LOS ANGELES — It started with just a TikTok by Oregon State transfer Talia Van Oelhoffen, innocent enough on the surface but carrying massive implications for women’s collegiate basketball.
On Friday, Van Oelhoffen posted a video of herself dancing to GloRilla’s “Yeah Glo!” — standing next to Stanford transfer Kiki Iriafen, the two both wearing USC jerseys. The circumstances were apparent, with a tag to “Los Angeles:” this, evidently, was their visit to USC. And suddenly, the possibility became apparent that Iriafen, one of the best players in the sport a year ago, could team up with JuJu Watkins to form one of the most dynamic duos in the country.
“what we thinkin????” Von Oelhoffen captioned the post, dropping an @ sign to Iriafen.
Iriafen, at least, was thinking Troy. In a bombshell Saturday night, she told ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski she’d be committing to USC, a move of seismic proportions that elevates the Trojans as instant national-title contenders come 2024-25. After breaking out as a junior at Stanford to the tune of 19.4 points and 11 rebounds a game — and dropping 41 points in Stanford’s second-round win over Iowa State — Iriafen gives coach Lindsay Gottlieb a near-unstoppable pick-and-pop duo with rising-sophomore Watkins.
It’s a homecoming for Iriafen, as she played her high school ball at Harvard-Westlake. And the TikTok, sure, might’ve seemed like a bombshell in hindsight, but Iriafen’s intentions may have been set all along. As reported by The Next Hoops’ Talia Goodman, she originally entered the portal with a “do not contact” tag — meaning she likely already had her final destination in mind.
Even with the graduation of key do-it-all senior Kaitlyn Davis, USC’s frontcourt was still well-positioned for 2024-25. Marshall and backup Clarice Akunwafo were returning center, and the Trojans were already bringing in two freshman — Florida’s Vivian Iwuchukwu and Virginia’s Laura Williams — who Gottlieb called “super-athletes,” not to mention 2024 crown jewel Kennedy Smith’s ability to play on the wing or down low.
But a couple weeks ago, when asked by the Southern California News Group if she anticipated replacing the leadership of key departing seniors — McKenzie Forbes, Kayla Padilla, Davis — with just roster growth or through the portal, Gottlieb mentioned that “nobody’s standing pat.”
“Everyone’s trying to get better,” she said. “South Carolina’s trying to get better. UConn’s trying to get better. UCLA, USC, we’re all trying to get better.”
“We believe in the returning players and their growth process, and at the same time, to be able to add a veteran presence is something that, certainly, we will look into,” Gottlieb continued, a few words later.
They locked that down on Friday, and the combination of Watkins, Iriafen, Marshall at center and ready-to-play freshmen like Smith could elevate USC directly into that tier — South Carolina and UConn — that Gottlieb spoke of.