Talaysia Cooper transfers to Lady Vols basketball after freshman year at South Carolina
Former South Carolina point guard Talaysia Cooper has committed to Tennessee Lady Vols basketball out of the transfer portal.
Cooper announced her commitment to Tennessee on Tuesday on social media. Tennessee recruited Cooper out of high school and were one of her top schools before she signed with the Gamecocks.
Cooper played in 24 games last season and averaged 2.9 points, 1.8 rebounds and 1.3 assists in eight minutes per game as a freshman. She scored a career-high 15 points against Texas A&M in December and in November had nine points and seven rebounds against Hampton.
The 6-foot guard was a five-star prospect ranked No. 18 in the 2022 class by ESPN coming out of East Clarendon High School in Turbeville, South Carolina. Cooper was the South Carolina Gatorade Player of the Year in 2021 after her junior season when she averaged 23.7 points, 12.8 rebounds and eight assists.
She’s a valuable addition for Tennessee with three years of eligibility left, though she will have to sit out this season because she entered the transfer portal after the NCAA's new deadline for immediate eligibility. Tennessee did not sign a 2023 high school recruiting class, and with the majority of the roster graduating in the next two seasons, adding young talent out of the portal is crucial for Tennessee.
Cooper’s playing time was not likely to increase this season at South Carolina with sophomore Raven Johnson poised to start at point guard and two more point guards joining the roster. South Carolina added Oregon junior transfer Te-Hina Paopao in May and Milaysia Fulwiley is an incoming freshman.
Justine Pissott, who was a five-star prospect, was the lone member of the 2022 class before the 6-4 wing transferred to Vanderbilt after her freshman season. Cooper joins Knoxville native Avery Strickland, who committed to UT out of the transfer portal in April after her freshman season at Pittsburgh.
Cooper is the fourth guard to commit to Tennessee out of the portal this offseason. The Lady Vols also added former Belmont point guard Destinee Wells and former Wake Forest guard Jewel Spear. Both have two years of eligibility remaining.
This article originally appeared on Knoxville News Sentinel: Lady Vols basketball lands Talaysia Cooper, a South Carolina transfer
