South Carolina Gamecocks stalwart Chloe Kitts’ sister, Kylee, will be making her debut in the upcoming campaign. On ‘The Hoops Cap’ podcast on Friday, Sept. 5, women’s college hoops analyst Mark Zanetto shared his thoughts on the Ohio State Buckeyes squad that features the younger Kitts.
Kitts decided to transfer to coach Kevin McGuff‘s Buckeyes for her actual first year of collegiate hoops during this offseason on April 29. She did not play what was supposed to be her freshman stint with the Florida Gators in the 2024-25 campaign, and now enters the 2025-26 season as a rookie. Zanetto feels Ohio State could be a sleeper pick for a deep run with Kitts.
“If you just take a glance at their roster, they’re big. They have a really big and talented group, lot of big guards. They have a couple of smaller guards like every women’s team that are 5’8, 5’7. But, a lot of 6-foot, 6-foot-1 guards, a lot of big 6’4, 6’6 at the power forward and center spots. So, that’ll be an interesting matchup, just as a side when they play them this year. Going forward, we’ll see,” he said (15:51)
“They got Chloe Kitts’s sister, Kylee, just transferred there. She’s a 6’4 power forward. So, yeah, there’s another team that I cover here. They’re coming, right? And, it’s going to be an interesting battle next year,” Zanetto added.
Kitts decided to redshirt her freshman year of college basketball with coach Kelly Rae Finley’s Gators. She will have a full four years of eligibility with the Buckeyes, starting in the upcoming 2025-26 season.
Kitts played high school hoops for Faith Christian High School and looks to follow her elder sister, Chloe, who is a national champion with coach Dawn Staley’s Gamecocks.
Read More: Kylee Kitts Transfer Portal: Top 5 Landing Spots for Florida’s Guard
Tee Baker Says Teams Like Ohio State Are Catching Up Quickly To UConn In Terms Of Recruitment
On the same episode of ‘The Hoops Cap,’ Mark Zanetto’s co-host and women’s basketball analyst, Tee Baker, gave his thoughts on the current landscape of recruiting in women’s collegiate hoops.
He mentioned an episode of WNBA legend Sue Bird’s podcast, wherein she wondered how the Huskies can recruit so well. Baker agreed with Bird and pointed out the growing landscape for teams like the Ohio State Buckeyes.
“Ohio State is a massive football brand, a massive sports brand. So, aligning yourself with that as a women’s basketball player makes increasingly more sense from a marketing perspective, and that’s what the new recruiting landscape looks like. So, these teams, I mean UConn isn’t a monolith in the talent that they can concentrate. And, I think we’re going to see that parity continue grow,” Baker explained (15:10).
In the 2024-25 season, the Buckeyes finished with an overall record of 26-7 (13-5 Big Ten). They reached the second round of the 2025 NCAA tournament, but were trounced in the postseason by the Tennessee Volunteers, 82-67.
Also Read: Who Is Chloe Kitts’ Sister? Meet Kylee Kitts, the Rising Freshman Guard for Florida Gators
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