Grad student Lauren Ebo to join Notre Dame women's basketball program

Declaring on Instagram that the “3RD times the charm,” Lauren Ebo also became the third addition to the Notre Dame women’s basketball program in four days when she announced Friday night that she’s joining the Irish.

A 6-foot-4 center, Ebo classifies as a graduate student and has one season of eligibility remaining.

Often a force on the boards during her first four collegiate seasons — the last two at Texas after the initial two at Penn State — Ebo averaged a team-leading 6.7 rebounds for the 29-7 Longhorns this past winter.

She also scored at a career-best 8.0 clip while helping No. 6-ranked Texas advance to the Elite Eight for the second straight year.

Ebo played for current ND assistant Coquese Washington as a freshman in 2018-19, during Washington’s final season as Nittany Lion head coach.

She moved on to Texas and incoming Longhorn coach Vic Schaefer after the 2019-20 season.

Ebo shot 48% from the field, 66% from the line and averaged 0.8 blocked shots over 26.6 minutes per outing with 30 starts this past season.

► One game at a time: A journey through Notre Dame's 2021-22 women’s basketball season

As a junior, she averaged 4.7 points, 4.4 boards and 17.8 minutes across 22 contests for the 21-10 Longhorns.

At Penn State, Ebo averaged 5.7 points and 5.8 rebounds over 21.5 minutes while appearing in 29 games with 11 starts as a freshman.

She followed with averages of 5.3 points, 4.8 boards and 20.5 minutes in 30 games, including 17 starts, under new Lion coach Carolyn Kieger.

Those two Penn State clubs went a combined 19-41.

ND’s Niele Ivey will become Ebo’s fourth head coach over five college seasons.

Hailing from Washington, D.C., Ebo joins forward Kylee Watson (Oregon) and guard Jenna Brown (Stanford) as a trio of transfers the Irish have landed in the last few days.

They provide reinforcements for an ND team that saw All-Atlantic Coast Conference forward Maya Dodson head off to the WNBA and four backups — forward Sam Brunelle and guards Anaya Peoples, Abby Prohaska and Katlyn Gilbert — enter the transfer portal after a 24-9, Sweet 16 season.

Brunelle has since signed with Virginia and Peoples at DePaul.

The anticipated Irish scholarship roster now stands at nine players.

Besides Ebo, Watson and Brown, that includes returning starters Olivia Miles, Sonia Citron, Maddy Westbeld and Dara Mabrey, forward Nat Marshall, who underwent late-January knee surgery, and incoming freshman guard KK Bransford, a two-time Ohio Ms. Basketball.