Top 10 Freshmen From the First Month of the NCAA Season
One month has now passed in the NCAA season, which freshmen have started to shine and show their talent?
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The NCAA women’s college basketball season has now been active for one month and many players have begun to shine. Some of them are freshmen. It can take a while to adjust but these 10 freshmen wasted no time and are already making a name for themselves.
These 10 freshmen listed below come from a variety of schools and are already showing everyone just how talented they are. They have contributed greatly to wins, stepped up to make the plays down the stretch and have had double-doubles and a triple-double!
All stats are from games played through December 8th.
1. Aneesah Morrow, F - DePaul
Aneesah Morrow is a forward from DePaul is currently averaging 18.4 points per game and 11.3 rebounds per game. If there was an award for best freshmen for the first month of the season, she would be the winner. She is a walking double-double, having recorded four already and coming close two other times. She’s shooting 53.3% from the floor and is currently 17th among active players in total rebounds. She’s the top freshman because of her consistency. She’s also first among freshmen in total win shares at 2.9. She’s also started every game so far and it’s easy to see why. She has a bright future ahead of her at DePaul and will likely set records for the Blue Demons.
2. Jayda Curry, G - California
Jayda Curry came into her first college game and simply started taking over. She scored 23 points in her first contest and has never looked back. She has now scored over 20 points four times. Her current scoring average of 19.9 is in the top 30 among all active women’s college basketball players. Her aggressive play gets her to the free-throw line often: she attempts an average of five a game, making four of them. Curry will be asked to do a lot to help bring California back to national prominence; so far, she’s shown she has the talent.
3. Talia von Oelhoffen, G - Oregon State
Talia von Oelhoffen enrolled at Oregon State at the midway point of last season and got some experience playing at the college level. She’s still considered a freshman but she plays like a sophomore. Although Oregon State has struggled recently, Oelhoffen has been solid. She’s averaging 15.5 points per game in just 25.2 minutes played. She shoots 85% from the FT line and is one of the best players for the Beavers.
4. Shayeann Day-Wilson, G - Duke
Shayeann Day-Wilson comes off the bench for Duke yet has already made a significant impact for the Blue Devils. In Duke’s recent game against Iowa, she scored 19 points in just 26 minutes. Prior to that game, she had a career high of 26 points versus Troy and has scored in double figures six times. She’s currently averaging 13.3 points per game and is shooting efficiently from mid-range at 51.4%. After a rocky start in the first couple of games, she has found her groove and is quickly becoming one of Duke’s most important bench players.
5. Rori Harmon, G - Texas
In the Longhorns’ second game of the season, against defending NCAA champion Stanford, Rori Harmon simply took over. The freshman point guard orchestrated Texas' win and was everywhere in that game. She scored, she assisted, she went to the FT line. Her confidence was striking that day and she has continued to play well. In Texas’s loss to the Tennessee Lady Vols, she put up a near triple-double and just missed out by three rebounds. She’s already had a career high of 11 assists and was close to posting over 10 assists three more times. Her current assist average of 6.6 is eighth among active players.
6. Sonia Citron, G - Notre Dame
Sonia Citron has been great for the Fighting Irish one month into the season. In a game against Connecticut, Citron was spectacular in the loss, scoring 19 points and five rebounds off the bench. She scored a career high 29 points and five rebounds in a close win against Michigan State. She’s currently averaging 12.1 points per game and 5.7 rebounds per game in just 27 minutes per game. She’s also shooting 48.8% from mid-range and 90% from the FT line. She’s second among freshmen in total win shares at 2.7. She’s had some not so great games, but she’s more than made up for them so far. She’s going to be an impact player for Notre Dame because of her ability to score and hit free throws.
7. Olivia Miles, G - Notre Dame
Notre Dame has another top freshman in Olivia Miles who has also been spectacular in the first month of the season. She, just like von Oelhoffen, came into school in early 2021 and played towards the end of the season. She still counts as a freshman and has been a good point guard for the Fighting Irish.She put up a triple-double in her last game and has had two games in which she nearly put up a triple-double. She’s had a career high of 14 assists. Her assists average of 7.7 per game is currently third. She’s had a career high of 13 rebounds. She’s currently averaging 11.1 points per game as well as 7.0 rebounds per game to go along with her assists average, as mentioned above. Her ability to put up triple-doubles and dish out assists makes her a future star for the Irish.
8. Jada Walker, G - Kentucky
Jada Walker has been terrific off the bench for the Kentucky Wildcats during the first month of the season. She’s scored in double figures in five of the seven games played so far. In the loss against Indiana, she scored a career-high 16 points. She’s currently averaging 10.9 points per game and is shooting 45.6% from mid-range in just under 24 minutes per game. She’s going to help Kentucky star senior Rhyne Howard as she continues to improve this season because she can help take some of the attention away from her and become a scoring threat off the bench.
9. Jenna Johnson, F - Utah
Jenna Johnson has helped the Utah Utes get off to a good start so far in the season. She’s been highly efficient from the floor as she’s currently shooting 68.1% from mid-range. She’s scored over 20 points three times and has scored a career high of 22 points twice. She’s currently averaging 12.6 points per game and 4.9 rebounds per game in just 22 minutes per game played. The Utes are going to need her to continue playing well when Pac-12 conference play gets underway next month.
10. Paige Meyer, G - South Dakota State
South Dakota State has struggled early in the season, but Paige Meyer is a bright spot for the program’s future. She’s started in all of the games played so far and scored a career-high 25 points against Mississippi State. She’s scored in double figures in five games and was close in another one. She’s currently averaging 10.8 points per game, leads the team in assists and is shooting 41% from mid-range and 46.4% from three. She also shoots around 84% from the FT line. Meyer has been a bright spot in an otherwise rough start for the Jackrabbits.
There you have it. These 10 freshmen have been spectacular to watch during the first month of the season and I’m sure there will be many more names to watch for as the season moves along. You can watch various upcoming games on TV networks to see which other freshmen shine.
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