Tayla Thomas, a highly-touted sophomore forward crucial for Northwestern's frontcourt, seeks a new home following a coaching change.
Tayla Thomas has entered the NCAA women's basketball transfer portal, becoming the second Northwestern women's basketball player to depart following freshman guard Angelina Hodgens, according to women's basketball reporter Talia Goodman of On3.
The news arrives at a pivotal and uncertain moment for the Wildcats program. Longtime head coach Joe McKeown officially retired following the conclusion of the 2025-26 season, which ended with a disappointing 8-21 record and a second consecutive absence from the Big Ten Tournament. Northwestern has since appointed Carla Berube — formerly the head coach at Princeton — as his successor, setting off a wave of roster movement that figures to reshape the program heading into 2026-27.
Thomas' departure represents a significant loss for a struggling Northwestern team that desperately needed frontcourt depth and size. The 6-foot-3 sophomore forward from East Orange, NJ, had emerged as a key piece alongside senior leader Grace Sullivan of the 'Cats' rotation this past season, averaging 9.7 points and 7.2 rebounds per game — a remarkable leap from her freshman campaign, in which she averaged just 1.4 points and 1.6 rebounds. Thomas also started 28 of 29 games and provided a consistent defensive presence, recording at least one block per game throughout the season.
Elevating her basketball skills at IMG Academy and once ranked the No. 56 prospect in the ESPN HoopGurlz 2024 national rankings, Thomas arrived in Evanston as one of Northwestern's more heralded recruits in recent history. Following the departures of former Northwestern major frontcourt players, Caileigh Walsh and Taylor Williams, she and Sullivan filled the void in the paint, becoming the major offensive weapons in coach McKeown's final season.
However, her usage dropped late in the season. Thomas combined for just 15 minutes across back-to-back games against Indiana and South Carolina in February, a puzzling reduction in playing time for someone who had been one of the regular starters of the lineup for the majority of the season.
With Sullivan graduating, Thomas' exit amplifies what was already an urgent need. Northwestern struggled with its undersized frontcourt all season, and losing its most physically imposing returning player makes rebuilding the interior a top priority for Berube as she begins constructing her first roster.
The transfer portal opened on Monday, and Berube has already signaled that recruiting from the portal will be central to her roster-building strategy moving forward, vowing to pursue what she called "winning players" as she looks to return the Wildcats to postseason contention. What that looks like in execution will go a long way toward defining the early tone of the Berube era.
For Thomas, the portal opens the door to a fresh start at a program where her size, rebounding and shot-blocking ability could perfectly fit. At just a sophomore with clear upside and Division I starting experience, she is expected to attract significant interest.