Avery Howell's stock is soaring ahead of her junior season.
The Washington Huskies guard was re-ranked as the No. 11 best player in the high school class of 2024 in an exercise released by ESPN on Wednesday. Howell, a McDonald's All-American as a high schooler, was the No. 16 recruit in the country when she committed to USC before transferring to Washington after her freshman season.
We take a look back at the @SCNext 2️⃣0️⃣2️⃣4️⃣ Class and where we had them coming out of high school 🆚 where they stack up now headed into their junior year in college.
— Shane Laflin (@ShaneLaflin) September 23, 2026
📰 via @ESPN_WomenHoop: https://t.co/4lAtrg1hty
📈 Development continues. pic.twitter.com/UOlQ4TVSN7
ESPN's Shane Laflin wrote of Howell: "A McDonald's All-American, Howell's stock has risen because
of her competitive nature and improved shooting. The 6-foot guard has developed into an elite 3-and-D role player, shooting well above 40 percent from 3 while averaging 2.6 makes and more than eight rebounds per game. The next proving ground is showing she can defend different types of wings, punish early closeouts with more trips to the free throw line, and create more for others."
That mark from 3, which finished at 43.1 percent and is No. 18 among returning Division I players, was a major boost to a Washington offense that otherwise largely regressed from behind the arc and propelled the Huskies to their best NCAA Tournament finish since their Final Four squad in 2016. Howell also led Tina Langley's squad in rebounding at 8.3 per game and was second in scoring behind rising senior Sayvia Sellers with 14.2 points per contest.
Sellers and Howell should be preseason All-Big Ten honorees, leading a Washington squad that should push to host a regional with three of their four leading scorers from last season (Sellers, Howell, and sophomore Brynn McGaughy) returning. Washington also added North Carolina State transfer Tilda Trygger at center, a 10.6 points-per-game scorer, to further bolster their starting lineup.
Seven members of Washington's Big Ten opponents also made the re-ranking list, meaning that over half of the top-15 reside in the conference. Ohio State's Jaloni Cambridge (No. 4), Michigan's Syla Swords and Olivia Olson (Nos. 7 and 8), Nebraska's Britt Prince (No. 9), Iowa's Ava Heiden (No. 10), USC's Kennedy Smith (No. 13), and Minnesota's Tori McKinney (No. 15) also made the list.
Langley's team opens the season on November 2 against UC Davis.
This article originally appeared on Huskies Wire: Washington WBB G Avery Howell sees stock rise in 2024 ESPN re-rank
