Purdue women’s basketball has included defending champions South Carolina in their schedule for the 2024-25 season.
WEST LAFAYETTE — Purdue women’s basketball has added the defending NCAA champion South Carolina to its non-conference schedule for the 2024-25 season, as announced by the university on Wednesday.
The Boilermakers are scheduled to face South Carolina at the Fort Myers Tip-Off on Saturday, November 30, following their Thanksgiving game against Middle Tennessee at Suncoast Arena.
Additionally, Purdue will host Kentucky at Mackey Arena on Saturday, December 14.
In the previous season, Purdue concluded with a 15-19 record and reached the Great 8 of the WNIT Tournament before being defeated by Vermont.
Key returners and new additions bolster Purdue’s roster heading into the upcoming season. Highlighting the incoming freshmen is ESPN Top 50 point guard Jordyn Poole from Fort Wayne Snider. Returning is Rashunda Jones, who earned Big Ten Freshman First Team honors with averages of 7.8 points, 2.3 rebounds, and 1.7 assists per game.
Sophomore Sophie Swanson, who averaged 7.1 points per game in limited minutes last season due to a torn ACL, is also set to make an impact.
Joining the team are Lana McCarthy, named New Hampshire Gatorade Basketball and Volleyball Player of the Year, and Missouri’s Kendall Puryear from Blue Springs South High School. Redshirt freshman Amiyah Reynolds will play alongside her sister, junior forward Mila Reynolds. Additionally, senior guard Jayla Smith, sophomore forward McKenna Layden, and Alaina Harper are returning to the program.
Purdue women’s basketball experienced the departure of Big Ten Conference Freshman of the Year Mary Ashley Stevenson, who transferred to Stanford. However, the team managed to offset this loss by making significant additions through the transfer portal. Purdue acquired Western Athletic Conference Defensive Player of the Year Destini Lombard and former UTEP guard Mahri Petree.
Additionally, the Boilermakers bolstered their roster with former Akron forward Reagan Bass, who posted impressive averages of 16.4 points and 9.9 rebounds per game in 2024. They also secured two-time NAIA Player of the Year Ella Collier.
