Offered a full athletic scholarship as an eighth grader, Sedona Prince became a five-star recruit and a McDonald’s All-American by the end of her time at the Austin area’s Liberty Hill High School.

She has persevered through several injuries during her collegiate career, which included three seasons at Oregon: a lower right leg fracture in 2018, a torn ligament in her elbow in 2022 and a broken finger last January, midway through her first season with the Horned Frogs. In 21 appearances last year, Prince posted career highs with 19.7 points, 9.7 rebounds and 2.9 blocks per game.

As accomplished a player as she is, the 6-foot-7 Prince has made an even greater difference off the floor.

Did you have any basketball heroes as a kid?  

My biggest basketball hero is probably Breanna Stewart … and Brittney Griner for sure. I just love their demeanor on and off the court. I love Breanna so much. I idolized her because she’s this goofy, tall, white, gangly kid with crazy hair, and that’s how I looked, and I got to see someone that looked like me. And so to be able to watch her growing up and now know her and hopefully play against her in the future is pretty amazing.  

Coach Mark Campbell described Sedona Prince (pictured) as “kind of a unique blend of Jonquel Jones and Breanna Stewart,” WNBA stars who excel both inside and on the perimeter. Courtesy of TCU Athletics

You spoke last January about the team holding open tryouts after you’d gone through a slew of injuries. Do you think going through that adversity as a team last year will carry any benefit into this season?  

This team has been through quite a lot that a lot of girls in the NCAA can’t say right now. We went through a very rough time as a group and so to now have half the girls back from last year that have been through that I think is the most important thing. We just got super locked in, you know, became family in those rough times because we had to, and it made us much closer and a lot better. I think it’ll give us a chip on our shoulder for this year, too, to hopefully do way better. 

After a few months of uncertainty, you received a hardship waiver from the NCAA. What does it mean to have one more season as a college basketball player? 

That day that we got the news … we were heading back from the Big 12 Tournament and I remember literally all day I could not stop crying. Just pure gratitude. 

Sedona Prince was an All-Big 12 honorable mention and Lisa Leslie Award finalist last year. Courtesy of TCU Athletics

I was so sad when I broke my finger because I thought that that was my last time playing for TCU and for Mark (Campbell). But when I heard that news and it actually sank in, it was just an overwhelming feeling of, “Oh my God.”

Everything in my journey, everything in my life, my path has been for a reason and it’s been to all accumulate this next year. Everything that it’s taught me and my whole journey through injuries and transferring and all that. … I’ve taken all those lessons and now I get to use them and turn them into good for this year.  

And so yeah, it was the most emotional thing I’ve ever gone through in my life, ever. I’m just so grateful that I can continue to play for Coach Mark and play for this amazing school.  

How heavily did you weigh entering the WNBA draft?  

Before I had the (NCAA) decision, I was weighing the possibility that I might have to go to the draft. I always wanted to stay. I knew that if I would be given a chance that I would stay, but just in case, to not let myself get completely heartbroken, I was like, “Oh, well I still have an option.” But as soon as I heard the news, that was it. There was no leaving. I knew it was what I had to do and what I wanted to do. It was the easiest choice I’ve ever made. 

You called Coach Campbell “the only coach who’s ever truly believed in me.” Why is that? 

I grew up in a very, very toxic environment around basketball in my hometown. My first coach even told me and my parents that maybe sports just weren’t for me and that I should quit.  

I’ve had coaches in high school that were amazing to me and impacted me, but never all year long. College coaches are so much more meaningful than high school coaches and AAU coaches because you’re with them all year and you come here and this is your whole life.   

And so to now be with the coach that I know fully supports me and wants me to succeed and for me to achieve my lifelong dreams, it’s the greatest feeling in the world. 

It really was an incredible offseason in terms of the transfer portal for this team. Tell us about the new talent on the floor for TCU this season and how everyone’s been jelling as a unit. 

Oh man, what a recruiting season. We really just wanted to bring in kids that fit the program, that wanted to work hard and that saw us for what we are here at TCU, and that’s exactly what we got. Humble, hardworking kids and … we got a lot of talent coming in as well. And so we’re super excited.  

Bonding is the most important thing with basketball, and we’re so lucky that we’re already a very, very tight group of girls. For these new girls, we try to bring them in as much as we can, make them part of our family so that when the season does come around, we just get to focus on basketball and be best friends.  

Sedona Prince played a career-high 40 minutes in last January’s road game at Baylor, scoring 20 points. Courtesy of TCU Athletics

You made a historic video that compared the weight rooms of the NCAA Tournament women’s teams versus the men’s teams three years ago. (The video showed severe inequities between the two facilities, which resulted in a gender equity review in college basketball. Prince later made another video showing substantial improvements to the women’s team weight room facilities.) What does it mean to you to have had a massive impact on such an important issue? 

I’m very grateful that I just get to enjoy this moment with everybody and know that I was able to be an advocate in this, but also I get to reap the benefits of it. It’s a blessing to be able to make an impact like that. I had no idea what that video would do. Who would have, right? 

It definitely showed me and a lot of athletes that our voices are very, very powerful, and people listen when we speak up. And so I hope that it continues to empower young women and young athletes.  

How has college basketball progressed in terms of equity since you made that video?  

I came to college in 2018 and from then to now, it is crazy how many leaps and bounds we’ve made as a sport. These last three years, I’d say every year that gap has been closing. We’re still not equal … but we’re gonna continue to just keep pushing until we finally have parity.

But yeah, from the support, to love on social media, to the play level, to the play style … it has completely changed. It’s amazing to see, it’s amazing to be a part of and to witness it as a women’s player and just to get to live it.  

Sedona Prince’s message to Horned Frog fans: “It’s going to be a special year.” Photo by Sharon Ellman

This program last made the NCAA Tournament in 2010. Is making the NCAA Tournament a goal you guys talk about in the summer? Or do you really just say, “Let’s go one game at a time”? 

Yeah, our tangible goal this year is Final Four. We live, breathe, eat, sleep Final Four. And it’s not about just saying, “Oh, we wanna make it there” and “Let’s hope we can do it.” It’s us saying that and living every single day like we’re a Final Four team. We’ve seen Final Four teams, we know what they do, we know how they act and how they operate.  

We’re just going to put in as much work as possible now and get as close as possible and grind as hard as we can and get in the best shape of our lives so that when we do get there, it’s easy breezy, and all we have to worry about is getting the ball in the hoop. 

 — As told to Corey Smith