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Signees Boykin, Williams Named to Naismith List
DURHAM, N.C.— The 2017 Naismith Trophy High School Girls’ Player of the Year Preseason Watch List was announced this week with two recent Duke women’s basketball signees – Mikayla Boykin and Jade Williams -- among the 50 selected.
A 5-9 guard from Clinton, N.C., Boykin enters her senior year ranked No. 5 on the All Star Girls Report, No. 18 on the Blue Star Report and No. 20 on espnW HoopGurlz/Girls Basketball Report . She suffered a torn ACL in the summer following her freshman season and had a setback in the spring of 2016 as she was preparing for the USA Basketball trials, missing her sophomore and junior seasons of high school due to her injuries.
Boykin was an all-district selection as a freshman after averaging 25.4 points, 9.2 rebounds, 7.0 steals and 4.6 assists in a contest. Additionally, the 5-9 guard notched seven games with 30 or more points, including a career-high 38 on two different occasions while also collecting 15 double-doubles.
Williams, a product of The Colony, Texas, comes to Duke with national team experience under her belt. Williams was a member of the 2015 USA Basketball U16 National Team that totaled a 4-1 record and claimed the bronze medal in Puebla, Mexico. The 6-3 post player proved to be valuable, starting four of the five games, averaging 7.8 points, 6.8 rebounds and went 47.0 percent from the field throughout the contests.
During high school and AAU competition, Williams participated in the 2016 USA Basketball U17 World Championship team trials and received the 2015 and 2016 Texas Association of Private and Parochial Schools (TAPPS), 5A All-State first team accolades. Additionally, Williams was named All-State TAPPS as a sophomore and junior and claimed All-State selection as a freshman. The 6-3 forward/center averaged 14.9 points, 7.1 rebounds and 3.8 blocks over 32 games.
Along with Boykin and Williams on the list of ACC competitors includes Janelle Bailey (North Carolina), Dana Evans (Louisville), Kaitlyn Gilbert (Notre Dame), Loretta Kakala (Louisville) and Danielle Patterson (Notre Dame).
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