November 11, 2024
Locked On Women’s Basketball: Big 12 basketball front and center
By The Next
Missy Heidrick talks new faces, returning stars and predictions for the Big 12 season
Welcome back for another episode of Locked on Women’s Basketball with Missy Heidrick! This time, she turns her attention to the Big 12 Conference where there are 16 teams–four newcomers–vying for a title this year. That includes four teams that start the season ranked in the Associated Press poll. You can also find Heidrick’s written preview of the Big 12 Conference here.
Continue reading with a subscription to The Next
Get unlimited access to women’s basketball coverage and help support our hardworking staff of writers, editors, and photographers by subscribing today.
Already a member?
Login
She starts with Kansas State and Iowa State who split the first-place votes 7-6. Baylor followed with two and West Virginia had one. Fifth-year seniors Ayoka Lee of the Wildcats, who was picked as preseason player of the year, and Emily Ryan of the Cyclones were among her top players to watch.
“[Ryan] became the all-time assist leader in Iowa State program history last season and she kind of ushered along a group of youngsters who made a name for themselves,” Heidrick said. “You’re gonna hear the name Addie Brown over and over the season and most definitely the name of Audi Crooks, the inside player who was one of the top scorers in the big 12 a year ago. Now a sophomore, she shot almost 57% from the field last season, great talent others around Ryan and those two spectacular sophomores are going to be some key transfers.”
Win a New York Liberty trading card when you subscribe!
Until the end of November, every new subscriber (and subscription renewal) to The Next will be entered to win a Panini trading card celebrating the WNBA champion New York Liberty. And maybe, just maybe, it will be the highly coveted Ellie rookie card!
Looking at transfers, she discussed Baylor’s Aaronette Vonleh who comes from Colorado. She tied with TCU’s Hailey Van Lith for preseason newcomer of the year honors.
“I think she is going to be a big piece of what they need to do this season because of her physicality,” Heidrick said. “She’s a workhorse, she’ll rebound and she can score. Sometimes you just need someone to bang on the post. And I really do believe that’s Vonleh for Baylor.”
Make sure to subscribe to the Locked On Women’s Basketball podcast to keep learning about the Big 12, WNBA, women’s college basketball, basketball history and much more!
Add Locked On Women’s Basketball to your daily routine
Here at The Next, in addition to the 24/7/365 written content our staff provides, we also host the daily Locked On Women’s Basketball podcast. Join us Monday through Saturday each week as we discuss all things WNBA, collegiate basketball, basketball history and much more. Listen wherever you find podcasts or watch on YouTube.
