Northwestern has gotten used to having new faces in the building, as in the offseason it welcomed in new head coach Carla Berube, who coached Princeton's women's basketball team the past seven seasons, and a total of seven new players, with four of them being transfers.
The transfers choosing to play under coach Berube in her first year as the Wildcats head coach include two sophomores from Syracuse, guard Camdyn Nelson and forward Jasmyn Cooper-Derba. Along the two sophomores, two juniors join the team: Lily Carmody from Boston College and Lexi Blue from Kentucky.
Advertisement
With an uncertain season filled with question marks ahead of this team, it's time to get to know these transfers and what experience and play they can bring to this team.
Camdyn Nelson
Sophomore / Guard / 5-foot-8 / Syracuse
Nelson's move to Syracuse to Evanston to play for the 'Cats may be because of her high school past. Former St. Luke's School teammate Caroline Lau, who she played with for two seasons at the Connecticut high school, graduated from Northwestern last year.
Nelson, who was Berube's first transfer recruit, is coming from a team that finished tied for fifth place last season with a record of 24-9, it may have been hard for then freshman Nelson to make her mark on the team.
Advertisement
Nelson made her season debut last year against Stony Brook. Throughout the season she averaged 1.1 points, 0.8 rebounds and 0.7 assists. The 'Cats hope these stats will improve during her time with Evanston, while she also projects to get more playing time as she looks to compete to help make a name for this team that has yet to find their identity.
Nelson was the Gatorade Player of the Year for Connecticut in high school, so it's clear she can ball, however can her skills translate from high school to a more competitive stage in college?
Jasmyn Cooper-Derba
Sophomore / forward / 6-foot-1 / Syracuse
Joining teammate Camdyn Nelson in transferring from Syracuse to Northwestern, also in hopes to get the opportunity to show off her talents, is sophomore forward Jasmyn Cooper-Derba.
Advertisement
Cooper-Derba, who struggled to see much playing time as a freshman at Syracuse, averaged 3.1 points and 2.1 rebounds per game through the season. Coming in at 6-foot-1 she definitely brings size to this team, yet she is still not the typical size of Big Ten forwards. However, she does fit into the style of play Berube hopes to bring to Evanston.
Cooper-Derba is definitely a project player for Northwestern in the sense that we don't know exactly all she has to offer because of her lack of play last season. With that, Beube is bringing in a new system that Cooper-Derba hopes to fit into.
Lily Carmody
Junior / Guard / 5-foot-11 / Boston College
The Australian native transferring from Boston College brings quite the experience to the team. Last season at Boston College she started in 29 out of her 30 appearances and led her team in points per game with 12.8, while also topping the stat sheet in steals and free throws. Carmody also averaged 3.5 rebounds per game and 2.1 assists. It's fair to say that Carmody was the best offseason addition to the team.
Advertisement
Though she comes from a 5-26 Boston College team, she sure has the skills and experience to elevate the 'Cats immediately.
Carmody's ability to finish at the rim, especially when matched up against smaller defenders, is crucial to her style of play, and is what can elevate the Wildcats' scoring attack. It's clear that Carmody can score points and create plays, it's now a matter of seeing if she can get more wins under her belt and give her statistics more depth than numbers.
Lexi Blue
Junior / Guard / 6-foot-2 / Kentucky
Blue is coming from the SEC and a Kentucky team that went to the Sweet Sixteen, which gives her a lot of experience to build off of. Blue played in 28 games last season for Kentucky and averaged 2.1 points and 1.0 rebounds per game in her 10.9 minutes per game.
Advertisement
Though she hasn't seen many points in college, she is a former top-40 high school recruit and has been on teams in college and high school that saw success. It is unsure if she can return to her high school style of play, however, what the 'Cats hope to get out of a player like Blue is a great rebounder who has the ability to play a role offensively while also getting down the court defensively.
