What will losing Nyla Harris mean to Louisville WBB-- WEDNESDAY CARDINAL COUPLE

 HARRIS "FEELS FREE" AGAIN AFTER LEAVING CARDS TO GO TO UNC

Harris in her new "Carolina Blue"

Nyla Harris was one of five Cardinals WBB players to play in all 33 games in the 2024-35 season. She was the fourth leading scorer on the UofL team, but the second leading leading rebounder. You read that right, she outrebounded all Cards WBB players but graduated Olivia Cochran. 

Grace Mbugna is a powerhouse rebounding machine coming in as a freshman

A lot of teams would go into panic mode after losing their top two rebounders. And, yes, it may affect the Cards at first, but consider that Louisville has 6'4" Isla Juffermans back and adds 6'4" Grace Mbugna (Danville Christian), 6'3" freshman Yevhenia Putra (Ukraine), 6'2" senior Laura Ziegler (St. Joseph's) and still has 6'3" sophomore Anaya Hardy on the roster. Height wise, the Cards will be just fine on the front line. The Cards also have super sophomores Taj Roberts and Mqc Randolph returning. 

In Harris' case, it was going to play her senior year at a school that was the first to express interest when she entered the transfer portal and also, in UNC, one of the schools that was in her final five when she was an incoming freshman.  

In Harris's words..."I'm happy again...I feel free. I'm going to be real again and not in a box anymore. The decision to go with UNC is 10 times better and I will be able to shine on the court. The biggest thing, going into my senior year, is happiness and being surrounded by players who care about me."

She'll be the third tallest player on the roster for the TarHeels, behind 6'5" sophomore Bianca Thomas, who averaged 2.4 points a game last year and 6'4" redshirt sophomore Ciara Toomey, who averaged 3.2 points per game.  

Taj Roberts is posed to have a incredible sophomore season

The Cards will miss Harris a bit, but when you have the powerhouses Mac Randolph, Taj Roberts, and several other transfers coming in, Walz has restocked the front line "cupboard" instead of leaving the shelves empty.  With six players 6'3" or taller, rebounding should be the least of Louisville concerns in the 2025-26 campaign. No one rebuilds better than Jeff Walz

Sometimes. players go. All you can do is thank her for the years she gave the Cards and wish her the best in her decision. 

paulie