Kylee Watson can’t help but laugh when she reflects on her time playing collegiate basketball. It has been a whirlwind five-year adventure that has taken her from Oregon’s misty mountains to Notre Dame’s golden dome, and finally back home to the East Coast at Villanova.
Watson, a graduate forward, begins her sixth year of college basketball with the Wildcats this fall.
“I’m super grateful for everything that I experienced,” Watson said. “My college career was definitely crazy, and I have been to a lot of different places.”
Watson’s college basketball story began when she arrived at the University of Oregon as a freshman during the COVID-19 pandemic. Playing basketball during the pandemic shaped not just her first season, but also her perspective on the sport.
“I remember waking up, and we had to have six a.m. COVID testing every single day,” Watson said. “There was no one else on campus, so I got really close with my teammates. It’s sad because it’s almost like we were trauma-bonded in a way, but those are my girls for life.”
The cardboard cutouts in the stands, the empty arenas, the long stretches of isolation and being far from home all forced Watson to be independent as a freshman.
“It was hard being across the country, away from my family,” Watson said. “The relationship I had with my teammates and coaches was so important. I learned a lot about myself, and I had to be independent and appreciate the little things.”
The adjustment was difficult for a Jersey girl who was suddenly 3,000 miles away from her hometown of Linwood. With her cousin being on the acrobatics and tumbling team at Oregon, Watson found some comfort in knowing a familiar face, but not having her parents close remained difficult.
“I had to learn and figure out a lot on my own,” Watson said. “Especially with the time difference, too. It would be, like, 8 or 9 p.m. over [in Jersey] and my family would be asleep. So I had no choice but to figure it out on my own.”
Despite the difficult adjustment to college life during the pandemic, Watson was a contributor off the bench during her first season at Oregon. She played in 18 games, averaging 2.2 points and 1.3 rebounds per game. Watson increased her role at Oregon during her sophomore season, as just one of three players to appear in all 32 games. She averaged 3.8 points and 2.4 rebounds per contest in 2021-22.
This independence served as a foundation for Watson as she transferred from the University of Oregon to Notre Dame for her junior season. It was in South Bend that her career really started to take shape.
“I loved my time at Notre Dame,” Watson said. “I was able to grow and learn, and was able to play next to some really talented players like Olivia Miles and Hannah Hidalgo. I was able to grow my game in different areas, where maybe I’m not as ball-dominant, but I can figure out how to impact the game in other ways.”
Watson credits much of her development to the impact of Notre Dame head coach Niele Ivey and the Irish coaching staff.
“I love Coach Ivey,” Watson said. “That coaching staff did a lot for me, especially during my time there, on and off the court. I have nothing but respect for them and that program and everything they have done for me.”
Grappling with the mental side of sports became crucial for Watson during her time at Notre Dame. During her senior year, in the ACC tournament semifinal against Virginia Tech, Watson tore her ACL. She was forced to miss out on Notre Dame’s 2024 Sweet 16 run in the NCAA Tournament.
Eventually, Watson turned the disappointment of a severe postseason injury into a moment of reflection.
“I was feeling good, and then that’s when I tore my ACL,” Watson said. “[But] it was a wake-up call in a way. It was a reset for me and I was able to watch the game from a different perspective, appreciate it more, and just really have joy for it instead of putting the stress and anxiety on it, and have it be fun.”
Watson’s recovery from the ACL tear was not easy. After her first surgery, Watson suffered another knee injury, setting back her return to the court and requiring her to get a second meniscus surgery.
“The second surgery was honestly a lot harder than the first time I tore my ACL,” Watson said. “I was feeling good, and I had made so much progress and was practicing again and then I was set back again. So, realizing that everything happens for a reason. I can either go into this feeling bad for myself, or understand the cards I was dealt, and what I can learn from this situation.”
Watson was sidelined for the entire 2024-25 season as she recovered from the ACL tear. But the medical redshirt year gave her an extra year of eligibility, and Watson was eager to extend her college basketball career.
After spending three seasons at Notre Dame and completing her undergraduate degree there, Watson decided it was time to come back home to the East Coast. She transferred to Villanova for her last year of eligibility.
“Out of high school, I had a great relationship with [Villanova],” Watson said. “I knew a lot of the girls here, and [2025 alumna] Maddie Burke is one of my best friends ever. But just being able to go home, have family and friends at games has been such a blessing already that I have gotten to experience [it]. And just being able to go home for family dinners and things like that has been amazing.”
Four seasons of college basketball on her resume and being “the old one” on the team has given Watson the opportunity to embrace a new kind of leadership role. She hopes to be one of the most vocal leaders on the team to positively influence her younger teammates.
“I have been able to play with and play against some great players,” Watson said. “Just from a leadership standpoint, I’ve seen what things have kind of worked from my experiences. I’ve played under two different coaching styles, two different leadership styles and kind of taken what I’ve learned from both [colleges]. Being able to bring it [to Villanova] is something that I’m looking forward to.”
Leadership is something that runs deep in the Watson family. Her father, Tim Watson, played football at the University of Maryland and Rowan University, and went on to play professionally for the Seattle Seahawks. Her mother, Courtney Watson, played basketball at the University of Delaware. The influence of her parents, both successful athletes, shaped Watson’s own career.
“From a very young age, my mom and my dad had both coached me,” Watson said. “My mom coached me more on basketball, my dad was more on the football side, but they both have been amazing. Especially my dad, who is really into the mental aspect of sports…They definitely have taken a step back from the coaching side of things as I got older and [are] more [on] the supportive side.”
Now, Watson plans to take all the lessons she has learned from before and after her injury into her last season where she is healthy and eager to be back on the court. She is focused on being present, which is something she has incorporated into her pregame ritual.
“I will take three deep breaths and I’ll say present in between each deep breath,” Watson said. “Just to kind of bring me back where my feet are before the game, and not get so ahead of myself or think about things that are outside.”
From COVID testing lines and empty areas in Oregon to Notre Dame’s electrifying energy, to the familiar cheers of home at Villanova, Watson’s journey is one of resiliency and self-discovery. She has learned something new not only about the game but about herself from each stop along the way.
