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Tracking the notable women’s basketball players returning in 2024-25, including UConn’s Paige Bueckers

As the 2023-24 women’s college basketball season winds down, we’re going to get announcements – perhaps on senior nights, or in the forms of social media graphics – of seniors announcing whether they will use their extra year of eligibility.

Because of the NCAA’s rule during the COVID-19 pandemic, the 2020-21 season did not count towards a player’s eligibility clock. So, anyone who played that season has had the chance to play an extra season of college basketball. This has created an overflowing transfer portal, older teams, and to some degree, increased parity in the sport of women’s basketball.

The 2020-21 freshman class was a star-studded one, and the final class that will benefit from this rule. UConn’s Paige Bueckers has already announced her return, while decisions loom for other superstar players like Iowa’s Caitlin Clark, LSU’s Angel Reese, Stanford’s Cameron Brink and North Carolina’s Deja Kelly. Don’t be surprised if some of these players decide not to enter the WNBA Draft. We saw several of the game’s top players return to school last season.

With this list, we’ll keep track of all the players who have publicly declared that they will return to women’s college basketball for another season in the 2024-25 campaign:

Updated: March 9

Paige Bueckers, UConn

UNCASVILLE, CONNECTICUT – DECEMBER 10: Paige Bueckers #5 of the UConn Huskies celebrates in the first quarter against the North Carolina Tar Heels at Mohegan Sun Arena on December 10, 2023 in Uncasville, Connecticut. (Photo by Greg Fiume/Getty Images)

Bueckers was projected by many to be a top-five pick in this year’s WNBA Draft, but it’s clear that she feels like she has some unfinished business with the Huskies. Since leading UConn to back-to-back Final Fours as a freshman and sophomore, Bueckers’ time at UConn has been plagued with injuries to her and her teammates.

She’s stayed healthy this season, but teammates like Azzi Fudd, Aubrey Griffin and Caroline Ducharme have been sidelined. Bueckers – and Griffin – will return to UConn for one more run at a championship next season.

Kaitlyn Chen, Princeton

Dec 8, 2022; Storrs, Connecticut, USA; Princeton Tigers guard Kaitlyn Chen (20) drives the ball against UConn Huskies forward Lou Lopez-Senechal (11) in the second half at Harry A. Gampel Pavilion. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-USA TODAY Sports

Chen is going to play another year of college basketball, but it won’t be at Princeton. The Ivy League generally does not allow graduate students to compete in varsity athletics, so Chen’s eligibility in the conference will expire this spring. So, she’s been in the portal since September while having a great season for the Tigers, averaging 16 points, 4.6 assists and 3.2 rebounds per game while shooting 37.3% from 3-point land.

The Ivy League is a tough mid-major conference and good players from the league have provided big boosts to major programs over the past few years as transfers. Harvard’s McKenzie Forbes is USC’s second-leading scorer this season behind JuJu Watkins, and Princeton’s Abby Meyers helped Maryland make the Elite Eight last season before getting drafted.

The Ivy League didn’t play during Chen’s freshman season, so next year will be her fourth college basketball campaign.

Yvonne Ejim, Gonzaga

March 7, 2023; Las Vegas, NV, USA; Gonzaga Bulldogs forward Yvonne Ejim (15) shoots the basketball against the Portland Pilots during the first half in the finals of the WCC Basketball Championships at Orleans Arena. Mandatory Credit: Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

One of the top forwards in the country, Ejim has led the Bulldogs in scoring this season with 20.2 points per game as they have won 21 straight games and put themselves in position to potentially host NCAA Tournament games as a top-16 seed.

Ejim is the only player in the country (as of Feb. 24) averaging at least 20 points, eight rebounds, two assists and one block per game. She’s been crucial to Gonzaga’s success this season and has showed she can play with anyone in the country. In the Bulldogs’ Dec. 3 win over Stanford, she had 27 points and 12 rebounds.

Kyla Jones, Brown

Kyla Jones goes up past Providence’s Olivia Olsen on Nov. 15, 2023. (David DelPoio / USA TODAY NETWORK)

Like Chen, Jones will return to another season of college basketball next year, but it will be at a school other than Brown. Jones has been in the transfer portal since December while playing well for the Bears this season, averaging 16.7 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. She’s scored more than 1,000 points in her career at Brown and should be able to help a major conference program next season.

Sydney Parrish, Indiana

Feb 22, 2024; Bloomington, Indiana, USA; Indiana Hoosiers guard Sydney Parrish (33) reacts to making a shot during the second half against the Iowa Hawkeyes at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall. Mandatory Credit: Marc Lebryk-USA TODAY Sports

Parrish announced back in December that she would play a fifth season of college basketball with the Hoosiers. She played her first two years of college ball at Oregon and has been with Indiana for the last two. Wherever she’s been, she’s been a sharp 3-point shooter, knocking down 40.2% of her shots from distance this season.

The 6-foot-2 guard dealt with a foot injury earlier this season, but returned to the Indiana lineup on Feb. 22 and scored seven points in their upset win over Iowa.

Chloe Moore-McNeil, Indiana

BLOOMINGTON, INDIANA – FEBRUARY 11: Chloe Moore-McNeil #22 of the Indiana Hoosiers shoots the ball against the Purdue Boilermakers at Simon Skjodt Assembly Hall on February 11, 2024 in Bloomington, Indiana. (Photo by Andy Lyons/Getty Images)

Moore-McNeil is the second Indiana starter to announce she’ll be back for a fifth season, joining Sydney Parrish. The guard averages a team-leading 4.7 assists per game this season and is shooting a career-best 42.1% from 3-point land for the Hoosiers.

Emily Ryan, Iowa State

Iowa State Cyclones guard Emily Ryan (11) celebrates after winning 74-49 over BYU in an NCAA women’s basketball at Hilton Coliseum on Feb. 24 2024, in Ames, Iowa.

An All-Big 12 selection last season, Ryan announced that she’ll be back for another run with the Cyclones. As the point guard for some really good Iowa State teams over the past four seasons, Ryan has racked up more than 700 assists and has been among the top 16 nationally in assists per game in each of the past four seasons. This year, she’s shooting a career-best 48.1% from the floor too.

Madison Hayes, N.C. State

RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA – FEBRUARY 29: Madison Hayes #21 of the NC State Wolfpack reacts following a basket in overtime of the game against the Syracuse Orange at Reynolds Coliseum on February 29, 2024 in Raleigh, North Carolina. NC State won 75-71 in OT. (Photo by Lance King/Getty Images)

Hayes announced on N.C. State’s senior day that she would be back in Raleigh for fifth season. After starting her college career at Mississippi State, Hayes has blossomed into a do-it-all leader for the Wolfpack. Her versatility shines through in this stat: Among players who attempt at least 3.5 3-pointers per game, Hayes is one of six players nationally — and the only one playing in a major conference — that shoots better than 40% from beyond the arc while also averaging seven rebounds per game. She’s third on the Wolfpack in scoring with 11.5 points per game.

Te-Hina Paopao, South Carolina

Oct 19, 2023; Birmingham, AL, USA; South Carolina Gamecocks guard Te-Hina Paopao talks with the media during the SEC Basketball Tipoff at Grand Bohemian Hotel Mountain Brook. Mandatory Credit: Vasha Hunt-USA TODAY Sports

Paopao announced on social media after the Gamecocks finished off their second straight undefeated regular season that she would return to South Carolina for another season. Paopao played three years at Oregon before joining Dawn Staley’s side this season. She’s eighth in the nation in 3-point shooting percentage with a 48.6% mark. She’s also 18th in the country in offensive rating with a mark of 127.7.

Olivia Cochran, Louisville

Mar 4, 2023; Greensboro, NC, USA; Louisville Cardinals forward Olivia Cochran (44) battles for position against Notre Dame Fighting Irish forward Maddy Westbeld (21) during the second half at Greensboro Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: William Howard-USA TODAY Sports

Cochran, who has started in 128 of the 133 games she’s played in at Louisville, announced in February that she would return to the Cardinals for a fifth season. She averages 9.3 points and 6.2 rebounds per game and made the All-ACC Tournament team in 2023, and was a key player on Louisville’s 2022 run to the Final Four.

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