The UConn women's basketball team, fresh off their 2025 NCAA championship victory, has remained largely unaffected by the transfer portal's activity. Only one player, sophomore guard Qadence Samuels, left the program seeking more playing time. This contrasts with other top teams, such as South Carolina and UCLA, who experienced significant roster changes due to player transfers.
UConn has a history of being selective in their transfer acquisitions, adding only three players since 2019, all of whom were highly successful. Coach Geno Auriemma’s strategy prioritizes adding players who specifically address the team's needs.
With three incoming freshmen and the likely return of Ayanna Patterson, UConn doesn't anticipate significant transfer additions. Their focus is on finding players who perfectly fit their system and needs.
UConn's biggest need is in the frontcourt, particularly at center. Serah Williams, a 6-foot-4 junior forward from Wisconsin, is a potential target, noted for her defensive prowess and offensive skills. Her connection to former UConn assistant coach Marisa Moseley could facilitate the transfer. Competition for Williams includes North Carolina and LSU.
Another possibility is a veteran guard to fill the void left by Paige Bueckers and Kaitlyn Chen. Iyanna Moore from Vanderbilt is mentioned, as her experience playing under UConn alum Shea Ralph could be appealing.
UConn's approach to the transfer portal remains conservative, prioritizing quality over quantity. The team's success stems from maintaining a strong core and strategically adding players who seamlessly integrate into the team's playing style and culture.
Amid one of the most chaotic transfer portal cycles yet, the UConn women’s basketball team remained virtually unaffected by the new era of college sports coming off of its 2025 NCAA championship.
The spring transfer portal window officially closed on Wednesday, meaning no new players can enter and maintain eligibility for the 2025-26 season. Only one UConn player, sophomore guard Qadence Samuels, entered the portal after averaging less than six minutes per game last season, and coach Geno Auriemma said Samuels’s decision was largely about seeking an opportunity with more playing time.
Meanwhile, nearly every other contender UConn faced on the way to the national title had at least one key contributor transfer out in the last month. South Carolina sophomore MiLaysia Fulwiley entered the portal after helping the Gamecocks make back-to-back NCAA championship appearances. UCLA starter Londynn Jones commimitted to rival USC after the Bruins reached their first Final Four in program history.
USC lost two standouts from its top-ranked 2024 recruiting class, former No. 13 prospect Kayleigh Heckel and No. 16 Avery Howell (Washington), who both played significant minutes in the NCAA Tournament after JuJu Watkins’s ACL tear. UCLA’s entire freshman class also entered the portal, and rival Notre Dame lost both star senior Olivia Miles (TCU) and five-star freshman Kate Koval (LSU) among four transfers out.
The Huskies haven’t lost a single starter to the transfer portal since it was established in 2019, but they are also notoriously picky about incoming additions. Auriemma has signed just three transfers in the portal era, and all three were remarkably successful.
Dorka Juhasz came to UConn after three years at Ohio State and started 44 games over two years, averaging 14.2 points plus 9.9 rebounds in her final season. Fairfield transfer Lou Lopez Senechal played nearly 32 minutes per game in her lone season with the Huskies, leading the team in 3-point percentage and averaging 15.5 points. Kaitlyn Chen was the latest example in 2024-25, starting all 40 games and shooting a career-best 51.4% for UConn as a graduate transfer from Princeton.
Inside WNBA Draft Night: Entire UConn women’s team celebrates together as three Huskies chosen
Auriemma has never signed more than one transfer in an offseason, and with three incoming freshmen replacing three graduating seniors, he isn’t likely to do so this year either. But with many of the biggest names already off the board, UConn will be battling stiff competition from around the country for the top remaining talent, so it also wouldn’t be a shock to see the Huskies go without any additions. The team didn’t sign any transfers in 2023-24 or 2020-21.
“Everything is about, what do we need? What spots are most crucial? Is anybody out there who fits?” Auriemma said after the Huskies’s championship parade last week. “We’ve been so lucky with Dorka, Lou, Kaitlyn. It’s been so perfect, so is it realistic to think there are people out there who are a perfect fit for us? I don’t know. We’ve got a lot of pieces back, so there’s no decision that have been made about anybody definitely coming.”
Superstar point guard Paige Bueckers is UConn’s biggest loss entering 2025-26, but the team’s more immediate needs are up front. Auriemma never seemed comfortable relying on centers Jana El Alfy or Ice Brady this season, preferring to run a small lineup with freshman Sarah Strong as the lone forward on the floor, and though both have room develop after another year of experience, adding a proven post player would give the Huskies a dimension they missed at times in 2024-25. The team has two freshman forwards in the 2025 class and also hopes to return Ayanna Patterson after a shoulder injury sidelined her for all of last year, but adding a transfer creates more depth for them to adjust rather than needing to contribute immediately.
The best fit available for UConn is Wisconsin transfer Serah Williams, a 6-foot-4 junior forward originally from Brooklyn. Williams averaged 10.7 rebounds and 2.8 blocks per game in 2023-24 to earn Big Ten Defensive Player of the Year, but she proved herself a two-way standout logging a career-best 19.2 points per game last season plus 9.8 rebounds and 2.3 blocks. Bueckers averaged more blocks last seen than either El Alfy or Brady, so the Huskies don’t have another true rim protector on their roster with Williams’s size and length.
The Huskies have an easy in with Williams via former Wisconsin head coach Marisa Moseley, who was an assistant for five national championships on Auriemma’s staff from 2009-18. Williams is also reportedly considering North Carolina and took a visit to LSU last week where the Tigers rolled out the red carpet. LSU has already signed two other transfer forwards in Koval and former East Carolina standout Amiya Joyner, but the team is also looking to replace first-round WNBA Draft pick Aneesah Morrow.
UConn could also consider a veteran guard with the departures of Bueckers and Chen leaving a void in both the lineup and leadership. Chen made a smooth transition in part thanks to her experience playing for former Husky Carla Berube at Princeton, so Vanderbilt guard Iyanna Moore might be of interest after playing the last three years under UConn alum Shea Ralph.
Moore was the third option behind Vanderbilt’s duo of star freshmen in 2024-25, but she still averaged 12.4 points and 2.7 assists shooting nearly 35% from 3-point range. The 5-8 junior would likely be a role player at UConn, which may not be what she’s looking for in a new team, but the Huskies could certainly use a reliable spark off the bench with sophomores KK Arnold and Ashlynn Shade poised to step back into starting positions.
Originally Published: April 25, 2025 at 7:00 AM EDT
Skip the extension — just come straight here.
We’ve built a fast, permanent tool you can bookmark and use anytime.
Go To Paywall Unblock Tool