It’s a sunny spring day in Provo, and inside the Annex next to the Marriott Center, Lee Cummard is already at work. Cummard, newly promoted to head coach of BYU women’s basketball, is leading drills and building culture.
Rising sophomore star Delaney Gibb is locked in — back in the gym, sharpening her game after a breakout freshman season that turned heads across the Big 12. Alongside her new head coach, she’s not just preparing for another year — she’s helping lead a resurgence.
Together, they represent the future of a program looking to bounce back from a challenging year and reestablish itself in the Big 12.
After a season marred by growing pains and unmet expectations, BYU women’s basketball stands on the brink of a new chapter — guided by a determined young core, a familiar face at the helm, and a vision to rise in a rapidly evolving sport.
The Cougars’ 2023–24 campaign ended in frustration, finishing 13–17 overall and just 4–14 in Big 12 play. For a program with a history of competitive success and a passionate fanbase, the performance fell short. It became clear: change was necessary.
That change started at the top. Coach Amber Whiting and BYU mutually parted ways after two seasons, opening the door for a new leader to take charge of a young but promising roster.
Enter Cummard — a name well-known in Provo. A former BYU men’s basketball standout and professional overseas player, he returned to the program several years ago to begin his coaching career. He cut his teeth under legendary coach Dave Rose on the men’s side before transitioning to the women’s program, where he served under Jeff Judkins and later as associate head coach under Whiting.
“At BYU there is a tradition of winning and there is a commitment to it,” Cummard said. “I fully intend to live up to that commitment and that winning tradition. Excellence is the expectation. That’s how we do everything.”
Now, as head coach, Cummard is tasked with not just stabilizing the program — but unlocking its untapped potential.
“We got a great core,” said Cummard. “They'll be the foundation of the team next year. We were so close in so many games as we learn how to win and capture those games going forward.”
And at the heart of that potential is Gibb, one of the youngest and most exciting talents on the roster. Gibb showed flashes of brilliance as a freshman, and her hunger to elevate her game mirrors the program’s broader ambitions.
Together, Cummard and Gibb represent the future of BYU women’s basketball: driven, unproven and full of promise.
This is a program with a rich history of success dating back to the 1970s and one that has produced great players. This current collection of talent looks to add their names to the lore of BYU women’s basketball and continue the growth that many great players have started before them.
Their story unfolds at a time when women’s basketball is experiencing unprecedented growth. College stars like Caitlin Clark, JuJu Watkins, and Paige Bueckers have become household names. The WNBA is booming with talent, NIL deals are reshaping recruiting, and fans are tuning in like never before.
As the spotlight on the women’s game grows brighter, BYU is looking to step into it — not just to compete, but to rise.
And to do that, it helps to know where the program has already been.
A Half-Century of Progress: The Evolution of BYU and Women’s Basketball
Fifty years ago, opportunities for women in sports were limited. Everything changed in 1972. Title IX banned sex-based discrimination in education, opening the door for women to compete, train, and be seen — not just as students, but as athletes. It laid the foundation for the explosive growth of women’s athletics at both the collegiate and professional levels.
In the decades since, women’s basketball has undergone a dramatic evolution. College programs grew in visibility and investment, creating platforms for athletes to showcase their skills on national stages like the NCAA Tournament. This momentum led to the founding of the WNBA in 1996 — a watershed moment that gave elite female basketball players a permanent professional league in the United States.
While the WNBA initially faced challenges in gaining traction, it has steadily grown into a respected and influential league, thanks to stars like Lisa Leslie, Diana Taurasi, Sue Bird, and more recently, A’ja Wilson and Sabrina Ionescu. It has now peaked in popularity due to superstar Caitlin Clark, who first took the college basketball world by storm.
Now, the sport is experiencing a new renaissance. College basketball has become a cultural force, with players like Clark, Paige Bueckers and JuJu Watkins drawing record-breaking TV ratings and sellout crowds. Social media has further accelerated this growth, making players household names and inspiring the next generation of women’s basketball across the country.
Women’s sports are no longer a side story — they’re a main event. Now in a landscape that features name, image and likeness deals, transfer portal dynamics, and increased media attention, schools like BYU have a unique opportunity to grow alongside the sport’s rising tide.
Women’s sports may be booming now, but the foundation was built by pioneers — those who fought for opportunity when there was little to be had. At BYU, that foundation begins with Elaine Michaelis.
Early Days of BYU Women’s Basketball
Often referred to as the matriarch of women’s athletics in Provo, Michaelis dedicated her life to building and overseeing BYU’s women’s sports programs. Her leadership and vision helped shape the structure of BYU athletics as we know it today, ensuring women’s teams received the support and recognition they deserved.
While Michaelis laid the groundwork, it was coach Courtney Leishman who elevated BYU women’s basketball to a new level. Under his direction, the program found its competitive edge, gaining momentum that would carry through generations of players and coaches.
After graduating from Utah State, Leishman coached multiple sports at Malad High School in Idaho before heading to BYU for a master’s degree. There, he caught the attention of Hall of Fame coach Stan Watts, who gave him his first opportunity with the men’s freshman team.
After a couple of years coaching men’s basketball, Leishman was asked to take on a different role.
“What do you want me to do?” Leishman asked.
In 1977, he was asked to replace Michaelis as the head coach of the women’s team so Michaelis could focus solely on coaching women’s volleyball.
“I said, what? I never thought of coaching the girls,” said Leishman.
Coaching a women’s sport back then was much different than it is today. The Cougars did not travel on the road in a team bus like the men did, instead they had to figure out different ways to get to the universities they played against.
“We had to rent three of those eight-passenger vans on the motor pool,” said Leishman. “We couldn't even have a bus wherever we were going because we didn't have the budget.”
BYU allowed Leishman to bring his wife on the road with the team which is one of the things he asked for when he took the job.
“She did that for 12 years and never got a nickel,” said Leishman, who is now 95 years old. “I just had 12 girls and a trainer and my wife, so there's 15 of us.”
Leishman even recruited his own daughters for help as he had them keep track of stats at games. Much different than the full coaching and training staffs that we see grace the bench with the team at games today.
The team also didn’t have the facilities and that they do now.
“They moved us into the Marriott Center because Elaine Michaelis wanted the Smith Fieldhouse for volleyball practice,” said Leishman. “The first year, we never had a dressing room. That first year, we used the visiting team locker room. We could practice and change clothes, but when the weekend came and the team was coming, we had to take our stuff out of that locker so the visiting team could use that locker. It was ugly but the girls lived through it and they were good about it. They just went to work and played hard.”
Today, the Cougars have their own locker rooms in the Marriott Center and at the Annex, BYU basketball’s practice facility.
“Now they got the same spread up there as the men’s team,” Leishman said.
Even in a different era, Leishman was able to find success. He helped lead the Cougars to seven conference titles in his 12 years at the helm of the program, coaching some of the best players in program history. Some of those players included Tina Gunn Robison, Tresa Spaulding Hamson, and Jackie Beene.
Those three players all have their jersey numbers hanging in the rafters at the Marriott Center. They helped pave the way for where BYU women’s basketball now stands.
In the years that followed Leishman’s tenure, the Cougars found occasional success but captured the magic once again when Jeff Judkins became BYU’s fifth head coach.
Judkins brought the program back to prominence. In 21 seasons, he led BYU to 11 NCAA Tournament appearances, two Sweet Sixteens, and consistent national respect.
The Man for the Job
The Cougars are entering their third year in the Big 12 and are coming off a disappointing campaign in the 2024-25 season.
BYU recently hired Cummard as their new head coach to help oversee this transition into this changing college landscape and take the Cougars to places they haven’t been to in a while.
Cummard is a former men’s basketball player at BYU and after a professional career that saw him spend several seasons playing overseas, he returned to Provo as an assistant on the men’s team before moving over to the women’s team as an assistant.
He became the lead assistant coach under Amber Whiting in 2023, but after back-to-back losing seasons and a directionless future, the school decided it was time to move on and make a change.
When a new coach is brought in, sometimes a mass exodus of players leave due to the transfer portal, but that wasn’t the case for BYU.
“When you lose your coach, there's a lot of uncertainties,” said Gibb. “I've loved it at BYU, and so I wanted to stay here if that was what's best for my future and for my basketball career. Lee Cummard getting the job is huge. I've known him for so long, and so I honestly couldn't be more excited.”
The Cougars are returning most of their underclassman from last season, many of whom played a key role on the team last season and many credit it to Cummard being promoted to head coach.
“I think he’s probably the biggest BYU guy that I know,” said Gibb. “He's been here for so long, he loves it. He played here, and you can really just see how much pride and how much happiness, and all the work that he's put into BYU. He's learned from a lot of great coaches.”
The passion Cummard has for BYU is something that his players are noticing and they believe
“BYU is running through his blood,” said junior guard Marya Hudgins. “Why would you not want to play for someone, or have someone here who loves this place?”
“He's very competitive, and I feel like he knows what he's doing,” said sophomore forward Kambree Barber. “I think he's going to lead us in the right direction, motivate us in the right way, and get us to the place we want to go, which is the tournament.”
The Cougars haven’t reached the NCAA tournament since 2022 when Cummard’s mentor, Judkins, was the head coach.
Cummard’s experience with playing and coaching basketball has given him plenty of experience to be successful as a head bench boss.
“Every coach that you play for kind of has their way of doing things, their philosophy, their schemes, who they are as a person, how they interact with players,” said Cummard. “Even from a young age, I was very observant of all the coaches that I played for, but not just the coaches I played for, coaches within each league.”
BYU was a member of the Mountain West Conference during Cummard’s playing days as a Cougar and after his time in Provo he spent two years in France and another four years in Belgium where he played professional basketball. He learned a lot during his time as an assistant coach under two of the best to ever do it at BYU, Rose and Judkins.
“I don't think you know he could ask for better people to learn from,” Cummard said. “The longevity that those guys had in this business and at this place. If I can have half the success either of those guys had, I'll be thrilled. I want to have all the success they had, and then some.”
Roster Outlook
With the Cougars being young in 2024 and many players believing in Cummard, BYU is set to return many key players from last season’s roster. Some players have moved on due to graduation and some transferred out but a big chunk of the team’s production will be back in royal blue come fall.
BYU’s trio of impact freshmen from last year will all be back for their sophomore seasons, ready to pick up where they left off. That trio includes Gibb, Barber, and Brinley Cannon.
“I was grateful for all the experience that we had as freshmen,” said Cannon. “Now we have that year under our belt that we can move forward, be more confident and be leaders on our team.”
Veterans forwards Hattie Ogden and Heather Hamson will be back as well. The team will also return two key players from injury, Arielle Mackey-Williams and Marya Hudgins.
Mackey-Williams suffered a torn left ACL before the season started while training. She had been looking forward to returning to the court after tearing her right ACL in 2023 which caused her to miss the rest of that season as well.
After missing much of the last two seasons, Mackey-Williams is ready to get back on the court for the Cougars and make a difference with her play and veteran leadership.
“I think it's important for me, just to show from day one, that I'm walking my talk,” said Mackey-Williams. “While also, at the same time, encouraging the younger (players).”
Getting veteran sharpshooter Marya Hudgins back is going to help bolster the team’s depth and shooting. She’s looking forward to helping out the team and making sure BYU is better in 2025-26 and in the future.
“I think it's going to start internally,” Hudgins said. “I think we got to make sure that we're staying on top of our values and what we want to represent. Making sure that we're holding each other accountable and making sure that this place is a place that girls want to come to because of our culture and because of how much we love each other, I think that's going to be the biggest foundation.”
Cummard and his staff have brought in new recruits and transfers such as Olivia Hamlin, the No. 59 ranked player in the country, and Lara Rohkohl, a junior transfer from the College of Charleston.
The Cougars are building something special — and at the center of it all is a core of talented young players who form the foundation of BYU’s future. Leading that charge is none other than the program’s cornerstone: sophomore guard Delaney Gibb.
Delaney Gibb: The Cornerstone
The heartbeat of the team, Gibb made an immediate impact in her freshman campaign, taking the Big 12 by storm. She racked up an astonishing 10 Big 12 Freshman of the Week honors and was ultimately crowned the conference’s Freshman of the Year.
Statistically, her debut season was one for the BYU record books. Gibb finished in the top 15 of nearly every major freshman category, setting a new record for points per game at 17.4. She also finished second all-time among BYU freshmen in total points scored, field goal attempts, three-point attempts, three-pointers made per game, total assists, and assists per game.
A native of Raymond, Alberta, Canada, Gibb possesses all the tools to continue evolving into the star the Cougars need her to be. Her experience on the international stage — representing Canada at the 2022 U17 and 2023 U19 World Championships — has only sharpened her skills and deepened her poise.
“My number one goal has always been to play in the Olympics for Team Canada,” said Gibb. “I think playing for a national team is the coolest thing ever. You get to represent not only your country, but your community and your family, and just everything on such a bigger stage, in a higher level, and everything means so much more. I think for me, when I made my first national team, it kind of like opened my eyes to all of the possibilities that I had.”
As she continues to grow, so too will BYU’s chances of becoming a contender in the Big 12. The team will flourish under her play.
“Delaney has all the makings of somebody that is going to play professional,” said Cummard. “She works extremely hard, she has a clear vision of what she wants to accomplish, and she knows where that goalpost is and she's chasing after it.”
Despite coming off a great individual season, Gibb knows there is more work she needs to put in so she can continue to get better at her craft and take this team to where it wants to go.
“I had a good freshman year, but I still want to accomplish more,” Gibb said. “I think for me, just continuing to get in the gym and work harder.”
Gibb has spent parts of the offseason training with former BYU Cougar and NBA draft prospect Egor Demin as he prepares to take his game to the professional level. Working out with NBA level trainers will help Gibb take her game to the next level.
“Cleaning up her craft, trying to get to spots with one dribble instead of two,” said Cummard. “Being more efficient in some of her bodily movement, whether it's offensively or defensively, and just kind of hone some of those other things that she's already great at. Clean up some of the decision-making process, whether it's fouls or turnovers. She's gonna see a jump, and we need her to take a jump.”
Gibb’s complete skillset makes her a nightmare for defenses. She can shoot from deep, finish at the rim, and create for others.
“She's very competitive, wants to win, and is going to do anything to help us win,” said Hudgins. “That's one thing I love about her, she's never just focused on herself. She's always focused on the team and what we can do to win.”
“She's amazing, such an amazing athlete,” said Kambree Barber. “She can see the floor well, shoot the ball well. She's just an all-around good athlete.”
Gibb has the makings of the next great women’s college basketball guard and she can have a similar impact as the likes of Clark, Bueckers and Ionescu.
Gibb has a similar game to former Cougar Erin Thorn and Gibb wears the same number Thorn wore at BYU — No. 11.
Thorn is regarded as one of the best women’s basketball players in BYU history and she was a member of the 2002 BYU team that reached the program’s first-ever Sweet Sixteen.
After her time at BYU, Thorn went on to have a long professional career, playing 11 years in the WNBA. Gibb is looking to follow in Thorn’s footsteps and be the next great Cougar to play in the WNBA.
“I hope to be drafted to the WNBA one day,” Gibb said.
Thorn sees the potential that Gibb has and believes she can make that jump to the league when the time comes.
“She's still young. She's got three years of college ball left, so there's a lot of room for growth,” said Thorn. “A lot of times in the WNBA, it's about opportunity and finding the right fit. It's definitely possible for her. She just keeps plugging away and keeps improving. Sky's the limit for that kid.”
BYU is going to rely on their star to help take them where they want to go this upcoming season, but having a player of Gibb’s caliber in this day and age of college athletics can help change the trajectory of a program.
BYU’s Blueprint for Growth
The landscape of college athletics has changed dramatically over the last few years due to the introduction of NIL. College athletes can now be paid for their name, image, and likeness and this has made an impact on a player’s decision to go to a certain school or transfer out.
BYU has a large donor base and many alumni that want to see their athletic programs thrive and they are willing to spend to make it happen. They have already seen the benefits of this with the men’s basketball team and how they landed the number one high school player in the country and have become a destination for top prospects.
The women’s team has the chance to follow a similar blueprint and utilize resources from donors and the space of NIL in order to improve the program and sustain long-term success. The team already has their star in Gibb, someone who can be marketable among its fanbase and across the country. A skillful player that people will want to watch play.
“Our men's team was booming last year, and so I just am really excited to see that happen on the women's side,” Gibb said. “I believe that it's going to and I hope these next couple years we can perform well and make it exciting. A lot of little girls and young kids are watching women's sports, and they love it.”
The next step for the Cougars is to put all the variables together and perform well on the court. The team will need to start winning more games and the urgency to do so is being felt within the program.
“Winning is a big thing,” said Hudgins. “We want to make it to the tournament. Even on our first day of spring workouts we talked about playing on the Thursday of our Big 12 tournament because that sets up the tone for being able to make it to March Madness.”
BYU has already shown the ability to sustain a successful women’s sports program with their soccer and volleyball teams, two teams that are consistently ranked nationally and playing in contention for national titles.
“I definitely see the potential,” said Barber. “I feel like we could make that jump, especially as young freshmen, and how we're going to be so young, building that chemistry and the bond and going throughout BYU, I think we can make that jump in the time I'm here.”
Embarking into the Future
As Cummard leads this team into this new era with his young superstar Gibb, the team will have much to build off of as they enter into the future with much to be excited about.
“I think we have a lot of young players, and we have a bright future,” Gibb said. “We have great girls who all want to get better and who are all hungry to win and want to improve. I think that starts right now, and that starts with our practices, just really making sure we have high intensity in everything that we do.”
The Cougars are attacking this offseason training with the goal to not only be better in the 2025-26 season, but in the years to come.
“It's just mentally being tougher and stronger,” Mackey-Williams said about the team’s offseason approach. “Being a lot more competitive with everything that we're doing, not just in basketball, but also in life.”
This team has the potential to turn heads in the Big 12 next season and recapture that magic that the program once held.
“With women's basketball as a whole growing tremendously, I think our team specifically has a lot of personality,” said Hudgins. “We're a lot of fun, and we can play basketball very well. Come watch us play.”
“We're going to compete,” Cannon said. “We're going to play fast and make a lot of shots, make a lot of threes, and I think we're going to do it the right way and together.”
“At BYU, we have a really special culture,” said Gibb. “Our fan base is amazing, and they're so supportive, and they love watching sports.”
Tipoff to a New Era
From the foundation laid by pioneers like Elaine Michaelis to the program-defining stars of today, BYU women’s basketball has always had the potential to thrive. Now, with the arrival of a passionate leader in Cummard and a generational talent in Gibb, the Cougars are entering a pivotal moment in their program’s history.
They’re not just trying to return to national relevance — they’re building toward something greater. With NIL momentum, an energized fan base, and a young, committed core, BYU has all the ingredients to grow into a Big 12 contender and a nationally respected program.
The Cougars are embracing the challenges of a new era with confidence, culture and a clear identity. As Gibb and her teammates grind through practices and push each other in pursuit of their goals, one thing is clear: the future of BYU women’s basketball is not only bright — it’s already taking shape.