Reigning Sun Belt player of the year Kiki Jefferson has committed to play her fifth and final season of college eligibility at Louisville, she announced Monday on social media.
The 6-foot-1 guard from Lancaster, Pennsylvania, joins Louisville coach Jeff Walz's squad after averaging 15.8 points (43.1% shooting), 7.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game across four seasons at James Madison, where she was a three-time all-CAA selection (and 2023 first-team all-Sun Belt pick) as well as the CAA rookie of the year in 2020. Jefferson also was named the most outstanding player of the 2023 Sun Belt tournament, which the Dukes won to secure their spot in March Madness.
A four-year starter in Harrisonburg, she poured in 17 points in the Dukes' first-round loss to Ohio State in the NCAA tournament, while also contributing a season-high 30 points against North Carolina back during nonconference play.
Jefferson is the third transfer addition for Walz this offseason, to go along with Jayda Curry from Cal and Hennie van Schaik from Cal State Bakersfield. Curry and Jefferson were both top-10 players in ESPN's most recent top-35 transfer rankings.
The Cardinals -- who have appeared in five consecutive Elite Eights and lost to Iowa in the Seattle 4 regional final last month -- are looking to replace the star power of Hailey Van Lith, one of the top players in the country, who entered the portal last week as a graduate transfer.