Top 5 women’s basketball teams that came out on top in the 2025 transfer portal

Women’s basketball had a hopping portal period and a few new NCAA competitors emerged. Or, more accurately, a couple of solid squads built on an extra layer of strength. The power dynamic of college basketball may have shifted and some of the top squads are making an even bigger jump ahead of the field. Here’s a rundown of five portal winners from the spring portal period.

Top 5 women’s teams that won in the 2025 transfer portal

5. Maryland

The Terps had a very productive portal run. Coach Brenda Frese filled out an already decent roster into a top one. She added Gracie Merkle (12.1 points per game, 7.5 rebounds per game at Penn State), Yarden Garzon (14.4 ppg at Indiana) and Oluchi Okananwa (10.1 ppg at Duke). A trio of double-digit scorers, all with major conference experience, was a big boost for Maryland’s roster.

4. Ole Miss

Stuck coming off a senior-heavy team, the Rebels and coach Yolett McPhee-McCuin had to make a portal splash. Suffice it to say that she did. Ohio State forward Cotie McMahon (16.5 ppg, 4.7 rpg) was one of the biggest prizes of the portal. 6-foot-4 Latasha Lattimore (14.3 ppg, 8.2 rpg at Virginia) was another big deal. A six-player class hit hard for the Rebels and next year’s squad.

3. LSU

A case can be made that each of the next two teams did much better or much worse than their respective rankings. Each added quality players… but also lost quality players. Still, both teams seemed to come out better than they entered the portal.

The Tigers picked up South Carolina guard MiLaysia Fulwiley (11.7 ppg for the national runners-up) and then added five-star post player Kate Koval (5.3 ppg, 4.7 rpg as a freshman at Notre Dame). Sa’Myah Smith was a big loss, but these two additions offset any issues there.

2. South Carolina

Carolina took a bit of an up-front hit with the loss of Fulwiley, an integral part of the last two teams. But the Gamecocks didn’t sleep through the portal period. Florida State’s Ta’Niya Latson (25.2 ppg) was the epic scorer that the Gamecocks needed. Outstanding frosh Madina Okot (11.3 ppg, 9.6 rpg at Mississippi State) is an all-SEC level addition inside. Carolina came out to the good on this situation.

1. TCU

The biggest win of the portal goes to the Horned Frogs. TCU lost its top four players off a senior-heavy team and dove back into the portal. Notre Dame’s Olivia Miles (15.4 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 5.8 assists per game) was expected to head to the WNBA and not the portal. She’s an immediate superstar. Kentucky’s 6-foot-7 Clara Silva had massive potential in a season that had her adjust to American hoops.

Cal’s Marta Suarez (12.9 ppg, 7.2 rpg) is another big addition. TCU put together a six-player portal class that puts them right back into college basketball’s upper echelon.

What do you think of our women’s portal winners? Share your take on the teams below in our comments section!

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Joe is a journalist who covers college and professional sports, particularly basketball, football, and baseball. He has written or co-written over a dozen sports books, including several regional best sellers. A member of the Society for American Baseball Research, Joe has been a guest on MLB Network, the Paul Finebaum Show, and numerous other television and radio programs. He has been inside MLB dugouts, covered bowl games and conference tournaments, and most importantly, still loves telling the stories of sports’ movers and shakers.

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Edited by Joe Cox