Olivia Olson and Liv McGill are latest former Minnesota prep basketball stars making waves nationally

Former Hopkins sensation Paige Bueckers was the 2021 NCAA player of the year as a UConn freshman. St. Michael-Albertville’s Tessa Johnson helped South Carolina win the 2024 national title as a freshman.

Two of the top basketball players to come from Minnesota set the bar sky high for achievements in their first year out of high school.

Michigan’s Olivia Olson and Florida’s Liv McGill have been next up to come from the state — and make their own waves as college freshmen.

Olson was ranked as high as No. 3 in the 2024 class nationally at Benilde-St. Margaret‘s early in her prep career. She finished with a Minnesota Miss Basketball award and Class 3A state championship as a senior, so it’s not surprising to see her shining bright quickly in the Big Ten.

The 6-1 guard leads the Wolverines with 16.6 points per game through last weekend’s games, to go along with 5.5 rebounds and 2.1 assists.

Olson was named Big Ten freshman of the week Monday after recording a season-high 30 points in a loss to Wisconsin and 18 points and 10 rebounds in a win against Oregon last week.

Olson and Michigan point guard Syla Swords have become arguably the nation’s top freshmen tandem with performances including Jan. 22, when they combined for 42 points and 15 rebounds in a 70-65 win at Williams Arena.

“Olivia and Syla were McDonald’s All-Americans and are future [college] All-Americans for sure,” Michigan coach Kim Barnes Arico told reporters after the Oregon win. “I think they’ve both established themselves as two of the top freshmen in the country.”

Before Olson returned to Minnesota and was victorious against the Gophers back in her home state, she talked to local reporters about learning from seniors. But she’s also part of a starting lineup with three freshmen, so there are growing pains along the way.

“Three freshmen are playing a lot,” Olson said last month. “[The seniors] have so much experience, and we’re getting there with not as many years. We just look up to them a lot.”

McGill’s been in a slightly different situation as the floor leader for the Gators. There are several seniors in the rotation, but she’s been the only freshman in the starting lineup during a tough SEC schedule.

McGill helped Florida snap a four-game losing streak Monday with 18 points, 11 assists and eight rebounds in a 108-78 win at Arkansas. It was her team’s first win since her first career triple-double with 21 points, 11 rebounds and 10 assists on Jan. 12 vs. Missouri.

“She had a heck of a game and I really challenged her,” Florida coach Kelly Rae Finley said Monday. “Liv is a competitor, and she really wants to win. We watched film the other day and her improvement in her angles and her understanding of where the ball needs to go — and when — has been tremendous.”

Finley, a Minneapolis native, signed McGill last year as the highest-ranked recruit in program history.

Following in Bueckers' footsteps as an elite scoring point guard from Hopkins, McGill hit the ground running with six 20-point performances in her first 11 games, including a season-high 28 points against rival Florida State on Nov. 22.

“My whole life, I considered myself a pass-first point guard,” McGill said earlier this season. “Honing up to that role and being a leader [is the goal]. Getting my teammates organized and putting them in the best position possible. When I do that, it opens things up for me.”

McGill’s 5.3 assists per game currently lead all NCAA freshmen, and she also leads Florida with 16.1 points and 1.7 steals per game.

Last year, Olson and McGill gave this state two girls McDonald’s All-Americans in the same season for the first time since Hopkins’ Nia Coffey and Braham’s Rebekah Dahlman in 2013.

But you didn’t have to be a high school All-American from Minnesota to make a big impact as a freshman in college this season.

Also, joining that mix are players such as Minnetonka’s Tori McKinney with the Gophers and Centennial’s Marisa Frost, who recently had 19 points in North Dakota State’s win against St. Thomas.

Five Minnesota ballers who stood out:

Aaliyah Crump, Montverde Academy

The 6-1 senior and former Minnetonka star had a season-high 18 points for the No. 1 girls team in the nation, Montverde Academy (Fla.), in a 73-70 win last Friday against Long Island Lutheran, another top 25 high school team.

Tori Oehrlein, Crosby-Ironton

The Gophers recruit and junior guard went off for 40 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists in an 85-67 win against visiting Minnehaha Academy last week.

Ty Schlagel, Cretin Derham-Hall

The 6-7 sophomore had a career-high 39 points and 13 rebounds vs. Park and 25 points and 15 rebounds vs. Irondale last week to keep the Raiders undefeated, despite playing without injured senior center Tommy Ahneman.

Bri Stoltzman, Southwest Minnesota State

The 5-8 senior guard from Mankato had 25 points, 12 rebounds and five assists in last week’s win at Sioux Falls to extend SMSU’s 12-game winning streak.

Chase Thompson, Alexandria

The 6-9 senior and Clemson recruit scored a career-high 41 points to avenge the Cards' earlier loss this season to Sauk Rapids-Rice in a 101-88 victory last week at Alexandria.

4,000 Career points milestone for Providence Academy’s Maddyn Greenway while scoring 38 points in a win vs. STMA, joining current players Oehrlein and Minnehaha Academy’s Addi Mack.

2,000 Career points milestone reached recently by Maple Grove senior Jordan Ode after scoring 29 points last week in a win against Minnetonka.

700 Career victories for Orono boys coach John Oxton reached last week vs. Farmington. He becomes the sixth boys coach in state history to reach that mark.

7 Number of 30-point games for Concordia-St. Paul senior and Northern Sun scoring leader Antwan Kimmons after his 37 points vs. Minnesota State.

Basketball Across Minnesota will be published weekly on startribune.com. Don’t be a stranger on X after reading, as chatting about these stories makes them even more fun to share. Thanks, Marcus (@Marcus_R_Fuller on X).