This week on The IX Sports Podcast College Basketball Edition, hosts Michael Waterloo and Melissa Triebwasser sit down with Syracuse Women’s Basketball Head Coach Felisha Legette-Jack to discuss how she built her roster.
Waterloo jumped into the conversation by asking Legette-Jack about what she looks like when evaluating players in the transfer portal, like Emily Rodriguez. Rodriguez played at the University of Central Florida and for the University of Iowa before landing at Syracuse in May of 2026.
“We lost Sophie Burrows, a young lady we thought [we were] going to have come back. And how are you going to replace that? You replace it with Emily Rodriguez, who’s been to two different schools and really haven’t showcased her talents yet,” Legette-Jack said.
“She can play multiple positions. She can play the point, the two, or the three. I mean, she can shoot the three balls. She can get to the nail. She can get to the to the the cup out the basket, and she can make free throws, and she can bring the ball down seamlessly,” Legette-Jack said, adding that Rodriguez has grown her game on the defensive end of the court, too.
Syracuse also picked up Jaleesa Molina from the transfer portal in the spring. Molina spent three years playing at Temple University.
“She’s in the gym all the time … with other people. You know, sometimes people find a friend and they [stick with them]. She’s in the gym with different players every single time, and that’s a credit to my coaching staff and to who she is as a as a young lady, so I can’t say enough great things about her,” Legette-Jack said.
Tune in to the episode to hear what song gets Legette-Jack ready to go pregame, her favorite coffee spot, and which of her players is the most vocal locker room leader.
Make sure to subscribe to The IX Sports Podcast for in-depth coverage of women’s soccer, hockey and basketball; and tune in each weekday morning for a quick overview of the biggest headlines on Women’s Sports Daily, like WNBA news and PWHL expansion updates.
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