Utah women's basketball ready for the upcoming season

After making it to the quarterfinals of the Pac-12 tournament last season, one of the youngest teams in the conference is ready to take the next step forward armed with its best recruiting class ever

Utah may still be a year away from being a contender in the uber-talented Pac-12 conference. But that won't stop the Utes from taking an expected massive step forward this upcoming season.

Brynna Maxwell is a breakout star candidate during her upcoming sophomore season — particularly after being one of the best pure shooters, regardless of catch-and-shoot or off the dribble, in the NCAA last season. She averaged 13.1 points per game, knocking 47.2% of her three pointers and 94.3% from the free throw line.

Her classmate Lola Pendande also returns as an athletic post player, averaging 10.8 points and 5.9 rebounds per game as a freshman. Point guard Dru Gylten could emerge as one of the best in the conference through her court vision and ability to dictate the pace of the game. Although she needs to work on taking care of the ball a bit more, she averaged 6.9 points, 5.3 assists and 3.7 rebounds per game.

Serving as capable role players are Andrea Torres, Kemery Martin and Niyah Becker, all of whom shined at different parts of the season last year.

But the real difference maker for the Utes this upcoming season will be its freshmen class, which sits just outside the top-20 nationally and is the best in program history.

You won’t want to miss these 4 on the court this season. 👀

Highest ranked recruiting class in program history and ranked 20th nationally according to ESPN. 🏀#GoUtes pic.twitter.com/KMoxWspX8M

— Utah Women’s Basketball (@UTAHWBB) July 16, 2020

"Always a fun day when the letter of intents come in and we, as coaches, can finally talk about the recruits we've signed," Utah head coach Lynne Roberts told the Utah athletic website in November. "This is a great group. They bring in balance and will complement the great, young core that we already have. Again, this is a highly recruited and pursued group that we anticipate to contribute immediately. All three of these athletes are great kids," Roberts said. "I am proud of my staff for all of the hard work they put in to continually raising the bar with our program. They did a great job."

Headlining the class is local product Kennady McQueen, a four-star guard out of North Summit High School in Coalville. McQueen, the No. 58 prospect in the nation, was named the Utah women's Gatorade player of the year this past season.

“I definitely take a lot of crap being from a small school. … And especially since I’m not much of a talker, I try to let my game do it for me,” McQueen told the Park Record in May. “They might not think I’m good enough, but without having to say a word, they know I am by the time I leave the court.”

Joining the 5-foot-10 McQueen are 6-foot-4 post Peyton McFarland, 5-foot-9 guard Donna Ntambue and 6-foot-5 latecomer Kelsey Rees. 

This class has it all as McQueen is the star with the moxie and the entire package, McFarland has arguably the highest upside of any of them, Ntambue is the most athletic and Rees brings the physicality and size.

As long as this season happens, look for the Utes to take the next step forward en route to contending for a potential Pac-12 title in the coming seasons.

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