Arizona women’s basketball: Wildcats land Purdue transfer Dominique McBryde

The 6-foot-2 sophomore was an All-Big Ten honorable mention this past season

Adia Barnes strikes again.

Earlier in June, Arizona women’s basketball received a commitment from five-star forward Cate Reese — the program’s highest-ranked recruit ever — and now it has landed Purdue transfer Dominique McBryde as it continues to pile up talent.

Bear Down!! ⬇️❤️ http://pic.twitter.com/Y5cxZ1J64N

— Dominique McBryde (@Mcbryde20) June 20, 2017

McBryde, a 6-foot-2 sophomore forward, averaged 6.7 points and a team-high 6.3 rebounds this past season at Purdue, and was an All-Big 10 honorable mention.

Per NCAA transfer rules, McBryde will sit out the 2017-18 season before having two years of eligibility at Arizona.

The Bedford, Ind. native was a five-star recruit coming out of Bedford North Lawrence High School, being tabbed as the No. 30 prospect in ESPN’s recruiting rankings.

As a sophomore, McBryde played in 35 games (started in 25) for the Boilermakers, shooting 46.5 percent from the field and recording three double-doubles.

As a freshman, McBryde averaged 7.3 points per game on 52.4 percent shooting.

“Her offensive game showed signs of progress, especially toward the end of her freshman season,” wrote Mike Carmin of the Journal & Courier. “However, that momentum didn’t carry over into her sophomore year. McBryde spent the offseason working on her outside game, extending her shooting range to become a more effective scorer. However, the Bedford North Lawrence graduate still attempted a majority of her shots inside the lane.”

In 2015, McBryde was nominated for the McDonald's All-America game and graduated as her high school's all-time leading scorer and all-time leading shot blocker.

The Wildcats have consistently been one of the smaller teams in the Pac-12 Conference, but the additions of Reese and McBryde in 2018-19 should change that.

Reese, a 6-foot-3 forward, is the No. 10 prospect in the 2018 recruiting class.

Arizona has not had a winning season since 2010-11, but Barnes, who just completed her first year as UA head coach, appears to have the program on the right track.

The Wildcats went 14-16 overall and 5-13 in the Pac-12, which represents an improvement from the 2015-16 season.

Arizona’s five conference wins were the most it has posted since 2010-11.

The Wildcats signed five recruits in their 2017 recruiting class, plus added two transfers (one of whom is a graduate transfer), so their roster will look much different in the 2017-18 season as they look to continue their upward trajectory.

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Follow Ryan Kelapire on Twitter at @RKelapire

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