Tatum Settelmyer did not plan on playing college basketball.

Settelmyer, a sophomore walk-on guard on Arizona State’s women’s basketball team, was a solid high school player at Saint Charles North High School in Saint Charles, Ill. She was named All-Conference in her junior year in 2019-20 as well as her senior year in 2020-21. Because of her solid play, she had the opportunity to play at either a Division II or Division III college. However, she was not going to go to a school unless it was good academically, but the schools that were good at academics were too expensive. So, she decided during her senior year she was not going to play in college.

Settelmyer ended up deciding to go to ASU because of the academic opportunities the school provides, including Barrett, the Honors College. Barrett is the top-ranked honors college in the country, according to prepscholar.com.

“Part of it is definitely academics,” Settelmyer said. “And I’m also in the honors college. And that definitely has a step up, I believe, against all the other schools. … It was (a) really good business school, and also, my major is accounting, and that was like a top-10 school for accounting also. And so yes, the weather because Illinois is cold. But I also have a lot of family out here because my mom grew up out here. My mom and my dad met out here on Tatum Boulevard, actually, which is where I’m named after.”

In her freshman year in Tempe, Settelmyer, who was also All-State in tennis in high school, joined the club tennis team. She also played intramural and pickup basketball. She enjoyed it, but she missed serious competition.

“I still loved playing, but (intramurals and pickup) was very casual,” Settelmyer explained. “And so I kind of just missed the competitive part. And out of nowhere, I see one of the basketball players. One of my friends introduced me to someone that’s a (player that) was already on the team, Imogen (Greenslade). And we played some basketball. And we were playing well together. She’s like, ‘dude; you should try out.’”

After three months of waiting for a reply, Settelmyer finally heard back from the new coaching staff, led by first-year head coach Natasha Adair. They asked her for her film and eventually had her tryout for the team in October, about a month before the season started.

The tryout was not against the team. It was Settelmyer against a team manager.

“I was definitely rusty,” Settelmyer said. “I didn’t think I was going to make it, honestly, after that.”

After finding out she made the team, Settelmyer called her parents and high school coach. She talked about the support she received.

“All my coaching staff from high school was freaking out, texting me, posting me on Twitter and stuff,” Settelmyer stated. “And so they were so happy for me, and it’s just great to have that support.”

As for what she has done for the team this season, ASU’s leading scorer Tyi Skinner said Settelmyer has been “positive” and “encouraging” this season. Skinner said Settelmyer is not afraid to speak her mind when a teammate could be doing something better.

Adair echoed Skinner, praising Settelmyer’s attitude.

“I think she’s just our unsung hero,” Adair said. “She comes in with this positive energy, this enthusiasm every day, and it’s infectious. And so, very glad that she is here and she’s a part of our group, a part of our team. But she worked to make the team, and every day she’s getting better.”

Settelmyer said she considers herself a member of the team working to achieve the same aspirations the rest of the team does. She talked about how her voice is what she uses the most to aid the team. She said even if she is not going to get into a game, she is going to cheer more than anyone.

Being a Division I athlete comes with cool perks the normal student does not receive. One of Settelmyer’s favorite parts has been meeting the NBA players who practice at ASU basketball’s practice facility, the Weatherup Center when in town to play the Phoenix Suns. She got the opportunity to meet New Orleans Pelicans superstar Zion Williamson and Philadelphia 76ers star and Sun Devil legend James Harden, among others.

As for her life goals, Settelmyer does not want to be a professional basketball player. She is unsure how many more years she has left on ASU’s team due to not playing her freshman year. However, she would like to play for three more seasons. She plans to use her accounting degree to work for a large firm when she is done with school. She is on her way to doing so as she is interning with Deloitte this summer.

ASU begins play in the Pac-12 Tournament on Wednesday at 1 p.m. MST against No. 19 UCLA.