Wisconsin Women’s Basketball National Transfer Portal Options

The Wisconsin women’s basketball team has four open scholarships by my count heading into the offseason and I’d recommend that they fill all four of them. UW only had 14 filled this past season for reasons I’m unclear on since another member wasn’t added to the 2024 recruiting class, so hopefully it was being banked for a big transfer portal haul.

Wisconsin has a solid core of returning players but they need a talent infusion at any and all positions if they’re hoping to compete for an NCAA Tournament bid next season. Let’s go over the current roster (and their class) as it stands on April 9, 2024:

PG: Ronnie Porter (Junior); Leena Patibandla (Sophomore)
SG: D’Yanis Jimenez (Sophomore); Lily Krahn (Junior)
W/F: Halle Douglass (Super Senior); Ana Guillen (Sophomore); Gracie Grzesk (Freshman)
W/F: Tessa Grady (Sophomore); Imbie Jones (Sophomore)
C: Serah Williams (Junior); Alie Bisballe (Freshman)

Undecided: Natalie Leuzinger (Super Senior, would replace Grady in starting five)
In transfer portal: Sania Copeland (SG); Tessa Towers (C); Sacia Vanderpool (F)
Graduated: Brooke Schramek (W/G)

Now this isn’t some set in stone depth chart, more of just a visual representation of the players Wisconsin has and where they’d probably play on the court. Here is what I imagine Marisa Moseley and her staff will be looking for in the portal.

Needs: veteran post; shooting at, uh, any/every position; perimeter defender; backup ball handler

With four open spots on the roster Wisconsin COULD meet all of these needs and, since some of these skill sets overlap, they could get multiple players that fulfill them. I have made a pretty sizable list of players I think UW should target, so let’s go through some of them!

We already took a look at some players who are from Wisconsin and might want to return to their home state and some Big Ten players who may want to stay in the conference earlier this week, so now let’s get to the thrilling conclusion of our three-part series: Other Players Wisconsin Might Be Interested In.

The class listed with the player is their class for the 2024-25 season.

Other Players Wisconsin Women’s Basketball Might Be Interested In

Janae Walker, Kentucky, 6-foot-3, forward, sophomore, Tyrone, Ga.

The ‘Cats currently have eight players in the transfer portal (they are going through a coaching change) and the most intriguing one for Wisconsin is rising sophomore Janae Walker. The Badgers were heavily involved in Walker’s recruitment during high school and could be a player again now that she is in the portal. She starred for Sandy Creek High School down in Georgia and ended up at UK after first committing to Gardner-Webb.

As a senior she was named the GHSA Class 3A Best Rebounder, the GHSA Class 3A Region 5 Player of the Year, and was the Fayette County All-County Player of the Year while averaging 20.3 ppg, 14.8 rpg, and 2.3 bpg. She brings a lot of similar skills to the table that Wisconsin fans have come to know and love about Serah Williams. I’d argue that Walker has a bit more of an advanced perimeter game on offense though.

She didn’t play much in Lexington as a freshman, averaging 7.5 mpg in 28 appearances, so there isn’t too much to glean from her first year stats. If the Badgers brought her on board it would solely be as a “potential play” and the trust that they had in their evaluation of her coming out of high school.

Emma Ronsiek, Creighton 6-foot-1, forward, senior, Sioux Falls, S.D.

Getting Ronsiek to Madison might be wishful thinking, but she can’t say “yes” unless you ask! Coming out of high school, Ronsiek won every “best player in the state” award you could think of in South Dakota. She was also an all-state volleyball player as a sophomore and junior.

Ronsiek made the Big East All-Freshman team, then All-Big East First Team as a sophomore, All-Big East Honorable Mention as a junior, and then First Team again as a senior. In her final season as a Blue Jay, she averaged 16.8 ppg, 5.3 rpg, 2.7 apg, 1.0 spg, and 1.2 bpg. Each stat was a career-high except for assists (she averaged 3.0 as a junior) and she had her highest points per shot attempt AND usage as a senior too.

I can’t imagine Wisconsin would be high on her list but, as always, make her say “no” before throwing in the towel.

Grace Massaquoi, North Dakota State, 5-foot-10, forward, sophomore, Minneapolis 

This is a bit of a curious case, so stick with me. Massaquoi, a native of the Twin Cities, committed to North Dakota State College of Science out of high school. She played one season there and was named an NJCAA All-American Third Team selection. She averaged 15.0 ppg, 9.1 rpg, and 2.2 spg during her freshman season.

She then transferred to North Dakota State, played five games for the Bison in 2023, and then entered portal again in December. She withdrew her name, but didn’t play for NDSU again and reentered the portal one more time in March 2024. Got all that?

A tad undersized at 5-foot-10, Massaquoi can still guard smaller forwards while staying with quicker guards. She is a smart rebounder and can score around the basket efficiently. She hasn’t extended her game out to the three-point line, but did make 83.3% of her free throws at NDSU (don’t ask about the sample size as it would be devastating to my argument…ok fine, she was only 5-of-6).

I like her on the Badgers as a versatile bench piece that can fill multiple roles and chip in points, rebounds, and defensive havoc.

Liza Karlen, Marquette, 6-foot-2, forward, senior, St. Paul, Minn.

With the coaching change at Marquette the Badgers could be in position to poach some of their players who want to stay close to home/Milwaukee. Another Twin Cities native, Karlen scored over 2,000 points and grabbed over 1,200 rebounds in her high school career. She earned all-state honors in three of her seasons and was a finalist for Minnesota’s Ms. Basketball Award as a senior.

Karlen is the archetype of “Player Who Improved Every Year in College.” Of the five major statistical categories, steals is the only one she didn’t improve year over year while a Golden Eagle. As a senior she averaged 17.7 ppg, 7.9 rpg, 2.1 apg, 1.2 bpg, and 0.8 spg while earning unanimous First Team All-Big East honors. The only area of concern for her is that she doesn’t draw many fouls, which is strange for a 6-foot-2 player.

Marquette is in a bit of disarray right now between the coaching change and roster upheaval so it makes sense that Karlen might search for a more stable situation to finish out her college career. She is one of the better players to ever play for Marquette and the Badgers would be lucky to have her.

Even MORE Other Players Who Wisconsin Women’s Basketball Might Be Interested In

Nyamer Diew, Iowa State, 6-foot-2, forward, senior, Marshall, Minn.

A solid bench piece for the Cyclones over the past four years, Diew could get more opportunities to shine in a Wisconsin rotation light on bigs. A willing, if average, long-range shooter, Diew could pair nicely with Serah Williams in the frontcourt.

Treasure Thompson, Eastern Michigan, 6-foot-2, forward, junior, Joliet, Ill.

Started her career at LSU and has languished on the bench for EMU the past two seasons. Her Per 40 rebounding and defensive numbers are really good and she would get enough playing time at UW to make those a reality.

Walker Demers, South Dakota, 6-foot-1, center, sophomore, Grafton, N.D

A post player with high potential? Sign me up! Her block rate of 2.5% was in the 79th percentile last season while her rebounding percentage of 14.7 was in the 91st. She would look good backing up Williams next year is all I’m saying.

Lucy Olsen, Villanova, 5-foot-9, guard, senior, Collegeville, Pa.

Averaged 23.3 ppg last year which was fourth best in the entire nation. She’s electric with the ball in her hands and, quite frankly, I just hope she doesn’t go to LSU.

Raegan Beers, Oregon State, 6-foot-4, forward, junior, Littleton, Colo.

Did I include Beers because she has a last name that would kill with NIL deals at Wisconsin? Maybe. Did I include her because she has two football-playing brothers (Florida International) named Rocky and Rowdy? Maybe. Did I include her because she will be one of the best post players in the country next season? Definitely. The 2023 Pac-12 Freshman of the Year AND Sixth Player of the Year has also made the All-Pac-12 team in both of her collegiate seasons. She averaged 17.5 ppg and 10.3 rpg last season and I’d cut off a finger if she’d consider playing at Wisconsin.

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