LSU women’s basketball is entering a huge offseason as Kim Mulkey looks to replace multiple big-name players.
Angel Reese announced she’ll be entering the WNBA draft and Hailey Van Lith has entered the transfer portal. Reese and Van Lith combined for 30.2 points, 15.8 rebounds and 5.9 assists per game last season.
Reese won SEC Player of the Year award in her final season in purple and gold and played was player of the tournament for LSU during their national championship run. Van Lith never quite got in the groove of things at LSU, but she started 33 games for the Tigers.
LSU’s roster currently features nine returning players. Flau’jae Johnson, Mikaylah Wiliams and Aneesah Morrow headline the group. Johnson was the SEC Freshman of the Year in 2023 and averaged 14.9 points per game last season. She averaged 20.5 points per game in the NCAA tournament.
Williams is the reigning SEC Freshman of the Year and averaged 14.5 points per game in her first college season. She scored 18 points in LSU’s Elite Eight loss to Iowa this season. Morrow is an All-American and trailed only Reese in points and rebounds per game for LSU.
They are joined by Last-Tear Poa, Aalyah Del Rosario, Sa’Myah Smith, Amani Bartlett, Janae Kent and Angelica Velez.
Jada Richard and Jersey Wolfenbarger will be new additions to Mulkey’s team. Richard is the No. 1 player in Louisiana for the 2024 recruiting class. Wolfenbarger is a former five-star recruit that transferred from Arkansas. She played her first two seasons for the Razorbacks and averaged 5.6 points and 3.8 rebounds per game before sitting out last season with the intention to enter the transfer portal.
“Having recruited Jersey out of high school, I am very familiar with the skillset she brings to Baton Rouge,” Mulkey said. “She will bring size to our frontcourt combined with the ability to stretch the floor with her perimeter game. I can’t wait to get Jersey to Baton Rouge and get to work.”
LSU has 11 scholarship players on the roster with the max number of scholarship players being 15. The Tigers might not utilize all 15 spots, but they do have room to add players if Mulkey sees positions of need.
LSU will host multiple transfers over the next month. Clemson guard Ruby Whitehorn and Michigan State guard DeeDee Hagemann are both expected to pay visits to Baton Rouge. Whitehorn averaged 12.3 points and 5.6 rebounds per game her sophomore season at Clemson. She was named to the ACC All-Freshman Team the season before.
Hagemann averaged 12.3 points and 5.2 assists per game for the Spartans last season and earned second-team All-Big Ten honors. She is heading into her senior season and has 72 career starts for Michigan State.
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