The LSU women’s basketball team began transfer season with a bang, but not via a transfer. Instead, it arrived as a high school recruit.
Caroline Bradley, a consensus five-star center from Oak Grove, Louisiana, and a member of the Class of 2027, announced her verbal commitment to LSU on Monday night. She picked the Tigers over South Carolina, UCLA, Duke, Vanderbilt, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Kentucky, Alabama, and Texas A&M.
Bradley, who is from Louisiana, had always wanted to wear the purple and gold, so it played a big part in her decision to attend LSU.
“They’re built around tradition, they’re built around family,” Bradley told KWCL Radio on Monday. “It’s one of the best programs in the country, and to be able to play for my home state would be indescribable. It will be a wonderful sensation. I have a great connection with coach Mulkey and her staff, and she has always developed bigs wherever she has gone, which she will continue to do. She won LSU’s first national championship, and wearing those three letters across my chest with pride is something I’ve always wanted to do.
Bradley (6-5), ranked as the nation’s top center by all major recruiting sources, made her statement during a crawfish boil at her house in Louisiana. She is rated No. 7 nationally by 247Sports. com and as high as No. 3 by ESPN.
Bradley was named Gatorade Louisiana Girls Basketball Player of the Year for the second straight year after averaging 27. 0 points, 16. 9 rebounds, 2. 4 assists, 3. 4 blocks, and 1. 4 steals per game for Oak Grove. She had 29 points and 20 rebounds in Oak Grove’s semifinal defeat to Westlake in March.
She is only the sixth female basketball player in Louisiana history to get Gatorade Player of the Year recognition several times, joining Seimone Augustus, Whitney Jones, Theresa Plaisance, Cara Ursin, and Mikaylah Williams.
Bradley is LSU’s first commitment for the 2027 recruitment cycle. Though her choice was expected, she had been trending toward LSU throughout the season, making numerous trips to Baton Rouge to see Kim Mulkey and the Tigers.
Her most recent trip was on March 22 for LSU’s home finale against Texas Tech in the round of 32. She also attended LSU contests against South Carolina and Texas.
If Bradley’s dedication holds, she might be one of Mulkey’s most significant recruits, especially in the post. Centers of her stature are uncommon in high school basketball, thus retaining Bradley in Louisiana might be a big boost for LSU’s program moving forward.
