Women's Basketball Signs JUCO All-American Guard Claire Hyde

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – After a stellar freshman campaign at Morton College, Illinois native Claire Hyde will join the Belmont University women's basketball program as announced by head coach Bart Brooks Monday afternoon. With three seasons of eligibility remaining, Hyde will provide the Bruins with dynamic playmaking ability in the backcourt.
 
A 5-foot-6 guard, Hyde helped lead one of the top junior college programs in the nation last season.
 
"I'm thrilled to welcome Claire to our Belmont family," commented coach Brooks. "She brings a tireless work ethic and appetite for improvement, and her ability to shoot the basketball makes her a great addition to our backcourt. Claire just had a fantastic freshman season in a really good program at Morton College. We know our fans will love how she represents our program on and off the floor."
 
Averaging 17.1 points, 6.4 rebounds, 3.3 assists and 2.3 steals per game, Hyde earned National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA) Division II All-America First Team honors. Her 600 points scored across 35 games and 34 starts ranked ninth nationally and she reached double figures in all but three contests. Posting five double-doubles, Hyde began her collegiate career with a 19-point, 13-rebound, five-assist game and torched the nets for 32 points in her second outing. Hyde scored 30 points later in the year as well and was tabbed NJCAA DII National Player of the Week on Feb. 1 after averaging 27 points, 11.5 rebounds and five assists in a pair of victories.
 
A native of Wheaton, Illinois, Hyde played an integral role in Morton's 32-0 start and No. 1 national ranking. With Hyde on the floor, the Panthers won the Illinois Skyway Conference and captured the NJCAA DII Region IV Tournament title before reaching the national quarterfinals.
 
Shooting 41 percent from the field, Hyde shot 35 percent from distance in her inaugural collegiate season while making nearly four three-pointers per game. Hyde finished the year with 138 made threes, 225 rebounds, 114 assists and 80 steals.
 
Starring at Wheaton North High School, Hyde was twice named Illinois Basketball Coaches Association (IBCA) Class 4A All-State and became the school's all-time leading scorer as a senior in 2022. A two-time Associated Press (AP) All-State selection, Hyde was twice tabbed DuKane Conference Player of the Year. She was also a four-time DuPage All-Area pick, including being named to the first team on three occasions, and a four-time unanimous DuKane All-Conference performer.
 
Her freshman year of high school, Hyde was teammates with recent Belmont graduate Nikki Baird, who was also a 1,000-point scorer at Wheaton North and is the program's all-time blocks leader.
 
Hyde joins Georgia Tech transfer Carmyn Harrison (Memphis, Tenn.) and incoming freshmen Jailyn Banks (Spring Hill, Tenn. - Middle Tennessee Christian School) and Kensley Feltner (Louisa, Ky. - Lawrence County HS), who signed their National Letters of Intent (NLI) last November, as the Bruins' newcomers this summer.
 
Belmont is the only school in the nation to win 20 or more games for eight consecutive seasons in both women's and men's basketball. The Bruins won their sixth regular season conference championship in seven seasons in their first year in the Missouri Valley Conference. Going 23-12 overall and 17-3 against the MVC in 2022-23, Belmont reached its third-straight conference tournament title game before earning its 10th national postseason bid in 11 seasons.
 
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