Star guard Olivia Miles has committed to TCU, according to multiple reports, pairing one of the top available players in the transfer portal with a team coming off its best season in program history.
In four seasons with Notre Dame, Miles blossomed into one of the best guards in the country. She averaged a career-high 15.4 points per game last season, showing significant development in her 3-point shot as she went from shooting 22.8 percent in 2022-23 to 40.6 percent last season. Twice she was named to an AP All-American team, and she was a three-time All-ACC guard in 2022, 2023 and 2025.
Miles was expected to be a top-three pick in next week’s WNBA Draft, until she elected to return to school just days after the Irish’s season concluded. Miles has one year of eligibility remaining because she missed the 2023-24 season with a torn ACL.
Miles joins a Horned Frogs team that won a school-record 34 games and advanced to the Elite Eight for the first time. TCU beat Miles and Notre Dame in the Sweet 16 just weeks ago to move 40 minutes away from a Final Four berth.
On3 was the first to report news of Miles’ commitment.
Miles can elevate her game in TCU’s guard-focused offense
From the outset of the process, TCU seemed like a natural landing spot for Miles. Coach Mark Campbell and the Horned Frogs run a pro-style offense, which has proven to allow lead guards to flourish. Miles is surely hoping Campbell can replicate the success he had elevating guard Hailey Van Lith’s game last season.
After an underwhelming season at LSU, Van Lith transferred to TCU, set the program single-season scoring and assist record and won Big 12 Player of the Year. TCU also won the Big 12 regular-season and tournament titles for the first time. Van Lith is set to be selected at next week’s draft, likely in the first two rounds, as a result of her standout season.
The Horned Frogs run a pick-and-roll heavy system reliant on guards who can create off screens and get downhill. Campbell looks to then surround them with 3-and-D wings, a stretch four and a physical center in the middle. Miles will slide into the lead ball-handler role and be given the opportunity to dictate TCU’s offense. Like Van Lith, she is also well-positioned to be one of the faces in the sport in Fort Worth.
While Miles would have been a top selection in the draft, by returning to school, she should also improve her physical health in Fort Worth. Having missed the 2023-24 season due to injury, she told The Athletic during Notre Dame’s tournament run in Birmingham that she is not close to where she wants to be post-injury.
“My physical shape could be better,” Miles said. “This injury, it’s a long, long process. Even after you’re healed, getting the rest of your body to catch up. I would say I’m not even 75 percent of the way there yet.”
TCU continues building through the portal
Few coaches have been more active in the transfer portal in recent seasons than Campbell, as he rebuilt the Horned Frogs program by bringing experienced college players into the program. Having already added Madison Conner, Sedona Prince and Agnes-Emma Nnopu ahead of the 2023-24 campaign, Campbell recruited wing Taylor Bigby, guard Donovyn Hunter and Van Lith for the start of last season. TCU had no freshmen on its roster a year ago. Of the aforementioned group, only Bigby and Hunter are expected to return next year.
“People have asked a lot about how we’ve been able to get the portal right,” Campbell told The Athletic in March. “(We) value getting the culture and locker room (right).”
Those additions helped the program achieve its historic level of success last season in what was only Campbell’s second year with the school. TCU went 1-17 in Big 12 play in 2022-23, the year before he arrived.
During the NCAA Tournament, Campbell stressed the importance of adding through the portal.
“Freshmen are just moving away from home for the first time and trying to figure out college life and the grind of college athletics,” he said. “The portal kids have been there, done that. They understand what they need to do and what they’re signing up for.”
The Horned Frogs will have three freshmen next season — versatile 6-foot-4 German wing Clara Bielefeld, 6-foot-7 center Emily Hunter and 6-foot-8 center Sarah Portlock — but expect TCU to add more experienced collegians via the portal as Miles will elevate the program’s ceiling.
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