5 DII women's basketball freshmen to know as conference play heats up

With the calendar flipping to 2024, the juicy part of conference schedules opens up in DII women's basketball. 

Last year, a freshman — Emilee Weakley from Frostburg State — was the DII women's basketball scoring champion, so big debuts are not uncommon. Who are some of the freshmen you should be watching down the stretch? 

Narrowing down just five freshmen from the multitudes of first-year players playing well is no easy task. Thus, the following list is comprised of five freshmen that are making large impacts on what appears to be teams in contention for the DII women's basketball tournament at the moment. 

📊 🏀 The latest DII women's basketball Power 10 rankings

5 fantastic freshmen to watch in DII women's basketball

(all stats through Jan. 14, 2024)

Mason Rowland, Guard

Well, the Mavericks knew they were getting something special in Rowland — the 5-foot-7 guard was her high school's league's player of the year in volleyball, basketball, and soccer. So it is probably not entirely too surprising that Rowland is second on the Mavericks in scoring, averaging 15.4 points per game while contributing 26.8 minutes per game off the bench. She contributes 5.1 rebounds per game (second-most on the team) as well and is a nice 17-for-49 from 3-point land. Colorado Mesa is 12-4 and very much in the RMAC and DII bracket hunt, so Rowland has made a big impact already.

Nina Shaw, Cal (PA)

The 5-foot-4 guard isn't lighting things up in the scoring column, but Shaw entered the starting lineup in Game 1 and has been a key cog in the offense for the 11-4 Vulcans ever since. She not only leads the team with 65 assists (4.3 per game) she also has more assists than any other freshman in DII women's basketball. She also chips in 2.3 steals per game, most on the team and fourth-most in the PSAC. Shaw can score, she does average 8.2 points per game, but it's what she does away from the basket that is her largest contributions to this team.

🏆 📈 The DII women's basketball all-stats starting five for December

Lexi Howe, Ashland

Well, the defending national champions are off to a 14-1 start, No. 2 in the nation, and Howe is right in the middle of things. If we are looking at freshmen that have made an impact to tournament-bound teams, then it feels like we need an Eagle on the list. Howe was a key reserve for the first portion of the season but moved into the starting five four games ago and has been playing her best basketball yet. She's averaging 7.7 points on the year but has contributed 12.8 points per game since joining the starters, which included the first 20-point game of her young career. She's also pretty sharp from 3-point land, hitting at least two 3s in each of her past five games. Ashland has a deadly "Big Three" in Zoe Miller, Annie Roshak and Hayley Smith, but there is no denying Howe's contributions to Ashland's big start. 

Kamari Thompson, Coker

Thompson is a 6-foot forward who has made quite the impact with the Cobras. Coker, which was just 11-15 a year ago, is off to a much-improved 10-5 start and Thompson's presence in the paint is a large reason why. She's averaging 11.1 rebounds per game — the most of any freshman and a top-15 mark in all DII women's basketball — while adding more than 11 points per game on an impressive 52 percent shooting from the floor. Her seven double doubles are also a top-10 mark in DII women's basketball.

Olivia Lee, Union (TN)

Lee has started every game she's played for the 17-1 Bulldogs. Union also leads DII women's basketball in scoring offense at 97.1 points per game, 10.3 of which come from Lee. The 5-foot-11 guard shoots 53.4 percent from the floor and is 19-for-45 from 3 (a very nice 42.2 percent). Rebounding is a team effort for the Bulldogs, and Lee is one of six players with more than three rebounds per game, ripping down 3.2 per game. The most fun part for Lee? She gets to do all this with her older sister, Macey, who leads Union in scoring so far this season. 

Also considered: Here are two freshmen that are performing extremely well despite their teams being off to slower starts.

• Nkiru Awaka, Queens (NY): Awaka is averaging 12.1 points per game with 9.3 rebounds and five double doubles on the season. 
• Tateyoina Harris, Mars Hill: Harris is averaging 10.0 points per game to go along with 9.3 rebounds and has double-digit rebounds in six of her last seven games to go along with five double doubles. 

Honorable mention: Pacious McDaniel, Arkansas Tech

McDaniel, a 5-foot-10 guard, was off to a scorching hot start since she made her debut with a 19-point, eight-rebound performance on opening night. Since then, she had averaged 21.8 points per game — which led the Great American Conference and was a top-5 mark in DII women's basketball —while shooting an impressive 53 percent from the field and contributing 6.4 rebounds per game. Unfortunately, McDaniel tore her ACL over break and will miss the remainder of the season.