25 NCAA women’s college basketball players to watch for 2024-25

A four-year standout at Virginia Tech, where she started 124-of-126 games and was a third-team All-American selection by The Associated Press, Amoore joins former Hokies coach Kenny Brooks at Kentucky. One of the college game’s best playmakers, Amoore is Virginia Tech’s all-time assists leader with 656. She can also score, averaging at least 11.8 points a season, and a career-high 18.8 in 2023-24. Now, Amoore won’t have as much talent around her at Kentucky, so it will be interesting to see how that all plays out. 

Betts began her college career as a bench player at Stanford in 2022-23, and was a solid sub. However, since transferring down the coast to UCLA, she proved why her talent level was high entering college. Last season, the 6-foot-7 Betts averaged 14.9 points, 9.3 rebounds and 2.0 blocks while solidifying herself as an imposing paint presence for the Bruins. UCLA opens the season ranked No. 5 in the AP Top 25, and Betts has a supporting cast capable of taking the program to new heights.

Booker was co-Big 12 Player of the Year last season, when she averaged 16.5 points on 45.7-percent shooting, while also recording 5.0 rebounds and assists per game — as a freshman. And, Booker did that while taking over ball-handling duties for the injured Rori Harmon (more on her in a bit). The Longhorns’ lineup gets a boost with Harmon back, but the 6-foot-1 Booker is still expected to have another big season, while likely spending more time at her ideal small forward position.

Depending which college basketball analyst is doing the rankings, Bueckers is still the best player in the women’s game. However, UConn has not won a national title since Bueckers arrived on campus in 2020, so the pressure is mounting to get that done before she leaves campus for good. The 2021 AP Player of the Year and a two-time first-team All-American, Bueckers is coming off a stellar junior season in which she set career highs for games (39), and average points (21.9), rebounds (5.2) and blocks (1.4) while also showing off her versatility. Is this the year Bueckers returns UConn to glory?   

Following an exceptional prep career at Bishop Garrigan High School in Algona, Iowa, Crooks certainly lived up to the hype as an Iowa State freshman. In 33 games (featuring 29 starts) last season, Crooks averaged 19.2 points and 7.8 rebounds for the Cyclones. Her 40-point effort against Maryland in the first round of the 2024 NCAA Tournament was a freshmen record. At the end of the day, Crooks was named a first-team All-Big 12 pick. We can’t wait to see what’s in store for Crooks as a sophomore.

As a freshman in 2020-21, Ejim played in 25 games, with no starts and averaged 3.7 points. By the end of the 2023-24 campaign, the dynamic Ejim was named West Coast Conference Player of the Year  for averaging 19.7 points, 8.7 rebounds and 2.3 assists on a 32-win Bulldogs’ squad that reached the Sweet 16. She was also named Becky Hammon Mid-Major Player of the Year, and after the season,  Ejim played for Team Canada at the Paris Olympics. This season, Ejim could truly be a one-woman gang as the lone starter returning for the Zags.

Fudd should be viewed as more than Paige Bueckers’ UConn sidekick. Sure, knee issues have limited her three-year college career to 40 games, and just 15 in the last two seasons. Fudd returns this year from an ACL issue, and the eyes of knowledgeable women’s basketball fans will be on her to see if she can make it through the season in 2024-25. She’s averaged 13 points, while shooting 44.3 percent from the field, during her career. If the Huskies are to challenge for their first national title since 2016, they likely need a healthy Fudd in tow.

To no one’s surprise, the reigning national champion Gamecocks are preseason No. 1 in the AP poll, and they appear to have plenty of talent to repeat. Among South Carolina’s stars is Fulwiley, who burst on the scene as a freshman last season, averaging 11.7 points, nearly three rebounds, more than two assists and almost two steals per game. With that experience under her belt, it should be fun to see what’s in store for Fulwiley in Year 2. 

A big reason for the Longhorns’ preseason No. 4 ranking in the AP poll can be attributed to Harmon’s return from an ACL injury that ended her 2023-24 campaign in late December. Harmon is the best two-way player in the country and arguably the nation’s top defender. However, her all-around game is something special, too. In just 12 games last season, Harmon averaged 14.1 points, 7.8 assists, 5.6 rebounds and 3.1 steals — all career highs. If she can stay healthy this season, the sky might not be a limit to the heights Harmon and Texas can reach in 2024-25.  

A standout prep star in New Jersey, Hidalgo was one of the major breakout rookie stars of the 2023-24 campaign for the Irish. The 5-foot-6 dynamo averaged 22.6 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.5 assists and 4.6 steals per game 3while helping a banged-up Notre Dame group reach the Sweet 16, winning ACC Defensive Player of the Year honors and being named a first-team All-American by the AP. Now, longtime Irish star Oliva Miles (more on her in a bit) is healthy again, so we’ll see if Hidalgo’s production dips.

Following her breakout third season at Stanford in 2023-24, the 6-3 Iriafen moved down the California coast to USC, where the Trojans are poised for big things and perhaps harken back to the program’s glory days of the early 1980s. Iriafen earned Katrina McClain Award honors (awarded to the nation’s best power forward) by setting career highs of 19.4 points, 11.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game while starting all 36 games. The 2024 Pac-12 Most Improved Player of the Year now has plenty of elite support to possibly help the third-ranked Trojans to their first national title since 1984.

The jump James made from her sophomore to junior season of 2023-24 was pretty remarkable. Her scoring average increased from 6.8 to 16.8, and she averaged 23.4 points during the Wolfpacks’ NCAA Tournament run to the Final Four. In addition to her scoring improvement, James set career highs for for rebounds (4.6) and assists (2.9) last season. With fellow backcourt standout Saniya Rivers back to join James, NC State could again make a deep tournament run. 

In 96 games spanning three seasons, Jensen has totaled 1,471 points while shooting 44.2 percent from the field and making 224 3-point attempts for the Bluejays. She averaged a career-high 17.4 points last season, and shot a stellar 90.7 percent from the free-throw line. If it weren’t for the UConn stars, Jensen would likely get more national attention outside of the Big East, but she’s shown the ability to more than hold her own.

There is plenty of talent in Baton Rouge for the Tigers to again make a push for the national championship. Among LSU’s stars is Johnson, who averaged 14.9 points and 5.5 rebounds as a sophomore in 2023-24. And, perhaps most impressive, she averaged 20.5 points and 6.3 rebounds during LSU’s four NCAA Tournament contests. It’s moments like that during the postseason which prove Johnson could be the Tigers’ big-game, clutch performer in 2024-25. 

Entering her junior season, Latson should be in the mix for ACC Player of the Year with the aforementioned Hannah Hidalgo. As a freshman, the 5-foot-8 fireball Latson averaged 21.3 points and was named National Freshman of the Year. Last season, Latson averaged 21.4 points. In her two seasons, Latson has totaled 1,354 points, 279 rebounds and 101 steals over 64 games for the Seminoles. Is it possible she can be even better this time around?

Lee has begun her seventh year of college, and with two redshirt seasons under her belt, she is amid her fifth run on the court for the Wildcats. When healthy, Lee has been honored as Big 12 Freshman of the Year (2000), a four-time All-Big 12 first teamer and twice on the league’s All-Defensive team. She’s totaled 2,194 points (19.2 ppg), 1,118 rebounds (9.8 rpg) and 310 blocks for her stellar collegiate career that finally appears to be going into its swan song at Kansas State.

Leger-Walker arrived at UCLA following a stellar career at Washington State, where in four seasons, she averaged 16.6 points, 5.6 rebounds and 3.7 assists while starting all 105 games played. However, her Cougars career ended after 21 games last season due to a knee injury that leaves her UCLA debut up in the air. Thus, it makes Leger-Walker an intriguing transfer, who if healthy, can have a major impact for the Bruins, who will be led by the aforementioned Lauren Betts and talented forward Kikki Rice. 

McMahon was Big Ten Freshman of the Year in 2022-23, when she averaged 15.1 points on 51 percent shooting for the Buckeyes. And, while that production dropped a bit last season (14.4 ppg, 46-percent shooting), she did raise her rebounding average to 6.3 per contest and was still honored as a first-team All-Big Ten selection. Now, with Jacy Sheldon and Celeste Taylor gone, this should be McMahon’s team. We’ll see if she can handle that high-profile role.

The key for Miles throughout her career at Notre Dame has been about trying to stay healthy. Injuries cut short her first season in 2020-21 and again at the end of 2023-24, so Miles is determined to make it through a full campaign. Miles, though, is back, hoping to team with the aforementioned Hannah Hidalgo and keep the Irish in the national title conversation. In 67 career games, Miles has averaged 13.6 points, on 46.1-percent shooting, 6.8 assists and 6.2 rebounds.

With Angel Reese gone, Morrow seems poised to take on a prominent leadership role for the Tigers this season. After starring at DePaul, Morrow delivered a strong first season at LSU in 2023-24, earning all-SEC First-Team honors for averaging 16.4 points and 10.0 rebounds. Morrow’s  21 double-doubles also ranked among the top five in the nation. Morrow, who has recorded 2,178 points and 1,229 rebounds for her stellar collegiate career, was named a preseason honorable mention All-American from the AP.

The Hawkeyes can’t replace a player the caliber of Caitlin Clark, but when it comes to offensive production, Olsen isn’t too shabby. Last season at Villanova, Olsen ranked third in the country averaging 23.3 points. She also posted team highs of 134 assists and 65 steals. The Hawkeyes don’t boast the same expectations they did with Clark in tow the past few seasons, but it will be interesting to see how Olsen is embraced as a new era of Iowa basketball dawns.

Paopao certainly made a strong first impression with the Gamecocks in 2023-24. After starring at Oregon, Paopao proved her worth by averaging 11.0 points and posting a Division I-best 46.8 shooting percentage from 3-point range during her initial run at South Carolina. In addition, Paopao averaged nearly four assists per contest. Teamed with the aforementioned MiLaysia Fulwiley and two-time national champ Raven Johnson, the Gamecocks still have the best backcourt in America. 

A two-time, first-team All-Big Ten performer, Sellers has been one of the league’s most consistently potent performers in recent years. After averaging 13.9 points as a sophomore in 2022-23, Sellers stepped it up to a career-high 15.6 last season. She’s a career 45-percent shooter and has also averaged 4.8 boards and 4.0 assists per contest during her collegiate career. The Terps received a boost through the transfer portal this season, so Sellers might not have to do it all as happened in the past.  

A year ago, the 6-2 Watkins was the nation’s top recruit. By the end of the season, most women’s hoops experts would argue that only Caitlin Clark was better. Watkins, a preseason player of the year favorite in Year 2, leads USC after she scored an NCAA Division I freshman-record 920 points. That translated into a 27.1 ppg average, to go along with the 7.3 rebounds and 3.3 assists she posted per game. As noted earlier, depending on who is doing the talking, the aforementioned Paige Bueckers or Watkins enter the season as the country’s best player.