Illinois women’s basketball landed another top prospect in the 2025 class. Four-star forward Manuella Alves-Fernandez is head coach Shauna Green’s fourth commit this year. The 6-foot-3 forward chose Illinois over schools like North Carolina, Iowa, Miami and Louisville on Friday afternoon.
Alves-Fernandez is ranked No. 61 on ESPNW rankings for the 2025 class. She joins five-star guard Destiny Jackson and four-star forward Cearah Parchment as top-100 Illinois commits.
Alves-Fernandez has been around high-level basketball for a long time. She has played for the Brazilian national team in the U-14, U-16 and U-18 divisions.
Green gains another top prospect at an important time. Illinois’ big three, Genesis Bryant, Makira Cook and Kendall Bostic, are all fifth-year players and will be gone next season. Getting another four-star forward will help replace Illinois’ best players with young talent.
Adding on last year’s class with five-star forward Berry Wallace and center Hayven Smith, Illinois has lots of up-and-coming talent. Illinois won the inaugural WBIT championship last season, beating Villanova 71-57 in the finals to become the first-ever champions of the tournament.
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Green recently inked an extension on her contract through the 2029-30 season. With another six years on her contract, Green will be the longest-tenured coach for the Illini since Theresa Grentz, who coached the team from 1995-2007. Since then, no coach has stayed for more than five years. Continuity and talent both lead to success for teams, and Illinois looks like it has both ingredients.
@ben_some16
