Ranking the top underclass guards in women's March Madness

(1:15)Andraya Carter, Chiney Ogwumike, Rebecca Lobo and Charlie Creme pinpoint players who will become household names in the women's NCAA tournament
(1:15)Michael VoepelMar 17, 2026, 08:00 AM ETCloseMichael Voepel is a senior writer who covers the WNBA, women's college basketball and other college sports
Voepel began covering women's basketball in 1984, and has been with ESPN since 1996.Follow on XMultiple AuthorsEmailPrintListen to five minutes of March Madness coverage and one of the tenets of the NCAA tournament will undoubtedly come up: Teams must have good guard play.Young guards have been key all season in women's college basketball
Some are about to play their first NCAA tournament game
Others got a taste of the big stage last year and are eager to take the next step.UConn sophomore forward Sarah Strong might be the front-runner for national player of the year, but these 10 high-impact sophomore and freshman guards are expected to play big roles for their teams
Their skills and decisions will be tested in the most pressure-packed environment.We look at their strengths, their best games this season and a comparable pro player
(WNBA player comparisons are listed with the teams they most recently played for, but several are free agents.) These players are not at that level yet, but don't be surprised to see them with the ball in crunch time of the NCAA tournament, looking to take the shot, make the pass or grab the rebound that could decide which team advances.1
Mikayla Blakes, VanderbiltNCAA opener: No
ET on Saturday, ESPNewsStats: 27.0 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 4.0 APG, 2.9 SPGBest game this season: The 5-foot-8 sophomore's season high was 38 points, but perhaps her most masterful performance was in a 102-86 victory over Oklahoma on Feb
She had 34 points on 13-of-23 shooting, with six assists, four rebounds and two steals.Comparable pro: Kelsey Plum, Los Angeles SparksBiggest strengths: Similar to Plum, who scored 3,527 points in her college career at Washington, Blakes can score from anywhere and against any game plan
Facing some of the best defenses in the country in the SEC, she averaged 30.5 points in league play
Blakes, who had a 55-point game and a 53-point performance as a freshman, scored 26 as Vanderbilt lost 77-73 to Oregon in overtime in the first round of the NCAA tournament last season
This season, after an upset loss in the SEC quarterfinals to Ole Miss, Blakes is eager to show how good Vanderbilt can be.2
Jaloni Cambridge, Ohio StateNCAA opener: No
ET on Saturday, ESPN2Stats: 22.8 PPG, 5.6 RPG, 4.6 APG, 1.9 SPGBest game this season: The 5-7 sophomore had 41 points on 60% shooting, with six rebounds and six assists in a 78-69 win at Illinois on Jan
7.Comparable pro: Kelsey Mitchell, Indiana FeverBiggest strengths: It only makes sense to compare Cambridge to a Buckeyes legend
Similar to Mitchell, who is the program's career scoring leader (3,402 points), Cambridge brings a lot to the table
She scored 30 or more points six times this season and had 13 games with six or more assists
Jaloni and her sister, junior guard Kennedy Cambridge (3.9 SPG), are keys to Ohio State's defense
Last season, Ohio State advanced to the NCAA's second round, where Cambridge scored 19 points in a loss to Tennessee.3
Olivia Olson, MichiganNCAA opener: No
ET on Friday, ESPN2Stats: 19.2 PPG, 6.2 RPG, 2.6 APG, 1.8 SPGBest game this season: The 6-1 sophomore scored 31 points on 50% shooting, with nine rebounds and four assists in an 88-86 overtime victory against Ohio State on Feb
25.Comparable pro: Rhyne Howard, Atlanta DreamBiggest strengths: Similar to Howard, Olson is a big, strong guard who can hold her own in the paint
Part of Michigan's "super sophomore" class, Olson and Ohio State's Cambridge tied for the Big Ten's freshman of the year award in 2025
Olson led the Wolverines to the second round of the NCAA tournament last year, scoring 20 points in a 76-55 loss to Notre Dame
This season, she led the Wolverines to a tie for second in the Big Ten
She also had 18 points and 10 rebounds in Michigan's 72-69 loss to UConn in November, the closest any team has played the Huskies this season.4
Aaliyah Chavez, OklahomaNCAA opener: No
ET on Friday, ESPN2Stats: 18.4 PPG, 3.8 RPG, 4.2 APG, 1.5 SPGBest game this season: The 5-10 freshman had 26 points, eight assists and four rebounds in a 94-82 victory over South Carolina on Jan
It was the Gamecocks' only loss in SEC regular-season play.Comparable pro: Chelsea Gray, Las Vegas AcesBiggest strengths: Oklahoma is the only team among the tournament's top 16 seeds that is led in scoring by a freshman
Chavez also leads the way in assists and 3-pointers (77)
Gray is known for her clutch shooting and passing; she always wants the ball in pressure situations to either score or set up her teammates
Chavez, even though she is so young in her career, has shown a willingness to do that, too.5
Jazzy Davidson, USC |NCAA opener: No
ET on Saturday, ESPN2Stats: 17.6 PPG, 5.7 RPG, 4.2 APG, 2.0 SPGBest game this season: She had a season-high 32 points in a loss to Ohio State on Feb
22, but her best all-around performance was 27 points, eight rebounds and eight assists in a 70-62 win at Illinois on Feb
8.Comparable pro: Jackie Young, Las Vegas AcesBiggest strengths: Davidson can do it all, much like Young, who was the No
1 pick in the 2019 WNBA draft out of Notre Dame and has won three WNBA titles with the Aces
Davidson has had to carry a big load as a freshman because star JuJu Watkins (knee) is out this season, and Davidson has done it well
She is shooting 27.9% from 3-point range, an area she is likely to improve
She has already made 51 treys as a freshman
Young made just 36 in her three-season college career but has become a strong 3-point shooter during the past four years with Las Vegas.6
Aubrey Galvan, VanderbiltNCAA opener: No
ET on Saturday, ESPNewsStats: 13.1 PPG, 3.3 RPG, 5.9 APG, 2.6 SPGBest game this season: The 5-6 freshman had a season-high 30 points in a 102-86 win over Oklahoma on Feb
But she showed her versatility with 16 points, 15 assists and nine steals in a 99-43 win over Tennessee State on Nov
23.Comparable pro: Veronica Burton, Golden State ValkyriesBiggest strengths: Galvan, who has been a great complement to Blakes in Vanderbilt's backcourt, was named SEC freshman of the year by the coaches
Similar to Burton, a former Northwestern standout who became the WNBA's Most Improved Player this past season, Galvan elevates her teammates' level of play and does whatever is needed
She was fifth in the SEC in assists per game and assist-to-turnover ratio, and seventh in steals.7
Dani Carnegie, GeorgiaNCAA opener: No
10 Arizona State-Virginia, 1:30 p.m
ET on Saturday, ESPN2Stats: 18.1 PPG, 5.3 RPG, 3.2 APG, 1.5 SPGBest game this season: In an 82-59 victory over Ole Miss on Jan
18, the 5-9 sophomore had 32 points while shooting 64.7% with 11 rebounds and three assists.Comparable pro: Jewell Loyd, Las Vegas AcesBiggest strengths: Carnegie starred as a freshman at Georgia Tech, where she was the ACC sixth player of the year last season
She transferred to Georgia and was on the all-SEC first team this season
Similar to Loyd, the Notre Dame star who was drafted No
1 in 2015, Carnegie is a talented scorer and a well-rounded player
Carnegie made 66 3-pointers last season and has 84 this season.8
Syla Swords, MichiganNCAA opener: No
ET on Friday, ESPN2Stats: 14.5 PPG, 4.2 RPG, 2.5 APG, 1.6 SPGBest game this season: In a 72-69 loss to UConn on Nov
21, the 6-foot sophomore had 29 points, nine rebounds and three assists, hitting 8 of 14 3-pointers.Comparable pro: Allisha Gray, Atlanta DreamBiggest strengths: Swords joined her teammate Olson on the all-Big Ten first team and is part of the sophomore class that has already made its mark at Michigan
Swords has 145 3-pointers in her two seasons
Similar to Gray, she has the skill to take over -- as she did against UConn -- but she also can fill in whatever role best serves the team each game
In the NCAA tournament last season, Swords had 11 points, nine rebounds, six assists and four steals in a win over Iowa State, and then 17 points and six rebounds in a loss to Notre Dame.9
Taliah Scott, BaylorNCAA opener: No
ET on Friday, ESPNStats: 20.0 PPG, 2.6 RPG, 2.9 APG, 1.2 SPGBest game this season: The 5-9 sophomore had a season-high 32 points in a November loss to Iowa, but her best all-around game was 25 points, six rebounds and five assists in a 69-58 win at BYU on Jan
17.Comparable pro: Arike Ogunbowale, Dallas WingsBiggest strengths: Scott is in her third year of college but is a redshirt sophomore, having played just three games last season at Auburn and 20 as a freshman at Arkansas because of injuries
She was healthy most of this season at Baylor, playing 31 games and making the all-Big 12 first team
Similar to former Notre Dame star Ogunbowale, Scott is a talented and consistent scorer who can carry a team
She has 80 3-pointers this season.10
Jasmine Bascoe, VillanovaNCAA opener: No
ET on Friday, ESPNUStats: 18.8 PPG, 4.0 RPG, 4.8 APG, 2.0 SPGBest game this season: The 5-7 sophomore dominated every part of an 82-52 victory at Seton Hall on Feb
25, finishing with 28 points, eight steals, seven assists and five rebounds
She also had 26 points, nine rebounds and seven assists in an 83-69 loss to UConn on Feb
18.Comparable pro: Jordin Canada, Atlanta DreamBiggest strengths: Bascoe led the Wildcats to second place in the Big East, the league tournament championship game and helped them stay close against unbeaten UConn in the Huskies' smallest margin of victory against a conference foe this season
She faced the Huskies three times, which should prepare her for the NCAA tournament
She has been all-Big East first team both seasons
Bascoe is a strong scorer and playmaker, traits that former UCLA standout Canada also possesses.