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Jeff Walz has had another successful offseason in the transfer portal.
Heading into his 20th season as the Louisville women’s basketball coach, Walz added three key pieces from the portal and retained the core of the current team, which finished the season with a Sweet 16 appearance and 29-8 record.
The Cardinals, who ranked 11th in the final USA TODAY Coaches Poll of the season, will use the next six months to prepare for a 2026-27 campaign that’s sure to arrive with high expectations. With seven upperclassmen who have all played significant minutes, this will be one of the Cardinals’ oldest and deepest teams in the last decade.
Here’s an updated look at Louisville’s 2026-27 women’s basketball team and projected starters:
Zam Jones, guard, N.C. State; Deniya Prawl, wing, Tennessee; Carys Baker, forward, Virginia Tech
Louisville replaced some height lost with the 6-foot-2 Laura Ziegler signing with the L.A. Sparks and 6-3 Anaya Hardy transferring to Notre Dame but added two 6-2 players in Baker and Prawl to help in the frontcourt. Prawl was a Louisville target coming out of high school, so the Cardinals staff is familiar with her game. She didn’t play much as a freshman for the Volunteers — who underwent a major roster overhaul this offseason — but has time to develop within Walz’s program. Baker and Jones, ESPN's eighth-ranked transfer portal player, will be upperclassmen with one and two years, respectively, of eligibility remaining. Not only do they bring veteran leadership, but the two also have plenty of scoring ability. Jones took a leap in performance by averaging 14.9 points per game while shooting 36.6% from 3-point range in 2025-26. Baker shot 37.9% from long distance and 42.9% from the field, averaging 14.3 points per game.
Anaya Hardy, forward (Notre Dame); Peyton Bradley, guard (UAB); Skylar Jones, wing (Baylor); Isla Juffermans, forward (College of Charleston)
Juffermans redshirted this season but will join former assistant coach Amanda Butler at the College of Charleston. Bradley only played in garbage time, while Jones, who had two 20-point games, saw her time on the court dwindle in the later stages of the regular season before Walz announced that she and the team parted ways prior to the NCAA Tournament. Hardy became a starter for the Cardinals one month into the regular season and was somewhat limited in her scoring ability. But she was accurate in the post, shooting a team-best 66.7% from the field while averaging 4.2 points in 11.4 minutes per game.
Ariyana "Peanut" Cradle, guard; Myah Epps, guard; Ayse Melek Demirer, forward
Cradle and Epps are ranked 38th and 68th, respectively in the 2026 SportsCenter Next 100 and enhance the Cardinals’ back court. Walz’s international success has also continued with the signing of Ayse Melek Demirer from Turkey. Because of everything Louisville is bringing back and signing from the transfer portal, it’s hard to imagine either of the three sees significant playing time as true freshmen. But their talent level combined with the leadership of the Cards’ upcoming junior class bodes well for the development and longevity of the incoming freshmen.
Taj Roberts, guard; Elif Istanbulluoglu, forward; Mackenly Randolph, wing; Imari Berry, guard
Louisville is set to bring back four of its top five scorers — three of whom averaged 10 or more points per game — and three of the top four rebounders from a team that averaged 78.7 points and 40.9 rebounds per contest. The Cardinals took a major stride in their development between the 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons. They can benefit from a strong offseason to keep that growth going with the stout junior class of Roberts, Randolph and Berry leading the way. Istanbulluoglu will be entering her senior season and expected to take on a stronger leadership role after already providing the blueprint for what an effective offseason can do for one’s game.
Taj Roberts, guard
Zam Jones, guard
Mackenly Randolph, wing
Elif Istanbulluoglu, forward
Carys Baker, forward
Reach Louisville football, women's basketball and baseball beat writer Alexis Cubit at [email protected] and follow her on X at @Alexis_Cubit.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville women's basketball roster after transfer portal moves
Continue reading...
Heading into his 20th season as the Louisville women’s basketball coach, Walz added three key pieces from the portal and retained the core of the current team, which finished the season with a Sweet 16 appearance and 29-8 record.
The Cardinals, who ranked 11th in the final USA TODAY Coaches Poll of the season, will use the next six months to prepare for a 2026-27 campaign that’s sure to arrive with high expectations. With seven upperclassmen who have all played significant minutes, this will be one of the Cardinals’ oldest and deepest teams in the last decade.
Here’s an updated look at Louisville’s 2026-27 women’s basketball team and projected starters:
Louisville women’s basketball incoming transfer portal players
Zam Jones, guard, N.C. State; Deniya Prawl, wing, Tennessee; Carys Baker, forward, Virginia Tech
Louisville replaced some height lost with the 6-foot-2 Laura Ziegler signing with the L.A. Sparks and 6-3 Anaya Hardy transferring to Notre Dame but added two 6-2 players in Baker and Prawl to help in the frontcourt. Prawl was a Louisville target coming out of high school, so the Cardinals staff is familiar with her game. She didn’t play much as a freshman for the Volunteers — who underwent a major roster overhaul this offseason — but has time to develop within Walz’s program. Baker and Jones, ESPN's eighth-ranked transfer portal player, will be upperclassmen with one and two years, respectively, of eligibility remaining. Not only do they bring veteran leadership, but the two also have plenty of scoring ability. Jones took a leap in performance by averaging 14.9 points per game while shooting 36.6% from 3-point range in 2025-26. Baker shot 37.9% from long distance and 42.9% from the field, averaging 14.3 points per game.
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Louisville women’s basketball outgoing transfer portal players
Anaya Hardy, forward (Notre Dame); Peyton Bradley, guard (UAB); Skylar Jones, wing (Baylor); Isla Juffermans, forward (College of Charleston)
Juffermans redshirted this season but will join former assistant coach Amanda Butler at the College of Charleston. Bradley only played in garbage time, while Jones, who had two 20-point games, saw her time on the court dwindle in the later stages of the regular season before Walz announced that she and the team parted ways prior to the NCAA Tournament. Hardy became a starter for the Cardinals one month into the regular season and was somewhat limited in her scoring ability. But she was accurate in the post, shooting a team-best 66.7% from the field while averaging 4.2 points in 11.4 minutes per game.
Louisville women’s basketball high school signees
Ariyana "Peanut" Cradle, guard; Myah Epps, guard; Ayse Melek Demirer, forward
Cradle and Epps are ranked 38th and 68th, respectively in the 2026 SportsCenter Next 100 and enhance the Cardinals’ back court. Walz’s international success has also continued with the signing of Ayse Melek Demirer from Turkey. Because of everything Louisville is bringing back and signing from the transfer portal, it’s hard to imagine either of the three sees significant playing time as true freshmen. But their talent level combined with the leadership of the Cards’ upcoming junior class bodes well for the development and longevity of the incoming freshmen.
Louisville women’s basketball key returners
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Taj Roberts, guard; Elif Istanbulluoglu, forward; Mackenly Randolph, wing; Imari Berry, guard
Louisville is set to bring back four of its top five scorers — three of whom averaged 10 or more points per game — and three of the top four rebounders from a team that averaged 78.7 points and 40.9 rebounds per contest. The Cardinals took a major stride in their development between the 2024-25 and 2025-26 seasons. They can benefit from a strong offseason to keep that growth going with the stout junior class of Roberts, Randolph and Berry leading the way. Istanbulluoglu will be entering her senior season and expected to take on a stronger leadership role after already providing the blueprint for what an effective offseason can do for one’s game.
Louisville women’s basketball 2026-27 projected starters
Taj Roberts, guard
Zam Jones, guard
Mackenly Randolph, wing
Elif Istanbulluoglu, forward
Carys Baker, forward
Reach Louisville football, women's basketball and baseball beat writer Alexis Cubit at [email protected] and follow her on X at @Alexis_Cubit.
This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Louisville women's basketball roster after transfer portal moves
Continue reading...
