As someone who has coached girls basketball across Wisconsin, I have seen firsthand the kind of talent, grit, and heart this state produces.
There is something special about Wisconsin basketball. Maybe it is the cold gyms in January, the family-filled bleachers, or that Midwest toughness that turns pain into perseverance. Whatever it is, this state keeps producing players who carry that spirit to the national stage. These are young women who do not just play the game. They represent something bigger than themselves.
This season, here are five players who played their high school basketball in Wisconsin, and who you need to know and watch.
Emily La Chapell, Guard, Belmont Bruins
Appleton East High School
Emily La Chapell has basketball in her blood. Her dad coached her at Appleton East, where she finished as the school’s all-time leading scorer with 1,885 points and once dropped 50 in a single game.
At Belmont, Emily battled through a hand injury last season. Most players would have sat out, but not Emily. Like any true Wisconsinite, she fought through the pain, found other ways to help her team, and kept showing up. That is the kind of toughness that cannot be taught.
Now, as a senior, she is healthy, hungry, and ready to remind everyone why she is one of the best to ever come out of Appleton.
Alayna West, Guard, DePaul Blue Demons
Madison La Follette High School
If you followed girls basketball in Madison over the past few years, you already know the name Alayna West. She rewrote the La Follette record books with 1,378 points, 826 rebounds, 263 steals, and a school record 48 point game.
Alayna is the definition of tough. Athletic. Confident. Competitive. The kind of player who never flinches when the game gets physical. After a redshirt year, she is ready to prove she belongs at the Division I level. If you have seen her play, you already know she will.
KK Arnold, Guard, UConn Huskies
Germantown High School
KK Arnold is not just a name in Wisconsin basketball. She is a story. Ask any coach in the state, and they have a KK memory. Three time AP Wisconsin State Player of the Year. Two time Gatorade Player of the Year. More than 2,400 career points, 765 rebounds, 695 assists, and 415 steals.
Now she is doing what legends do. Taking that same energy to one of the biggest stages in college basketball. A Big East All Freshman and already a National Champion, KK has proven she belongs among the nation’s elite.
She is carrying Wisconsin pride all the way to Storrs, Connecticut, and the mission is simple. Win another one. We see you, KK. Keep shining.
Teagan Mallegni, Guard, Iowa Hawkeyes
McFarland High School
When you grow up with two parents coaching you, basketball becomes a family language. Teagan Mallegni speaks it fluently.
At McFarland, she shattered records with 2,470 career points, 62 in a single game, and tied a program mark with nine three pointers in one night. She plays with the fire of someone who simply loves the game, every possession, every rebound, every moment to compete.
Now at Iowa, she is surrounded by talent, but do not let that fool you. Teagan’s game will find the spotlight. She can flat out score and plays with a passion that made her one of Wisconsin’s most complete players. Expect her to make an impact early.
Taylor Stremlow, Guard, Iowa Hawkeyes
Verona High School
Taylor Stremlow knows how to win. Her Verona teams went 26-1 her senior year, racking up 41 straight conference wins and a state tournament appearance as a freshman.
She did it all: 1,065 points, 562 assists, 600 rebounds, and 377 steals. At Iowa, she is already making her mark, tying for sixth most five-assist games by a freshman since 2009.
Taylor is the kind of player every coach dreams of. Smart. Selfless. Steady. A true winner from a family of hoopers who understands that basketball is about more than highlights. It is about making everyone around you better.
These five women prove that Wisconsin does not just produce great players. We produce leaders. They carry their high schools, their hometowns, their families, and this state’s pride with them every time they step on the floor.
So when you are scrolling through scores this season or flipping channels on a cold night, stop and watch. Because every one of these players carries a piece of Wisconsin in them, that work ethic, that grit, that love of the game.
And that is what makes them worth rooting for.
