KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Few women’s college basketball fans will forget last year’s rematch between LSU and Iowa in the Elite Eight of the 2024 NCAA Tournament. Hawkeyes guard Caitlin Clark torched the Tigers for 41 points, leaving her primary defender, Tigers guard Hailey Van Lith, confounded.
The video of Van Lith shrugging her shoulders as Clark backpedaled down the court will live on as one of the most memorable moments of March Madness, circulating time and time again on social media.
After that season — when it was almost a foregone conclusion that Van Lith would enter the draft — fans started to ask questions about Van Lith’s viability as a professional basketball player. Her draft stock had tanked, and Van Lith finished her only season at LSU looking like a shell of her honorable mention All-American self who dominated at Louisville for three years.
Related reading from March 2024: ‘I know how to fight for Hailey’: Hailey Van Lith talks mental health ahead of LSU Sweet 16 appearance
When the opportunity to transfer arose again, Van Lith took it, announcing her decision to play her last year of eligibility at TCU on April 26.
That decision has paid dividends, as Van Lith is now playing arguably some of the best basketball of her career. Her 17.8 points per game on 45.6% shooting from the field is the most efficient mark of her career. She is also dishing out a career-high 5.3 assists per game.
In her first year in the Big 12, Van Lith was named Big 12 Player of the Year, beating out top contenders like West Virginia’s JJ Quinerly, Iowa State’s Audi Crooks and her own teammate Sedona Prince, all of whom were unanimous first-team All-Big 12 selections.
The TCU version of Van Lith is reminiscent of the Louisville version, with a twist: a new perspective after overcoming last season’s adversity.
“I took my experience in the previous years and I learned from [it],” Van Lith told reporters on Friday. “I think some people go through things and they forget about it. I never forgot. I remembered what I learned in those low moments of my life.”
Whereas last season’s campaign with LSU had its fair share of lows, this season with TCU has presented a plethora of highs. In addition to being named Player of the Year, Van Lith spurred the Horned Frogs to the Big 12 regular-season title.
The year has been transformative not only for Van Lith but also for the program, which earned its highest-ever ranking in the AP poll. TCU flipped several narratives about its talent level on their heads to finish with the most wins in program history and have a real opportunity to host the first two rounds of the NCAA Tournament.
All of this is possible because of the impact Van Lith has had.
“You get to see a different perspective of basketball. She’s been through a whole bunch of things, and I feel like that’s kind of unique about our whole team,” TCU guard Madison Conner told The Next on Friday. “We kind of all learn from each other, and I think that’s awesome. Obviously, she’s a great person, great player, so it’s great to be around her and kind of just see her hard work, and she’s helped us a ton this year.”
Van Lith also brings Olympic experience, having suited up for Team USA’s 3×3 team over the summer. She won a bronze medal alongside professionals Rhyne Howard, Cierra Burdick and Dearica Hamby.
Playing in the Olympics was the first step to smashing the preconceived notions about her level of play coming off the 2023-24 season. When some people questioned why she was on the roster, she shut them up with a team-leading 5.3 points per game and a clutch 6-point performance in the bronze-medal game. Her development as a 3×3 player is part of what’s allowed her to find a new gear in 5×5 play.
“I think it’s helped a ton with the pick-and-roll,” Van Lith told The Next on Friday. “With Sedona, we’re a very pick-and-roll-heavy team, and I was able to get a lot of reps at reads in the pick-and-roll. I think it helped a lot with me being able to throw the pocket pass, with me being able to throw back to the guard that’s filling behind. That’s the No. 1 area, I think.
“And also, one-on-one, it’s helped me play in small spaces. I don’t always need a ton of room to get a shot off now.”
Van Lith’s growth as a player is a testament to the culture and environment TCU head coach Mark Campbell is building in just his second year leading the program. He’s helped refresh other players on the roster, too, and has his team firing on all cylinders at the most crucial time of the season: March.
“I’m so grateful for Coach Campbell,” Van Lith said. “He’s encouraged me to be open with him about how I’m feeling. … He’s been great for me at encouraging me to just let him into my world and what I’m experiencing so that he can help. And it’s paid off for me this year. So grateful for him as a person and a coach, and he’s 100% helped me get better. No question about it.”
With Van Lith able to play with a clear mind, she’s helped contribute to the team’s energy as well. It doesn’t matter whether she’s on the court or cheering on her teammates from the bench; she’s always fired up, bringing tons of energy to spark a run when the team needs it most.
“Playing with Hailey is a blast. We have so much energy,” Prince told reporters on Friday. “We chest-bump probably eight or nine times a game, and with the rest of the girls, too. That’s what we love to do: high energy, making amazing plays for each other and having a blast with the game we love the most.”
The Horned Frogs are carrying everything they experienced and every bit of progress they’ve made this year with them into the postseason. On Friday, they won their first game of the 2025 Big 12 Tournament, a quarterfinal battle with Colorado, and are set to face West Virginia on Saturday afternoon.
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People still have a lot to say about Van Lith, the trajectory of her basketball career and her future at the professional level. However, with the support she has in Fort Worth, Van Lith is not paying any more mind to the keyboard warriors.
“The way that I’ve been able to deal with [social media] this year is that I just don’t deal with it,” Van Lith said. “The opinions don’t matter. Me winning or losing Player of the Year, at the end of the day, this doesn’t matter. Everyone’s always gonna have an opinion. It doesn’t make it right or factual. And so I know who I am in my heart. I know my game.”
