Northern Illinois University women’s basketball head coach Jacey Brooks announced on Tuesday that Sa’Mahn Johnson (Columbus, Ohio/Reynoldsburg) and Lily Taylor (Chicago, Ill./Example Academy) will join the Huskies for the 2025-26 season.

“I am thrilled to complete our 2025 class with Sa’Mahn and Lily,” said Brooks. “Adding these two freshmen gives us a nice balance of returners, transfers and incoming freshmen for the upcoming season.”

Johnson, a 5-7 guard from Columbus, Ohio, was a four-year letterwinner at Reynoldsburg High School. The Raiders won the OHSAA Division I state title in Johnson’s freshman year in 2022, going 27-2. She averaged 15 points per game as a junior in 2023 and 20 points per game in her senior season. Johnson was an All-Conference and All-State selection.

“I’m ecstatic to add someone of Sa’Mahn’s caliber to our program this late in the recruiting process,” Brooks said. “She is an extremely athletic guard with a scorer’s mentality who will make an immediate impact on our team. Her ability to score in multiple ways, along with her ball-handling skills, will allow her to consistently get by defenders. What impresses me most about Sa’Mahn is not just her skillset, but who she is and the work ethic she has. She plays with a chip on her shoulder and that drive is something I love.”

Taylor played four years for Example Academy, shooting over 40 percent from the three-point line in each season. She averaged 11.2 points and 4.8 rebounds per game in her junior year, shooting 44.1 percent from long range. Taylor put up 8.1 points and 4.2 rebounds per game last year while shooting 43.8 percent from the arc.

“Lily is a fantastic young woman who I wanted to be part of the program because of the kind of person she is,” said Brooks. “One thing that really stood out to me during the recruiting process was the way she interacted with her teammates. She truly understands what it means to be a great teammate and I’m excited for her to bring that energy and presence to our team. Lily is a hard worker who has improved year by year in high school. Her ability to shoot the three will be a valuable asset for us. I look forward to seeing her continued growth at the next level.”

Johnson and Taylor join Cyra Conwell (Chicago, Ill./Butler College Prep) and Emilie Sorensen (Waukee, Iowa/Waukee) as the freshman class for this season.