PROVO, Utah – BYU women’s basketball coach head Lee Cummard announced the addition of two incoming freshmen, Olivia Hamlin and Yussuf Bolanle, to the Cougars' 2025 recruiting class on Wednesday.
Olivia Hamlin
Hamlin, who originally committed to play at Nebraska, flipped her commitment to sign with the Cougars after the hire of new head coach Lee Cummard. The 5-foot-10 guard from Santa Clara, Utah, is the 59th-ranked player in the 2025 recruiting class by Prospects Nation and the No. 2 player in Utah by Prep Girls Hoops.
“The first thing that comes to mind about Olivia is her passion for the game of basketball and for BYU,” said head coach Lee Cummard. “She’s been an elite scorer at the high school level and on the Nike EYBL circuit over the last few years. We are thrilled that Olivia reopened her recruitment and that we were able to show her how she fits in the future of BYU women’s basketball.”
The product of Snow Canyon High School helped the Warriors to a 26-1 record and runner-up finish in the Utah 4A State Tournament. Hamlin led her squad by averaging 28.4 points on a 54.3 percent clip from the field while also contributing 5.9 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 5.5 steals per game. The 2025 graduate finished her high school career with 2,519 points, 465 steals and 318 assists, one of two players in Utah high school history with over 2,500 career points.
Hamlin led all classifications of Utah girls’ basketball in scoring and steals per game during the 2024-25 campaign at 28.4 points and 5.5 steals, respectively. Her 28.3 points also ranked 40th in the country for scoring. The incoming freshman played in 27 games, scoring 20 or more points 23 times, 30 or more in 12 games and set a school record with 43 points in a game against Crimson Cliffs H.S. on Jan. 23.
The newest member of the Cougar basketball family chose BYU over the likes of Clemson, Harvard, Marquette, Minnesota, Nebraska, TCU, UNLV and Virginia Tech.
Yussuf Bolanle
Yussuf Bolanle is a 6-foot-3 forward from Lagos, Nigeria, who comes to BYU after playing her high school basketball at Kyoto Seika Gakuen in Japan. During her senior season in Japan, Bolanle averaged 24.7 points and 18.9 rebounds while helping her team win the championship of the U18 Nissin League, Saga Japan Games, Hokkaido Inter-High School Athletic Meet and the National High School Basketball Tournament Winter Cup.
“Yussef is a tremendous young woman who joins us with great life experience,” Cummard said. “She’s a tireless worker who plays the game with athleticism and a physicality that cougar nation will love. She takes pride in dominating the paint. We are eager to get her with the team and working towards next season.”
Bolanle’s 24.7 points were the second most by any player in league while her 18.9 boards led her division. She also received the All-Conference Top 5 and All-Defensive Top 5 Awards following her senior campaign.