PHOENIX — The 2026 women’s college basketball season will conclude on the court in just a matter of days, but in today’s age, the work never stops off the court. That’s because programs are in a constant race to utilize the ever-important transfer portal to improve their rosters from season to season.
Likewise, college athletes are taking advantage of the portal to hopefully find a better home — with a variety of perks like NIL opportunity, more playing time or simply a change of scenery proving to be alluring.
Gone are the days when every program in the nation was primarily composed of homegrown talent, players who began and ended their careers at one university. It’s created quite a polarizing effect in college athletics, especially women’s basketball, as mid-major programs have struggled to keep up.
The remaining teams in the 2026 Final Four, UConn, UCLA, Texas and South Carolina, are all No. 1 seeds from their respective regions. Each has enjoyed sustained success in its own way and has utilized the transfer portal to varying degrees. But what they share is clear: they are the sport’s powerhouses at this moment in time. How they got here, however, tells four different stories — each shaped, in part, by their approach to the portal this season.
UConn
No powerhouse has reigned superior for longer than Geno Auriemma’s UConn Huskies. Auriemma is entering his 25th Final Four, and is doing so with an undefeated 38-0 record and the tournament’s top overall seed.
As one can imagine, that reputation alone has allowed the program to largely avoid the “transfer portal epidemic” and continue to be primarily built through enticing top recruits who ultimately become stars. Sarah Strong and Azzi Fudd are the latest examples of this.
Yet still, even the old-school Auriemma has adapted to where the sport is headed. Although the Huskies currently have just two transfers on their roster, the fewest among the teams in the Final Four, both have played significant roles during this so-far perfect season.
Forward Serah Williams arrived in Storrs after starting 89 games across three seasons with the Wisconsin Badgers. Williams has continued to start every game this season for the Huskies, as her size and defensive versatility has proven to be a crucial complement to Strong in the frontcourt.
However, stepping into a program with championship expectations and an already established culture can come with its own challenges. Earning trust and finding confidence becomes just as important as fitting into the system.
“A lot of times, I have to constantly remind myself that I am new and to give myself some grace,” Williams told The IX Sports. “But also stay confident to the point where I’m like, ‘I am here for a reason.’”
UConn’s other transfer, Kayleigh Heckel from USC, is still just a sophomore — meaning she took a big leap of faith to join an already deep roster as an underclassmen. Coming off the bench, Heckel has been a spark plug that can run the offense and be a pest on defense.
Coincidentally, Heckel’s last game with USC was a matchup in the Elite 8 against UConn, a game in which the Huskies won by six en route to a national championship victory. They say, “If you can’t beat them, join them,” and for Heckel, that was a decision she would come to not regret.
“I think it’s really cool me and [Williams] both found success here and have impacted the team in some way,” Heckel told The IX Sports. “This team is extremely close and they always have been, and just to be a part of that is super special … I kind of knew right after I visited that I wanted to come here, and I think it’s all worked out.”
While UConn has found a way to selectively benefit from the portal without compromising its identity, Auriemma is well aware that not every program has that luxury. The same system that allows contenders to reload with proven talent has simultaneously made it harder for smaller programs, and even high school prospects, to keep pace in an increasingly competitive landscape.
“I think that was the death of the mid majors,” Auriemma said of the portal. “It’s never been harder for a high school kid to have the same opportunities that an existing college player already has. When your choice is, ‘go get a high school senior, or go get a college sophomore,’ a lot of coaches are deciding that getting a college sophomore is way better. And the place where they usually go to get them is a mid major.”
UCLA
Contrary to UConn, there’s UCLA. Bruins coach Cori Close has embraced the transfer portal as a major tool when it comes to teambuilding. Three of UCLA’s five starters began their college careers at a different school, a recipe many other programs have also followed in today’s college basketball. However, Close stands out in how she uses the portal as leverage, rather than a necessity.
“Being in Los Angeles is a tremendous advantage because I can say that the NIL package that I provide is just the floor, not the ceiling,” Close told The IX Sports. “What they can build on top of what we’re able to offer as the number one media market of all Power 5 schools has been a huge selling point for us.”
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Look no further than star center Lauren Betts as an example, who some may forget spent a season at Stanford before transferring to UCLA and assuming a much greater role as the team’s leading scorer and rebounder for the past three seasons. For Betts, the move was about finding the right environment to grow, both as a player and a person.
“Coming to UCLA has been the best decision I’ve ever made,” Betts said. “My only reasoning to come to UCLA is because I just wanted to be happy. At the end of the day, I wanted to be surrounded by people who had confidence in me and who could make me better as a person on and off the court.”
Betts is joined by newcomers Charlisse Leger-Walker and Gianna Kneepkens as the other transfers in UCLA’s starting lineup. Leger-Walker, who came to Westwood from Washington State and leads the Bruins in assists and steals, echoed Close’s sentiment about how deciding to transfer to UCLA goes far beyond the game.
“There’s so many things I’ve been able to do, not just with basketball, but the opportunities off the court,” Leger-Walker told The IX Sports. “The network that I have with UCLA and the alumni is second to none … I think a lot of people only see the transfer portal with one lens, and for a lot of players, there’s a lot of other things they take into consideration.”
Another issue raised by the increase in transferring is the fear of lacking continuity with so many pieces moving in and out the door. Programs like UConn have shown how dynasties can be formed when the same players are around each other year after year. It’s not easy when coaches basically have a brand new team each season.
However, that issue hasn’t plagued UCLA. The Bruins are 35-1 on the year, with their lone loss being to Texas — who they will play tonight for a spot in the national championship. That record is the best in program history, and an improvement from last season’s 34-3 team that also made the Final Four.
Instead of being disruptive, the influx of new pieces has only strengthened UCLA’s cohesion and identity.
“Playing basketball in a different system is going to take time,” Kneepkens told The IX Sports. “I think it took maybe a month or so in the summer just to get the actions and to see what people like to do. Getting to know everyone off the court made a huge difference.”
Unlocking that new level for players stepping into larger roles has paid off. With trust from the coaching staff and a system tailored to their strengths, players have been able to expand their games in ways that weren’t previously possible, both statistically and mentally.
“I’ve gained a certain level of confidence,” Betts said. “I’ve done things that I never thought I’d be able to do my freshman year, and the amount of experiences I’ve had and people that I’ve met here have been amazing. So I’m just super grateful.”
Texas
In a similar style to Auriemma, longtime coach Vic Schaefer has built Texas with a balance of investing into high school recruits while also supplementing the roster with key role players from the transfer portal.
Point guard Rori Harmon is a good example of a highly touted prospect that has spent all five of her college seasons in burnt orange with the Longhorns. But the team is also home to Kyla Oldacre and Breya Cunningham, who have found new homes in Texas and have contributed mightily to the team’s success.
Both frontcourt players average around 20 minutes per game, and combine to average 18.3 points, 11.2 rebounds and 2.1 blocks — a huge boost next to Longhorns star forward Madison Booker. Oldacre, who comes off the bench, transferred before the 2023-24 season from Miami, while Cunningham is new this year from Arizona and starts.
For Schaefer, who has spent years coaching in the SEC with the goal of building a tough, physical roster like those of Pat Summitt and Jody Conradt, the towering 6’6 Oldacre and 6’4 Cunningham fit the mold of the player he loves to develop.
“You just had to look the part,” Schaefer said. “When you got off the bus, you better look like that kind of team. When I got the job at Mississippi State, we didn’t have anyone that looked like an SEC player, much less was skilled like one. So we had to go recruit SEC bodies and frames, because if I was going to play like coach Conradt and coach Summitt, physical and aggressive, I got to get those kinds of players with those kinds of frames.”
Still, Schaefer too understands the double-edged sword that is the transfer portal. After news dropped Thursday morning that Iowa State star center Audi Crooks would be joining a long list of Cyclones entering the transfer portal, Schaefer was visibly disheartened for friend and Iowa State coach Bill Fennelly when asked about it during his Final Four press conference later in the day.
“I mean, you’re talking about somebody that has literally given his life to this game,” Schaefer said. “Bill and his whole family have given so much to this game, to so many young women … It’s just not the same job it was five years ago. Certainly not what it was 10, 15, 20 years ago … We better figure it out, or we’re going to become extinct.”
South Carolina
Some consider Dawn Staley’s South Carolina Gamecocks to be the newest blue blood in women’s college hoops after three national championships and eight Final Four appearances since 2015.
As such, one might expect Staley to be someone who has mastered the modern transfer portal. At the same time, South Carolina’s reputation has risen under Staley so much that they’ve had no shortage of five-star recruits define their team — such as A’ja Wilson and Aliyah Boston in seasons past, and now Joyce Edwards and Raven Johnson.
But to be a modern blue blood, you have to adapt to the modern game, which Staley has also done through the transfer portal. Kamilla Cardoso and Allisha Gray are storied Gamecocks that come to mind who started their careers wearing a different uniform.
This season, it’s Florida State transfer Ta’Niya Latson and Mississippi State transfer Madina Okot hoping to join that list of legendary South Carolina players. Latson, a 5’8 guard, is second on the team in scoring with 14.4 points per game, while Okot is right behind her averaging 13.2 points along with a team-high 10.8 rebounds per game.
Both have made this South Carolina team look very different than the one that lost to UConn a year ago, something that many on both sides noted ahead of tonight’s Final Four rematch.
“Our two wins against them last year don’t mean anything going into tomorrow,” Auriemma said. “They’ve added some really key pieces, I think they’re a much better team than they were last year.”
Latson recalls watching UConn’s 82-59 victory over South Carolina in the national championship before transferring for her final season before likely hearing her name called in the 2026 WNBA Draft.
“Seeing that, I was like, ‘dang, UConn is a machine,’” Latson said. “But I knew I could bring a difference to South Carolina [with] my maturity, leadership and scoring ability. It was also like, ‘what can they give me?’ It was an exchange — I gave them something, and they gave me something, with them giving me a Final Four. I wouldn’t be here today without my coaches and teammates, and I feel like it’s been well worth it.”
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