It’s been noted that our three scholarship freshman entered the transfer portal following a season where they cumulatively logged very few minutes. It’s not unusual for younger players to sit on the bench early in their careers, and in fact, many persevere and blossom into good D1 players. It’s almost impossible to know what motivates these athletes, but it doesn’t matter because if they end up in a preferable environment (in their minds), it’s a win.How have recent transfer outs done? These observations are not meant to be conclusive; they just compare performances at GW versus at the new schools, with a focus on playing time.

Last year Ali Brigham, Neila Luma, Gabbie Nikkitinaite, and Caranda Perea opted out.

Brigham transferred to Penn State in the Big Ten. This year, she started 17/28 games and averaged 18.4 minutes/game. She was PSU’s third leading scorer at 8.4 ppg while shooting 55.4% from the field. She started out strong during PSU’s OOC but became a sub after the conference started and had her minutes reduced. Not surprising since PSU played a guard-oriented offense. PSU finished the season at 11-18 overall and 5-13 in the Big Ten. At GW, where Brigham was often the focal point of the offense, she led the Colonials in scoring at 11.9 ppg on 50.4% shooting while logging 23 minutes/game.

Luma moved to the University of Central Florida (UCF) of the the American Conference. Luma played in 19 games as a sub and averaged just 6.6 minutes/game and 1.2 ppg. At GW, she played 26+ minutes/game as a starter over the course of three full seasons and led the Colonials in rebounding in all three of those years. She led the team in scoring during the 2018-2019 season at 10.4 ppg. Luma had her PT reduced significantly by transferring to UCF, but she ended up playing for a Top 25 program and going to the NCAAs, where UCF lost a close contest to a really good UConn team in the round of 32. UCF was 26-4 overall this year and 14-1 in the American Conference.

Nikkitinaite transferred to Southern Illinois University-Edwardsville (SIUE) of the Ohio Valley Conference. This was a good move for her because she ended up being the Cougars’ best player. She led the team in scoring at 14.3 ppg on 45% shooting in 27.2 minutes/game. In her one year at GW, she did start several games but mostly subbed, logging about 20.7 minutes/game and averaging 7.2 ppg. SIUE finished the season at 13-18 overall and 8-10 in the OVC.

Perea opted for Temple of the American Conference. Temple played UCF earlier in the year, but in that game, Perea only played for 2 minutes and Luma did not play at all. Perea played a similar role for Temple as she did in her season at GW. She came in to spell the front court players, averaging 14 minutes/game and 3.0 ppg. At GW, she played 16.7 minutes/game and averaged 4.2 ppg. Temple finished their season at 13-15 overall and 8-8 in conference play.

Two seasons removed from GW are Tori Hyduke and Kayla MoKwuah. Both switched schools prior to Coach Rizzotti’s termination.

Hyduke chose Drexel of the Colonial League. In her first two years with the Dragons, she has averaged about 10 minutes/game and 3.0 ppg. During that period, she took 67 3-pointers, hitting on 23.8% of them. In her only year at GW, she averaged 29.4 minutes/game and was the team’s second leading scorer at 9.0 ppg. She was also 50-125 (40%) from beyond the arc. At Drexel, Hyduke assumed a bench role and did not get a lot of significant minutes for a very good squad that fell short this year at their conference tournament and settled for a WNIT bid. After bowing out in the third round of the WNIT, Drexel finished 28-6 (16-2 in the Colonial League).

MoKwuah transferred to Texas Christian University (TCU) in the Big 12. Her role at TCU was similar to GW, coming into games as a sub to defend the low post and provide inside scoring. In her two seasons at TCU, she played about 10.5 minutes/game and averaged about 3 ppg and 2.5 rpg. During her two years at GW, she averaged 16 minutes/game, 7 ppg and 3.5 rpg. This year, TCU finished 6-22 overall and 2-16 in the Big 12.

Each individual’s case was different and it shows that transferring often doesn’t equate to more PT. With the exception Nikkitinaiti, every transfer ended up playing less minutes per game than at GW. Nikkitinaite was able to go from a proficient sub at GW to become her new team’s best player. For Luma and Hyduke, the difference in PT was significant, but each got to play for really good teams. Luma got to play at the “Dance”, while Hyduke logged minutes at the WNIT.

The story isn’t over for most, as for those who haven’t graduated or have remaining eligibility, especially Brigham and Perea, there’s a lot of basketball left to be played.

Last edited by xAC (3/25/2022 10:04 am)