Virginia Star Kymora Johnson Announces Her Return to the Program

Johnson was one of the top guards in the ACC last season, and she will be returning to Charlottesville for another season

Mar 28, 2026; Sacramento, CA, USA; Virginia Cavaliers guard Kymora Johnson (21) pushes the ball up the court during the second quarter of the game against the Texas Christian University Horned Frogs in the Sweet Sixteen game of the Sacramento Regional 4 of the women's 2026 NCAA Tournament at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images | Ed Szczepanski-Imagn Images

The Women's basketball program for Virginia got fantastic news today.

Kymora Johnson entered the transfer portal shortly after UVA made a coaching change, and she was one of the top players in the portal, coveted by many top programs around the country. However, new head coach Aaron Roussell got his first big win as the new head coach of the Hoos by convincing Johnson to return to Charlottesville for another season.

same place, same purpose
- Jeremiah 29:11 - pic.twitter.com/hgCwTWOZaD

— Kymora Johnson (@KymoraJohnson_) April 17, 2026

Big win

Johnson averaged 22 points, 5.7 assists, and 6.2 rebounds in four NCAA tournament games to guide Virginia to its first Sweet Sixteen appearance in 26 years as Virginia became the first team in history to reach the Sweet Sixteen after playing in the First Four.

Last season, Johnson was one of three players in NCAA Division I to average at least 19 points and 5.5 assists, along with Olivia Miles (TCU) and Liv McGill (Florida). Her 19.5 points per game led the team and ranked second in the ACC. She paced the Cavaliers in 24 games this season, including 12 against ACC opponents.

Roussell talked about roster construction during his introductory press conference and with the return of Johnson, he is off to a great start of building a winner:

"I think we talked first and foremost about player development. That's part of why I hired the staff that I did, was about player development. When we first started at Richmond, it was about different things of what we were recruiting. At the end of Richmond, it was, we want to recruit, and develop pros. So you obviously get to this level and you have a little bit of different resource. You have a different level, and maybe a different ceiling of saying, “I want to coach pros. I want to prepare for pros.” That's part of why we did what we did, how we changed our offense over the years. I wanted that to translate.

I wanted what we were doing, what we're teaching, to translate to the next level. That's a big part of it. You know, I think it's a fun style to play, you know, I think that's something that we teach. It's a fun style, It's reading. You know, it's not a lot of memorization. It's playing basketball, and sometimes it's just play, it's just play, it's just play. So I think it's fun for them. It's fun to teach. That's also part of what we teach, too. Sometimes, as a teacher, you just have to learn new things, so you're not getting stale and stagnant."

Virginia still has other work to do if they want to build a team that is capable of getting back to the Sweet 16 and beyond, but having your best player back and keeping her away from other programs like South Carolina is a huge win and a great start.