Penn State has a lot of new faces joining the team this year after all but four players graduated or transferred after last season.<\/p>\n
Eight new players were welcomed into the roster from international talents to incoming freshman and transfer portal acquisitions.<\/p>\n
Coach Carolyn Kieger is still hot on the recruiting trail, picking up her latest signee on Aug. 4, three months from the start of the season.<\/p>\n
Transfer portal<\/p>\n
Of the eight new athletes, only two come to Happy Valley bearing collegiate experience.<\/p>\n
Rutgers star transfer Kiyomi McMiller marked one of the biggest moves in the Big Ten this offseason, joining the Lady Lions after a standout freshman season.<\/p>\n
Through 21 games, McMiller recorded 18.7 points and 4.7 rebounds per game, including a 15-point outing against Penn State.<\/p>\n
McMiller led Rutgers in scoring despite her young age, as she put up three 30-point games and seven 20-point games.<\/p>\n
Over the summer, she competed in the FIBA COCABA Women’s Championship and averaged 28.2 points, 6.2 rebounds and four assists while helping Nicaragua to a bronze medal.<\/p>\n
The Lady Lions also acquired former Georgia forward Amiya Evans, who\u2019s played in 52 games in her three seasons with the Bulldogs.<\/p>\n
While Evans has played more games than McMiller, her scoring has come less frequently. The former Bulldog averaged 5.1 points and 6.2 rebounds in her junior year.<\/p>\n
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The Lady Lions huddle up late in the game against Maryland, on Wednesday, Jan. 29, 2024 in Rec Hall in University Park, Pa. The Terrapins beat the Nittany Lions 82-73.<\/p>\n
Luke Kupstas<\/p>\n
International pickups<\/p>\n
Kieger boasts one of her biggest international classes this year, with two new international athletes.<\/p>\n
Swiss guard Viktoria Ranisavljevic made her debut with the senior national team this year. Ranisavljevic\u2019s 6.7 points per game helped Switzerland achieve its first European championship final since 1956.<\/p>\n
The 5-foot-7 guard was one of the youngest athletes to ever play for the senior team, competing with Switzerland for five years.<\/p>\n
The Lady Lions also added French guard T\u00e9a Cl\u00e9ante to the 2025 roster. Cl\u00e9ante played in the 2025 Eurocup Women’s tournament, where she averaged 7.7 points and two assists in 11 games.<\/p>\n
The two young talents will join the Lady Lions as freshmen for this season.<\/p>\n
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Guard Vitoria Santana (10) looks to pass the ball while being while head coach Carolyn Kieger giver her a signal during Penn State Women\u2019s basketball annual Pink Zone game against Wisconsin in the Bryce Jordan Center on Sunday, Feb. 16, 2025 in University Park, Pa. The Lady lions lost to the Badgers 75-68.<\/p>\n
Esteban Marenco<\/p>\n
Incoming freshmen<\/p>\n
One of the biggest additions to Penn State\u2019s roster is Philadelphia\u2019s all-time girl\u2019s leading scorer Shayla Smith.<\/p>\n
Smith recorded her 2,502nd career point late in her senior year, adding to her countless accolades, such as becoming the fastest player in her league to reach 1,000 career points and winning two league championships.<\/p>\n
In each of Smith\u2019s four seasons with Universal Audenried Charter, she averaged double-digit scoring, including a career-best 27.5 points per game her senior year.<\/p>\n
The Lady Lions also added 6-footer Nyla McFadden, who will play a combination of guard and forward for Kieger.<\/p>\n
McFadden comes to Penn State with two state championships her freshman and sophomore seasons with St. Thomas Aquinas High School.<\/p>\n
The Fort Lauderdale, Florida, native played for Mt. Zion Academy in Maryland during her junior year before returning to Florida to finish her high school career.<\/p>\n
The last new addition for the blue and white is 6-foot-4 Canadian forward Rachael Okokoh. Okokoh competed for Canada over the summer in the FIBA U19 Women’s Basketball World Cup, where she played six games, averaging 3.5 points and 2.7 rebounds per game.<\/p>\n
MORE BASKETBALL COVERAGE<\/p>\n
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