Lindsay Gottlieb transformed the USC program by landing 2023's top recruit. She gave
JuJu Watkins the freedom to be a star and it landed the Trojans in the Elite Eight. Now, Gottlieb will be bringing in the top recruiting class in the country to play with Watkins as USC makes its way to the Big Ten.
Kennedy Smith, a 6-1 wing, headlines the six-player class that will help replace the loss of grad students
Kayla Padilla,
McKenzie Forbes and
Kaitlyn Davis.
Since the Bruins fell short of expectations with a Sweet 16 loss to LSU and no Pac-12 title, it might be hard to remember that all of Cori Close's best players, except for
Charisma Osborne, were sophomores.
Lauren Betts and her dominance in the post, along with guards
Kiki Rice,
Londynn Jones and
Gabriela Jaquez, will lead UCLA into the Big Ten, where the Bruins and fellow newcomer USC might be the favorites to win the league. Rice's high school teammate, 6-2
Kendall Dudley, is a top-20 recruit who headlines a top-five class for Close.
The loss of
Jaz Shelley hurts, but top-30 recruit
Britt Prince can soften the blow if she's able to make an impact right away.
Natalie Potts and
Logan Nissley were solid as freshmen, and if they are even better as sophomores, Nebraska will be an NCAA tournament team for the third time in four years.
Alexis Markowski has gotten better every season and has All-American potential as a senior.
It's the end of the
Jacy Sheldon era and, with
Rebeka Mikulasikova and
Celeste Taylor using up their eligibility, things will look different in Columbus. Kevin McGuff will build around
Cotie McMahon, who has shown the potential to be one of the nation's top players. McGuff also landed the No. 3 recruit in point guard
Jaloni Cambridge and combo guard
Ava Watson to remake his backcourt.
A disappointing 2023-24 season ended well with Illinois winning the inaugural WBIT championship. Last year, Kansas rode the momentum of a WNIT title back to the NCAA tournament.
Makira Cook and
Kendall Bostic already have said they will play their fifth year in Champaign, and
Genesis Bryant and
Adalia McKenzie hinted they plan to return, so expect the Fighting Illini to build on this season's postseason title as well.
