The transfer portal for men’s and women’s college basketball opened earlier this week and the Wisconsin Badgers were not immune from a few defections already.
On Monday, a pair of Badgers backup bigs entered their names into the portal as UW prepared for their first postseason game in a decade.
Wisconsin Women’s Basketball Loses Pair to the Portal Prior to WNIT
Tessa Towers, a 6-foot-5 sophomore out of Batavia, Ill., was the first to put her name in the portal and, while it’s disappointing, it certainly isn’t surprising. She played in three games as a freshman and only one as a sophomore, totaling 10 minutes of playing time across the four appearances, so there didn’t seem to be a spot in the rotation for her at UW.
She noted as much in a social media post announcing her intent to transfer, saying, “I aim to find a program where I can have a greater impact, enhance my skills, and contribute to team success.” Towers was thankful to “the Wisconsin Women’s Basketball team and the entire Badger community for their understanding and support,” which could be in regards to her decision to transfer but could also be alluding to last season when she took a leave of absence from the team in December for personal reasons. If I’m understanding eligibility rules correctly, Towers could have as many as three years left since she hasn’t officially redshirted yet.
The other post player to put her name into the portal is 6-foot-4 redshirt sophomore Sacia Vanderpool out of Byron, Minn. Vanderpool participated in Wisconsin’s Senior Day ceremony this year due to graduating early. I am unclear as to where this leaves her eligibility wise, but she’ll have at least one season of basketball left in college.
Vanderpool appeared in five games, earning the start on Senior Day this season, and scored six points and grabbed two rebounds in her UW career. Vanderpool didn’t post anything on social media (that I saw), but Talia Goodman had Vanderpool’s name on her invaluable transfer tracker and I was able to confirm with a source that she was in the portal.
With Serah Williams firmly entrenched as a 30-minute per game player in the post, and Marisa Moseley seemingly unwilling to use an actual post player as a backup, it isn’t shocking that Towers and Vanderpool are choosing to explore other options. The Badgers will need to hit the portal themselves (and would’ve had to regardless of Towers and Vanderpool leaving the team) to find a post player (or two) to fill out their roster for next season.
We wish Tessa and Sacia the best as they search for a new college basketball home and hope they find success at their next stops.
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