We’re just a few days into the 2025-26 women’s college basketball season, but it’s already apparent that some transfer portal players are going to work out very well at their new programs.
One, for example, is Louisville’s addition of Laura Ziegler. While the Cardinals fell to No. 1 UConn in Annapolis, Maryland in her debut, she powered Jeff Walz’s team with 15 points and 18 rebounds. On the other side of that matchup, former USC guard Kayleigh Heckel had 14 points and two assists in 23 minutes off the bench for the Huskies.
In Paris, former Auburn guard Taliah Scott made a big difference for No. 16 Baylor in its upset of No. 7 Duke, tallying 24 points, five rebounds and three assists in the Lady Bears’ 58-52 triumph over the Blue Devils. At Ole Miss, four transfers scored in double figures in the Rebels’ season-opening win over Norfolk State. In Notre Dame’s thrashing of Fairleigh Dickinson, Kansas State transfer Gisela Sanchez had a double-double, and former Duke guard Vanessa de Jesus scored a career-high 22 points. And one of the more high-profile transfers of the offseason, MiLaysia Fulwiley, tallied 21 points, seven steals and four rebounds in her debut for LSU.
Here are six other transfers that stood out in their first games with their new squads.
Ta’Niya Latson, South Carolina
Latson hadn’t played alongside Raven Johnson in about four years, but the chemistry between the two former high school teammates was obvious as South Carolina defeated Grand Canyon with ease. Latson, in her debut for Dawn Staley’s well-oiled war machine, had 20 points on 7-of-10 shooting to go along with four assists and a steal in 28 minutes of action. While the Gamecocks have typically been a team that has leaned on its strong post play, they may be better off playing through their trio of elite guards this season.
“She makes things easier. My instinct is to go her way,” Johnson said of Latson. “It’s like that. She brings out the best in me, honestly. She makes me play harder.”
Oluchi Okananwa, Maryland
In her debut for the Terps, the junior guard knocked down a career-high four 3-pointers en route to a stat line of 18 points, two rebounds and three assists in just 17 minutes as Maryland ran away from Loyola, 80-26. She followed that up by collecting 15 points, six rebounds, three assists and two steals on Thursday in a comfortable victory over UMBC. Okananwa — who was the ACC Tournament MVP as a sophomore and the ACC Sixth Player of the Year as a freshman at Duke — looks like she could be the bus driver this year for Brenda Frese’s Terps.
Haleigh Timmer, Oklahoma State
An import from South Dakota State, Timmer is off to a solid start with the Cowgirls. She posted 18 points, five rebounds and six assists in a win over New Orleans, then tallied 22 points in a victory over East Texas A&M. She’s 10-of-15 from 3-point land to start the season, and should continue to give Jacie Hoyt’s side a threat from behind the arc.
“She’s a winner,” Hoyt said of Timmer. “I mean, we were just talking the other day as a team, I think she’s won like 88% of the games that she’s played in in college. That is insane.”
Last-Tear Poa, Arizona State
After spending three seasons at LSU where she averaged 15.3 minutes per-game, Poa seems positioned for a crucial role with the Sun Devils in Molly Miller’s first season. In Arizona State’s season-opening win over Coppin State, Poa dished out a career-high 10 assists. She also had five points and four rebounds in 29 minutes of action. Poa, who is in her sixth season of college basketball, could provide a steady hand in the backcourt for the Sun Devils as the first year of Miller’s tenure progresses.
After spending three seasons at Washington State, Gardner came back to Pullman, Washington earlier this week and torched the Cougars, notching career highs in points (26), rebounds (nine), 3-pointers (six), and steals (five) as Idaho won 87-85. It’s the first time the Vandals have won at Wazzu since 1998. She’ll be a player to keep an eye on this season in the Big Sky.
Khamil Pierre, N.C. State
In the lone matchup of the week featuring two teams ranked inside the top 10 of the AP Top 25 preseason poll, Pierre was a differencemaker for the Wolfpack in their 80-77 win over Tennessee in Greensboro, North Carolina on Tuesday. The junior forward from Vanderbilt led N.C. State in both scoring and crashing the glass, finishing with 21 points and 14 boards. Across her last three contests against the Lady Vols, Pierre is averaging 19 points and 12.3 rebounds per game.
“I don’t think we guarded her at all. She’s a really good transition player. I think she’s one of the best players in the country,” Tennessee coach Kim Caldwell said of Pierre. “We can’t seem to find her on a box out, and if we do get a stop, she’ll go get it and put it back in.”
