An elite rebounder could transfer from Texas A&M — and she has history with USC
With the departure of A'ja Wilson to the WNBA this offseason, South Carolina women's basketball will have a massive hole to fill in its frontcourt for the 2018-2019 season.
And there's a player out there who could go a long way toward filling that hole, one of the few players in the SEC to out-rebound Wilson this past season.
Texas A&M junior Anriel Howard is considering a potential transfer from the Aggies, according to multiple reports from KBTX and The Bryan-College Station Eagle. Because she is set to graduate early this summer, she would be immediately eligible to play next season as a graduate transfer.
Howard averaged 12 rebounds per game this past season, second in the SEC, and is A&M's career and season rebounding leader, despite being an undersized post player at just 5-foot-11. She also ranked 36th in the nation last year in rebounding rate, according to Her Hoop Stats.
There have been no reports about any specific schools Howard is considering for a transfer, and there is still a possibility she might stay in College Station, coach Gary Blair told The Eagle.
"I’m hoping that if she goes to visit a couple other schools, she’ll realize A&M is still the best option for her," Blair told the paper. "And that’s all I can do, except maybe cross my fingers. She’s got our blessing to go do what she needs to do.”
But if she does decide to leave the Aggies, Howard already has a connection to South Carolina, which was among the finalists in her recruitment in high school. The Atlanta, Georgia, native picked Texas A&M ahead of USC, Kentucky, Arkansas and Wake Forest back in 2014.
Dawn Staley has had some previous success securing a transfer from a player she missed out on the first time around, getting Te'a Cooper last offseason from Tennessee after Cooper chose the Lady Vols as a high school senior over the Gamecocks.
As a high schooler, Howard was a three-star prospect, per ESPN and Dan Olson's Collegiate Girls Basketball Report. She was rated as the 15th-best wing in her class and the 100th best overall player.
Howard has not commented on her social media accounts about the reports.
This story was originally published April 2, 2018 at 7:40 PM with the headline "An elite rebounder could transfer from Texas A&M — and she has history with USC."