Redhawks WBB true freshman Zoe Best intends to enter transfer portal

Southeast Missouri State women’s basketball true freshman Zoe Best intends to enter the NCAA transfer portal, she told On3 Sports on Monday, Mar. 10.

The star guard immediately becomes one of the top mid-major players in the portal. Best was named the 2024-25 Ohio Valley Conference Freshman of the Year after averaging 14 points, 5.1 rebounds (team-high), 2.1 assists, and 34 minutes (team-high) per game during her breakout season.

The 5-foot-10 Incarnate Word Academy product joined former SEMO standout guard Tesia Thompson (2017-18) as the only two Redhawks to win OVC Freshman of the Year in program history.

Best was also selected to the OVC's All-Newcomer team and earned All-OVC Second Team honors. She was ultra-efficient from the charity stripe after hitting 84% of her free throws, and scored double figures 21 times, as well.

Along with senior Skylar Barnes, senior Lexi McCully, and fellow true freshman Ainaya Williams, Best was one of four new starters for a new-look SEMO squad that finished the season 6-23 under first-year coach Briley Palmer, who took her first Division I coaching gig after spending four years as head coach at Mineral Area College.

Best told sources of her portal decision just nine days after the regular season ended. The Bel-Nor native, who started 29 games in her rookie campaign, has three more seasons of eligibility.

The 2025 women’s college basketball transfer portal window will officially begin on Tuesday, Mar. 25 (one day after the second round of the NCAA Tournament) and end on Wednesday, April 23.

What it means for SEMO:

As it stands, the Redhawks’ other top returning guard is mid-season transfer Da’Kariya Jackson, who spent the previous two seasons at Three Rivers Community College before making her SEMO debut against Southern Indiana on Jan. 9. Overall, she did not see a lot of playing time due to injury, making just two starts in four games. However, when she was on the court, Jackson was dynamite. In those four appearances, the junior averaged 14.3 points, 4.3 rebounds, and 2.8 assists per game.

The portal is also an option for SEMO, though it may be hard to attract a player of Best's caliber for the time being. As one of two programs to finish last in the OVC, the Redhawks don't necessarily have an enticing near future to pitch, but Palmer has solid junior college ties and can sell prospective transfers on Best’s success given the immediate stardom she had coming out of high school.