Lauren Betts has one of the most inspiring stories in the NCAA right now. Aside from her impressive and well-rounded stats, the senior is setting an example for young athletes by opening up her struggles with depression, high expectations, and body image. In a personal essay for the Players’ Tribune titled “I Want to Be Here,” Betts revealed she checked herself into UCLA hospital during her sophomore year, taking time away from her team to focus on her mental health.
“Coming back and being embraced by my UCLA teammates and coaches, that was like a miracle,” she wrote in March. “Seeing that my coaches still had love for me, even though I hadn’t been playing basketball, that was really, really important to me. It was like an epiphany: These people love me for me, not because of what I produce on the court. They don’t care about how many points I’m scoring. They care about me because I’m Lauren, and I’m their friend.”
Women’s professional sports can never have too many mental health advocates, and Lauren Betts is joining an elite squad of inspirational figures like Simone Biles, Naomi Osaka, and Alysa Liu.
Olivia Miles, Texas Christian University guard
Although an ACL tear halted her 2023–2024 season, Miles was on fire in 2025, scoring a 20-point double-double in her first game back and becoming the season’s only player with three triple-doubles. She was practically a shoo-in to go number two in the WNBA draft but decided to enter the transfer portal for one more shot at a national championship.
The controversial move took her from Notre Dame University to Texas Christian University, where she brought her team all the way to the Elite Eight before a devastating loss to South Carolina. “I knew I needed one more year to be ready,” she said of her decision during a recent press conference. And while Miles did not get the championship ring she wanted, she says she got her “joy back” and is able to “love basketball again.”
Read the full article here
