Along the strip hosting Daytona Beach International Airport on the east coast of Florida sits DME Academy, a private sports training institution very much integrated in modern high school basketball’s AAU (American Athletic Union) culture. Its most accomplished women’s basketball alumna, Chloe Kitts, was a starter for last season’s NCAA Tournament champion South Carolina Gamecocks.
Following Kitts’s graduation, a red-headed forward by the name of Tabitha Betson decided to move her life across an ocean from one coast to another and compete at DME.
Hailing from Melbourne, Australia, “Tabs” as she is called became a four-star recruit and McDonald’s All-American nominee during her junior and senior seasons, playing alongside five others who garnered scholarships to Power Five programs. Betson also earned an additional nickname: “The Red Joker."
She committed to Colorado in November 2023 over a list of finalists that included USC, Maryland, Clemson and Northwestern.
Betson is one of the Buffs’ four rostered freshmen and eight international players set to carve out major roles this season and beyond, and head coach JR Payne’s new-look bunch could see the forward’s services sooner rather than later.
On Thursday, Betson was honored as the Big 12's Preseason Freshman of the Year.
“All of the underclassmen want to learn,” Betson stated Friday as the Buffaloes wrapped up their season’s first week of practice at the CU Events Center. “All of us are super coachable, and all of the older girls will tell us what’s up … I think it’s cool that we have a mix of experience and freshness. It’s going to be an interesting dynamic, but once we get chemistry, I’m really excited for that.”
On a team that punches above their weight as consistently as Colorado, Betson played beyond her 6-foot-2 frame well throughout her time both in Florida and as an Australian international. She represented the land Down Under at the U17 World Cup and was named a captain after three seasons with the Victorian team in 2022.
The Aussie climbed ESPN’s class of 2024 recruiting ranks all the way up to No. 48 this past spring and flashed a unique set of skills that could thrive in a CU system recently depleted of a frontcourt that was a driving force behind three straight March Madness runs. Betson is most seasoned at the power forward position, formerly held by the now departed Quay Miller.
“The first time we saw her play, we [knew] she was a must-get for us,” Payne said on Friday of Betson’s recruitment. “We were graduating people like Quay and people that had that experience at the power forward spot, so we knew we really needed someone that could play right away.”
While the Buffs may have pursued Betson in part to replicate the rebounding acumen and three-level scoring Miller provided over three seasons in black and gold, the potential is evident for a player that better suits a roster recovering from an offseason with many moving parts.
Colorado is a team still getting its shoes broken into on the hardwood together, with over 70% of the roster in an entirely new environment. However, where the addition of Betson bodes well ties into her aforementioned experience at a high level of prep ball in addition to her time on the international front.
“Someone like Tabs, who’s a very advanced basketball player already, is so fun to play with,” senior guard Kindyll Wetta mentioned on Sept. 24. “You don’t have to tell her really anything … she’s a freshman, [so] she still needs to figure out the defensive scheme and offensive scheme, but she’s doing fantastic.”
While being lauded for her versatility and IQ by teammates and coaches, the highly-touted prospect in Betson displayed several traits on tape that can translate from the prep level to nearly every collegiate roster.
The forward’s ability to fight through contact against taller defenders and remain poised around the rim along with a smooth 3-point jumper (36% while at DME) make her a tough guard in any one-on-one scenario. Her effective screen-setting, fluidity moving without the ball and activity both on the offensive glass and as a help defender are all staples of coach Payne’s team-first philosophies.
“My decision-making is something really strong,” Betson noted. “And in our offense, the four [power forward] and the five [center] make a lot of decisions. They’re big playmakers, so I think that’s something I’ll definitely bring.”
Both on the court and off of it, Payne has hammered home a mission to find the “hardest-working, toughest, most disciplined team in the country,” and Betson fits like a glove into that very mindset.
“Especially being undersized at my position, I have to be super disciplined in what I do,” Betson explained. “I am an aggressive player, I’m strong, I can move people, so I definitely bring that, but then I’ve also learned a lot from different people [about] being tough mentally and in different ways that I hadn’t thought about before.”
While every basketball player must be multifaceted in their strengths in order to succeed, a reality exists where Betson becomes the most well-rounded player in recent memory for Colorado. Beyond her time in Boulder, she aspires to go pro.
Whether it be in the restricted area, the elbow or 3-point stripe and whatever moniker she is known by, Tabitha Betson has the résumé, talent and intangibles to become the catalyst for a new wave of Colorado basketball in the Big 12.
“My main priority is just winning,” Betson said. “Sometimes, people become too preoccupied with themselves, and if I’m too focused on myself, I’m not going to play my best. I want to play for other people.”
On Nov. 4, the one year anniversary of Betson’s commitment, the Buffs are set to kick off the 2024-2025 season against Wyoming.
Cover photo by Remi Krupinski/Sko Buffs Sports
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