LSU Transfer Bella Hines Brings Versatility and a Key Answer to TCU's Backcourt

TCU women’s basketball continued building its roster through the transfer portal this weekend with the commitment of former LSU guard Bella Hines.

Hines, a 5-10 rising sophomore, appeared in 33 out of 35 possible games last season while averaging 4.2 points, 2.2 rebounds, and 1.1 assists in 13 minutes per game. Over the course of her freshman season, Hines’ court time increased as she played at least 15 minutes in seven of the last 10 games. LSU eventually made the Sweet 16 and was ranked in the AP Top 10 all season.

An elite shooter in high school, Hines shot 45% from the field and 37.3% from 3-point range as a Tiger. She hit double-figure scoring four times, including 10 points in 16 minutes against SEC foe Oklahoma on March 6.

Hines nabbed New Mexico Player of the Year honors twice while in high school, averaging 28.6 points, 6.5 rebounds, and 1.6 assists during her four-year prep career. She logged 3,170 career points, led the state of New Mexico in scoring average, 3-pointers, field goals (321), and free throws (208), and was a consensus five-star prospect. On3 and 247Sports ranked Hines as the nation’s No. 24 overall prospect.

Hines marks the Horned Frogs’ fifth transfer portal signing since the portal opened on April 6.

Incoming Portal Movement To Date

TCU, the two-time defending Big 12 champions and Elite Eight participants, began dipping into the portal last week with the addition of stretch forward Lara Somfai, an All-ACC Freshman honoree at Stanford. Somfai’s signing was followed by All-Big 12 Honorable Mention guard Jadyn Wooten from Oklahoma State, guard Lanie Grant out of North Carolina, and former Utah guard Avery Hjelmstad.

Somfai, Hjelmstad and Hines are all former top-50 recruits from the class of 2025.

With this influx of talent, the Horned Frogs can form another formidable backcourt to run TCU head coach Mark Campbell’s pick-and-roll system. Wooten is a high-level passer while Grant, Hjelmstad, and Hines provide strong shooting options. Hines can also be a defensive spark as she took a team-high 28 charges at LSU last season.

Somfai, Hjelmstad, and Hines each have three years of collegiate eligibility remaining, while Wooten and Grant have two years left at the collegiate level. These signings, plus two incoming freshmen and three returning players, bring TCU’s roster to 10 players. Junior center Clara Silva and sophomore guard Clara Bielefeld come back after playing significant minutes for the Horned Frogs last season. Center Sarah Portlock also returns, but redshirted during her first year on campus.

The current roster is listed at the end of this article.

The Horned Frogs have another week to add more players before the transfer portal closes on April 20. Learn more about the Grant and Hjelmstad signings below. Somfai and Wooten’s commitments can be found here (Somfai) and here (Wooten).

Lanie Grant, Guard, North Carolina

Grant spent two seasons with the Tar Heels, making back-to-back Sweet 16 appearances, and emerged as the team’s top 3-point shooter. The sharp-shooting 5-9 guard nailed 41.9% (72-of-172) of her shots from behind the arc this past season, a mark that ranked second-highest in the ACC and top-20 nationally. She averaged 10.8 points, 29 minutes, and 2.3 assists per game.

A Midlothian, Virginia native, Grant started 29 of 34 games last year and increased her scoring to 13.6 points per game over the final 17 games. Over that stretch, North Carolina posted a 14-3 record while Grant shot 47.2% from 3-point range. Grant reached double-digit scoring 10 times during conference play, including a career-high 21 points in a win over Virginia Tech during the quarterfinals of the ACC Tournament.

As a freshman in 2024-25, Grant appeared in all 37 games while earning ACC All-Freshman team honors. She also secured a gold medal with USA Basketball during the 2023 FIBA U16 Americas Championship.

Grant has the potential to bring back memories of former 3-point ace Madison Conner. Conner set the single-season records for made threes (128), 3-point attempts (285) and 3-point percentage (44.9%) during the 2025-26 season.

Avery Hjelmstad, Guard, Utah

Hjelmstad is a 6-1 guard with the ability to play either the two or three positions. She notched 5.3 points and 14 minutes per game during her lone season at Utah while appearing in 31 of 32 games. The Utes finished with a 19-13 record, including 10-8 in Big 12 play. Hjelmstad’s best scoring performance of the season came against Colorado as she dropped 22 points and made 5-of-10 3-point attempts. She eclipsed the 10-point mark eight times and shot 88% from the free-throw line for the season.

Signed and sealed ✍️

Welcome to the family, Avery!

🗞️| https://t.co/429izssEl8 #GoFrogs | @AveryHjelmstad pic.twitter.com/wNPA84pD4y
— TCU Women’s Basketball (@tcuwbb) April 12, 2026

A product of Edmond Memorial High School, Hjelmstad earned first team All-State, All-Conference, and All-District honors over multiple years and averaged 16.3 points, five rebounds, and 2.1 steals as a senior.

Hjelmstad shot 53% from the field, including 45% from 3-point range, during her four-year run at Edmond Memorial in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area. Edmond Memorial made three state tournament appearances during Hjelmstad’s career and she was the No. 49 overall prospect in the ESPN HoopGurlz Class of 2025 rankings.

Current TCU Roster

Player	Returner/New	Year in 2026-27	Eligibility Remaining (Years)	Position	Height	Games Played in 2025-26	Average Minutes Played in 2025-26
Clara Silva	Returner	Junior	2	Center	6-7	38	23.9
Clara Bielefeld	Returner	Sophomore	3	Guard	6-4	30	12.9
Sarah Portlock	Returner	Redshirt Freshman	4	Center	6-8	None - Took a redshirt	N/A
Jessie-May Hall	New - Incoming Freshman (Austrailia)	Freshman	4	Guard	5-8	N/A	N/A
Laura Vilcinskas	New - Incoming Freshman (Belgium)	Freshman	4	Center	6-5	N/A	N/A
Lara Somfai	New - Transfer (Stanford)	Sophomore	3	Forward	6-3	32	26
Jadyn Wooten	New - Transfer (Oklahoma State)	Junior	2	Guard	5-6	33	27.7
Lanie Grant	New - Transfer (North Carolina)	Junior	2	Guard	5-9	34	29.2
Avery Hjelmstad	New - Transfer (Utah)	Sophomore	3	Guard	6-1	31	14
Bella Hines	New - Transfer (LSU)	Sophomore	3	Guard	5-10	33	13

What's Next for TCU in the Portal

With Bella Hines now in the fold, TCU continues to reshape its roster through the transfer portal, adding experience and versatility to a backcourt that needed both. The Horned Frogs may not be done yet, as the staff evaluates additional pieces to complement the current group before the portal window closes. Expect more movement and more competition as TCU builds toward next season.

Stay Connected

TCU's roster is taking shape, and fans have opinions. What do you think Bellas Hines brings to this team? Is the backcourt now set, or is another move coming?

Jump into the conversation now on the KillerFrogs fan forum and sound off with the Frogs faithful.