transfer, and Matharu should be able to help from behind the arc. — Voepel
Previous school: Kansas State Wildcats
2020-21 stats: 15.2 PPG, 4.9 RPG, 1.8 APG
Carr played three seasons at Kansas State while her father, former NBA player Chris Carr, was an assistant there. She’s now with Syracuse, while her dad is an assistant with Drury’s men’s program in Springfield, Missouri, about 40 miles from where her younger brother, hoops prospect Cameron, is in prep school. Christianna will be among those trying to help the Orange establish a new culture after 11 players transferred and coach Quentin Hillsman resigned this summer. — Voepel
Previous school: Wright State Raiders
2020-21 stats: 18.1 PPG, 5.1 RPG, 2.6 APG
Those who didn’t know Baker before last season’s NCAA tournament got a splashy introduction as she led Wright State to a first-round upset of No. 4 seed Arkansas with 26 points and 12 rebounds. Now, she’ll face the Razorbacks again in the SEC, as she joins an Ole Miss program that fell to Rice in the WNIT championship game last season. — Voepel
Previous school: Cincinnati Bearcats
2020-21 stats: 23.7 PPG, 7.5 RPG, 3.3 APG
UCLA was short on personnel last season due to injuries and COVID-19 issues. This year, although the Bruins lost star Michaela Onyenwere to the WNBA (where she was Rookie of the Year), they are fully stocked, including four transfers who all could have an impact. Thomas was American Athletic Conference Player of the Year last season and scored 1,925 points while shooting 58.1% during her Cincinnati career. She had a career-high 51 points vs. East Carolina in February. — Voepel
20. Aaliyah Patty, Texas A&M Aggies, F, sr.
Previous school: Ohio State Buckeyes
2020-21 stats: 11.5 PPG, 5.8 RPG, 1.2 BPG
If Gary Blair was going to be successful in his final season, he needed to replace the inside production of N’dea Jones and Ciera Johnson. That’s where Patty, who improved in each of her three seasons in Columbus, will help most; she’s the only experienced post player on the Aggies roster. — Creme
21. Chrislyn Carr, Syracuse Orange, G, sr.
Previous school: Baylor Bears/Texas Tech
2019-20 stats: 13.9 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 5.0 APG
Like Christianna Carr, who is no relation, Chrislyn Carr went to Syracuse after playing in the Big 12. Chrislyn was 2019 Big 12 Freshman of the Year at Texas Tech, also played for there as a sophomore, and then left after just five games last season and transferred to Baylor. But she never played for the Bears, and now is at Syracuse. Both Carrs committed to then-coach Quentin Hillsman, but decided to stay and help rebuild the program after he resigned. — Voepel
Previous school: Alabama Crimson Tide
2020-21 stats: 14.4 PPG, 8.6 RPG
As the Wildcats transition from the Aari McDonald era, they will look to become more frontcourt-oriented, and Copeland should be a vital component to the change. The 6-3 forward ranked third in the country with a 60.9 field goal percentage and helped get Alabama to the NCAA tournament for the first time since 1999. — Creme
23. Imani Lewis, Duke Blue Devils, F, sr.
Previous school: Wisconsin Badgers
2020-21 stats: 15.0 PPG, 8.8 RPG
Kara Lawson brought in nine transfers ahead of her first full season as the Blue Devils’ coach (Duke ended 2020-21 after just four games because of COVID-19 concerns). Lewis gives her what none of the others do: an inside scoring presence. Lewis is also a consistent rebounder, a must on a roster that is heavy with talented perimeter players. — Creme>
Previous school: Rice Owls
2020-21 stats: 15.7 PPG, 8.3 RPG, 3.5 BPG
At 6-9, Mulkey stands out for her height and the fact that she has been in the college game since 2016-17. That was her freshman season at Oklahoma. She transferred to Rice, and after sitting out a year, was three-time Conference USA Defensive Player of the Year. She led the Owls to the WNIT championship in March, and then she and teammate Lauren Schwartz transferred when Rice coach Tina Langley got the Washington job in April. — Voepel
25. Lasha Petree, Rutgers Scarlet Knights, G, sr.
Previous school: Bradley Braves
2020-21 stats: 18.0 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 2.2 BPG
After being upset by BYU in the first round of the NCAA tournament, Rutgers had five players transfer out and eight transfer in, six of those from Division I. That includes Petree, an all-Missouri Valley first-team pick the last two years who played at Bradley with younger sister Mahri Petree, who has transferred to UTEP. — Voepel
Honorable mention: Jordan Hamilton, Stanford (from Northwestern), guard; Carlie Littlefield, North Carolina (from Princeton), guard; Karissa McLaughlin Marquette (from Purdue), guard; Jaz Shelley, Nebraska (from Oregon), guard; Jaelynn Penn, UCLA (from Indiana), guard
