Freshmen have taken center stage from the very first day of the 2023-24 women’s college basketball season, with spell-binding performances from the likes of USC‘s JuJu Watkins, South Carolina‘s MiLaysia Fulwiley and Notre Dame‘s Hannah Hidalgo in their season openers on Nov. 6.
Those three have emerged as some of the burgeoning stars of the sport, but they aren’t alone. This season’s freshman class has continued to dazzle six-plus weeks into the season, in some cases elevating their teams to new heights, in others stepping up more than expected, and all the while generating more excitement over the next generation of players eager to take the sport by storm.
ESPN ranked the top 25 players in the nation earlier this week. Now, as conference play nears and a new calendar year begins, here are the 15 freshmen who have had the biggest impact in this young season.
1. JuJu Watkins, USC
Guard | 6-foot-2
Stats: 26.8 PPG, 6.9 RPG, 3.9 APG, 46.9% 3FG
Watkins was highly touted as the No. 1…
