Who is she?
Sophomore, Forward, 6-foot-3 from East Orange, New Jersey
2024-25 Stats
20 games, 0 starts, 7.7 minutes per game, 1.4 points, 1.7 rebounds, 0.1 assists, 32.3% FG, 27.3% 3PT, 50.0% FT
2024-25 Review
Joe McKeown typically takes a while
to trust his first-year players, and Thomas was no exception. With a veteran front court at his disposal, McKeown used Thomas as his ninth woman over the course of the season. However, Thomas still got a lot of formative minutes, including action in 13 conference games.
Thomas’ most successful stretch came in the opening week of the campaign. After playing at least nine minutes in each of the Wildcats’ first three games, she wouldn’t reach that total again until December 28 — Northwestern’s 13th game of the season. Her biggest impact came in the opener against Illinois State, in which she tallied nine points, three rebounds and a block. However, she fouled out with 8:51 to play in the first quarter and had to watch the ‘Cats fall 81-77 from the bench. She also had some big moments in the victory over Utah, including a go-ahead three-pointer with under seven minutes to play in a game Northwestern won by two.
But Thomas wouldn’t see big minutes again until the calendar flipped to 2025. Her five rebounds in six minutes against Howard helped get her back into the rotation consistently, and she followed that performance up with a pair of blocks against Washington three days after Christmas. On January 5, Thomas played a career-high 25 minutes against Ohio State, mostly standing up to pressure against a national contender. While her five turnovers certainly caused some trouble, Thomas also scored five points and grabbed six rebounds — the latter mark serving as the second-highest on the team.
While Thomas’ rebounding prowess continued through the remainder of the campaign, she never played double-digit minutes in a game again. The lack of minutes went hand-in-hand with a lack of scoring — Thomas failed to tally a point in five of her final seven appearances of the year. However, the rebounding success continued for her, as she collected at least one rebound in all but five of her games.
Strengths
As you could probably guess, rebounding was Thomas’ calling card throughout the season. She tallied 11 rebounds combined in each of the three games where her minutes total was in double digits, and she also had six more contests with multiple rebounds. Even with her reduced role, Thomas was still seventh on Northwestern in offensive rebounding last year. Thomas comes from an athletic family — her brother Nick plays football at Boston College — and that familiarity with physicality served her very well in the Big Ten.
Thomas also proved to be a dependable post defender. While she only tallied five blocks in the 2024-25 campaign (a mark that was still seventh on the Wildcats), she was able to leverage her size and positioning well, even against the toughest competition. Of her five blocks, four came in conference play, including the two-block bonanza against Washington on December 28. Thomas was also able to play aggressive defense without fouling — she committed 15 fouls in 13 conference games, compared to 13 fouls in seven non-conference games. If that trend continues, then Thomas has the potential to be a possession wrecker on the defensive end.
Meanwhile, on offense, Thomas showcased an ability to heat up quickly. She made at least two shots in each game with at least three attempts (admittedly, she only reached that total in three games). She also made at least one three pointer in each game where she took multiple shots from beyond the arc. While Thomas didn’t always get the minutes befitting her scoring acumen, when she was able to get multiple good looks, she converted most of them. With Caileigh Walsh and Taylor Williams out of eligibility, Thomas should get a lot more opportunities to show off her shooting prowess.
Weaknesses
While Thomas’ scoring ability was immediately evident, she didn’t always keep the ball for long enough to show it. In those opening three games, she committed seven turnovers compared to just five made field goals. The Ohio State game also served as an example of the pitfalls first-years can face in the Big Ten, with Thomas committing as many giveaways (five) as points scored. Those four games did account for 12 of Thomas’ 21 turnovers (57.1%), but they also accounted for 69 of her 153 minutes (45.1%). Ideally, as Thomas gets familiar with a larger role, her comfortability should increase, and those turnover numbers should decrease. She only committed two turnovers in her final six games, which is a positive sign for the future.
The main question is whether the increase in turnovers can be decoupled from the increase in minutes and usage. While five forwards from last year’s roster are returning this season, Grace Sullivan is the only one who tallied more minutes than Thomas. Thomas earned the starting spot in the exhibition against Lewis and played a turnover-free 20 minutes, but Big Ten play will bring much tougher defenses. There’ll be a lot more pressure and responsibility for Thomas to deal with, but the former top-60 recruit has the pedigree to handle it.
Expectations
Given that Joe McKeown tapped Thomas to start in the exhibition game on Nov. 1, it seems clear that the expectations for her are high. The Wildcats’ output with her on the floor was borderline dominant, with Northwestern winning the points in the paint battle 48-20 and the second-chance points battle 13-6. Thomas herself had the most efficient output of her Evanston tenure, dropping 14 points on 5-of-8 shooting and adding 10 rebounds, a block and a steal. Only Grace Sullivan scored more, and no Wildcat grabbed more rebounds. Last year, Caileigh Walsh served as one of the frontcourt mainstays and tallied 12.4 points and 4.5 rebounds per game. While those averages might be a little tough to reach for a player in her second year of college basketball, Thomas’ high school success and late-season form suggests a similar statline (perhaps 10.5 points and 3.5 rebounds?) is possible for her.
Thomas will more than likely be in the starting lineup this evening against IU Indy and for the rest of the season as well. She’s been given the opportunity to prove she’s a foundational piece of this program for years to come. It’s up to her to take advantage of it.
