Villanova Women’s Basketball Transfers: Joens, Watson Join Wildcats

With the initial transfer portal entry period concluded, it’s time to take a look at how Villanova Women’s Basketball fared.

The Wildcats missed the NCAA Tournament during the 2024-25 season, finishing with the No. 67 spot in the NET rankings at season’s end after a strong run to the WBIT semifinals. In their quest to make it back to the Big Dance for the first time since 2023, they’ll need to replace five athletes out of eligibility, key contributors Bronagh Power-Cassidy and Maddie Burke, as well as Kaitlyn Orihel, Jaliyah Green and Lara Edmanson. The Wildcats lost just one player to the transfer portal, rising junior Maddie Webber, who finished second on the team in scoring and minutes with 13.3 and 33.1 per game, respectively.

While Webber’s departure will hurt, the Wildcats managed a major coup by retaining rising sophomore Jasmine Bascoe, who led the team in points (16.2), assists (4.3) and steals (1.9) per game on the way to First Team All-Big East honors. With three seasons of eligibility remaining, Bascoe’s ascendant career should have fans of Villanova Women’s Basketball excited to see what happens next.

Villanova Transfer Acquisitions

The Wildcats managed a net positive in the transfer portal, acquiring commitments from Iowa State rising junior Kelsey Joens and Notre Dame graduate student Kylee Watson. Joens, a 5-foot-10 guard, put up 5.0 points, 2.9 rebounds and 1.1 assists per game for the Cyclones last season in an average of 19.2 minutes. Watson, a 6-foot-4 forward, averaged 6.2 points, 5.0 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. Neither provides an overwhelming scoring presence, but they provide a capable presence off the bench and in the paint, respectively.

Villanova Women’s Basketball also swung for the fences, throwing their hat in the ring as one of more than 50 schools after the talents of Yuting Deng, a native of Hunan, China who averaged 11.8 points per game with Auburn as a true freshman last season, but Deng ended up choosing Baylor instead.

With incoming recruits Kennedy Henry, a 6 foot tall wing who averaged 20 points and eight rebounds per game as a junior on the way to the No. 78 spot on the ESPN Top 100, and twin sisters Elise and Brooke Bender, the Wildcats have just one more open spot on their roster ahead of next season. The Bender twins, both wings, each stand 6-foot-1: Brooke already possesses a sharpshooting reputation from beyond the arc.

Other returning athletes include guards Ryanne Allen, Dani Ceseretti and Maggie Grant, as well as forwards Brynn McCurry, Denae Carter, Annie Welde and Rachel Werts.