By R.L. Bynum
Arizona State guard Trayanna Crisp will transfer to North Carolina.
The 5–8 guard, who will be a junior next season, posted the news Sunday afternoon on Instagram, saying that she was, “Letting God Lead the Way.”
The news comes two days after Deja Kelly announced that she wouldn’t return for a fifth season at UNC. She joins a deep Tar Heels backcourt, with graduate players Lexi Donarski and Grace Townsend, junior Indya Nivar, redshirt junior Kayla McPherson, sophomores Reniya Kelly and Sydney Barker, and freshmen Jordan Zubrich and Lanie Grant.
Guard injuries were a huge issue last season for UNC, but the Tar Heels should have the depth to overcome the adversity next season if a couple of guards get hurt.
The additions of Townsend, a transfer from Richmond, and Crisp put UNC at 14 scholarships, one below the 15-player limit.
Crisp, who was a high school teammate at Goodyear, Ariz., with former UNC center Ali Zelaya, started 28 of 31 games for the Sun Devils last season, averaging 12.1 points and 2.1 assists per game. She started seven of 28 games during her freshman season, scoring 58 points with 37 assists.
Crisp and Zelaya, who is transferring to UNCW, were teammates on Millennium High School teams that won Arizona state 5-A titles in 2019 and 2020.
Crisp is one of six Arizona State players to enter the transfer portal after the Sun Devils’ second consecutive 20-loss season. Two of those are also headed to the ACC — 6–3 forward Journey Thompson to Syracuse and 6–2 forward Sandra Magolico to SMU. Jaddan Simmons, a 5–9 guard, is headed to Michigan State and neither 6–2 guard Marina Radocaj nor 6–2 guard Treasure Hunt have announced their plans.
Crisp’s teammate the last two seasons at Arizona State has been Morasha Wiggins, who transferred there after her freshman season at UNC. Wiggins missed the entire 2022–23 season because of an injury and played only six games before suffering a season-ending knee injury last season.
Crisp, who entered the transfer portal on April 9, collected 23 points and seven assists, both career highs, in a 73–66 victory over Washington on Feb. 16.
She has scored at least three 3-pointers six times in her career, including four last season on Dec. 8 against Grand Canyon.
In the last 13 games of the season, Crisp played in 522 of a possible 530 minutes, including 50 minutes in a double-overtime win Feb. 16 over Washington.
Crisp was No. 73 in ESPN’s Class of 2022 rankings, which had former UNC guard Paulina Paris (who is transferring to Arizona) at No. 27.
Arizona went 11–20 last season and lost its last six games. In Crisp’s freshman season, the Wildcats went 8–20. Arizona finished last in the Pac-12 two seasons ago with one win and was second-to-last last season.
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| Year | No. | Players | Pos. | Height | |
| Freshman | 11 | Kate Harpring | PG | 5–10 | |
| Freshman | 52 | Noelle Bofia | F | 6–4 | |
| Sophomore | 3 | Gabby White — W | G | 5–10 | |
| Sophomore | 7 | Nyla Brooks | W | 6–1 | |
| Sophomore | 26 | Taissa Queiroz | G | 6–1 | |
| Junior | 34 | Blanca Thomas | C | 6–5 | |
| Junior | 1 | Jordan Zubich | G | 5–11 | |
| RS junior | 21 | Ciera Toomey | F | 6–4 | |
| RS junior | 4 | Laila Hull | W | 6–1 | |
| Senior | 5 | Sophie Burrows — X | G | 6–2 | |
| Senior | 8 | Achol Akot — Y | F | 6–1 | |
| Senior | 10 | Reniya Kelly | G | 5–7 | |
| Senior | 15 | Sydney Barker | G | 5–6 | |
| Graduate | 13 | Chloe Clardy — Z | G | 5–9 |
W — Virginia transfer; X — Syracuse transfer; Y — Oklahoma State transfer; Z — Stanford transfer
Former players who entered transfer portal
| Player | Class next season | Pos. | Hgt | Next school |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Elina Aarnisalo | Junior | G | 5–10 | UCLA |
| Lanie Grant | Junior | G | 5–9 | TCU |
| Taliyah Henderson | Sophomore | W | 6–1 | Clemson |
| Liza Astakhova | Sophomore | G | 6–2 | BYU |
UNC schedule
| Date | Day/ month | Time | Opponent/event (rank in final poll) |
|---|---|---|---|
| October | |||
| 18 | Sunday | 1 p.m. | vs. Davidson (exhibition) |
| November | |||
| 2 | Monday | TBA | Oui-Play in Paris vs. No 12 Oklahoma |
| 8 | Sunday | 5:30 | Ally Tipoff in Charlotte vs. No. 2 South Carolina |
| 11 | Wednesday | TBA | vs. N.C. Central |
| 14 | Saturday | TBA | at Penn in Palestra |
| WBCA Showcase | Orlando | ||
| 19 | Thursday | 6 p.m. | vs. Texas Tech |
| 21 | Saturday | 5 p.m. | vs. No. 24 Alabama |
| ——— | |||
| 24 | Tuesday | TBA | vs. Gardner-Webb |
| 27 | Friday | TBA | vs. Army |
| 29 | Sunday | TBA | vs. Brown |
| December | |||
| 2 | Wednesday | TBA | ACC/SEC Women’s Challenge vs. No. 8 LSU |
| 6 | Sunday | TBA | vs. Elon |
| 9 | Wednesday | 11 a.m. | vs. Winthrop |
| 13 | Sunday | TBA | vs. N.C. State |
| 17 | Thursday | TBA | vs. Georgia Tech |
| 21 | Monday | TBA | vs. Norfolk State |
| 28 | Monday | TBA | vs. UNCW |
| 31 | Thursday | TBA | at Syracuse |
| January | |||
| 3 | Sunday | TBA | at Clemson |
| 7 | Thursday | TBA | vs. Wake Forest |
| 10 | Sunday | TBA | at No. 11 Louisville |
| 17 | Sunday | TBA | vs. Boston College |
| 21 | Thursday | TBA | at California |
| 24 | Sunday | TBA | at Stanford |
| 28 | Thursday | TBA | vs. No. 9 Notre Dame |
| 31 | Sunday | TBA | vs. No. 5 Duke |
| February | |||
| 4 | Thursday | TBA | at Miami |
| 7 | Sunday | TBA | vs. Virginia Tech |
| 14 | Sunday | TBA | at SMU |
| 18 | Thursday | TBA | at Pittsburgh |
| 21 | Sunday | TBA | vs. Florida State |
| 25 | Thursday | TBA | vs. No. 19 Virginia |
| 28 | Sunday | TBA | at No. 5 Duke |
| March | |||
| 3–7 | Wed.-Sun. | ACC tournament | Spectrum Center, Charlotte |
Photo via @SunDevilWBB
