Oregon added a former five-star shooting guard from the transfer portal Friday, Avary Cain of Saint Joseph High School in Santa Maria, California.
Cain announced her choice on Instagram. She becomes the first pickup for Kelly Graves and the Ducks in the portal, a possible replacement for Deja Kelly, last year's leading scorer who's completed her eligibility and awaits the WNBA draft.
In her one season as a Bruin Cain played just 8.6 minutes as a game for the 34-3 squad that made it all the way to the Final Four in the Women's NCAA Basketball Tournament before falling to two-seed and eventual champion UConn 85-51.
Former 5 ⭐️, Avary Cain, has committed to Oregon. Huge pickup from a developmental standpoint where we can see her truly become a star.#GoDucks pic.twitter.com/FsfmTqJTA0
— The Slam Duck 🦆 𝐎 (@TheSlamDuck) April 11, 2025
"Avary wants to be great," UCLA head coach Cori Close said a year ago when announcing her signing. "She's going to make an immediate impact with her length and athleticism as a defender, but she's also a really good long-range shooter. We've made a commitment to being able to spread the court and have consistency from beyond the arc, and I think her potential – she's just scratching the surface but Avary is already a high-level, impact player."
All four of UCLA's women's basketball freshmen have entered the transfer portal this spring. Cain played a season-high 22 minutes on November 10 in an 81-63 win over Colgate, scoring five points with four assists.
She last played for the Bruins at home against Ohio State on March 8 when the team blew out Ohio State 75-46, six minutes, no points on 0-2 shooting, one personal foul.
As a prep Cain earned a No. 20 ranking in the ESPN Super 60, one of the top seniors in the nation in the class of 2024, a 20-point-a game score that led her team to the Central Section Semifinals. Named the Mountain League MVP, she pulled down 7 rebounds a game, 3.5 steals and 2.8 assists.
Graves' first challenge will be to rebuild her confidence, but he's landed a player with the talent to be a leader in the Oregon backcourt.