Syracuse Basketball: Women’s team is stacking stellar recruiting classes

The Syracuse basketball women’s squad has yet again another top-15 recruiting class in 2021.

The Syracuse basketball women’s team possesses high expectations for its upcoming 2020-21 term, at least in part due to a 2020 recruiting class that is ranked No. 4 across the country.

The Orange is following up that exquisite cycle with a terrific 2021 class, and it’s clear that the ‘Cuse is on a serious recruiting roll as the team eyes serious contention for Atlantic Coast Conference glory along with deep runs in March Madness.

The Syracuse basketball women’s squad announced via cuse.com that head coach Quentin Hillsman has signed a top-15 cycle in 2021, with that achievement occurring for the fourth time over the past five years.

Per cuse.com, the Orange’s five-member class in 2021 is ranked No. 11 nationally by ESPN, and it features four players rated in the HoopGurlz espnW top 100.

Said Hillsman, “This class is special. When you add a top-15 class to the No. 4 class in the country that means that you have stacked two great classes. That is how you win a championship; you need to have two or three classes stacked in a row that are filled with quality players and quality people. And we did that.”

The Syracuse basketball women’s team has inked the No. 11 overall class in 2021.

The ‘Cuse 2021 cycle is led by a pair of high-school colleagues in Latasha Lattimore and Shayeann Day-Wilson, who both attend Crestwood Secondary School in Ontario, Canada.

Lattimore, a forward, is a four-star prospect and No. 38 player in this class, per ESPN. The 6-foot-4 Lattimore is the No. 1 international recruit according to World Exposure Report, cuse.com says.

Hillsman says of Lattimore, “Latasha is a typical hybrid player. She can play the 2 through the 5 for us. She can shoot the ball from the perimeter, she can put the ball on the floor and play at the rim, and she has the ability to create for her teammates. That is going to make her really tough to guard in our offense with spacing.”

The 5-foot-5 Day-Wilson is a four-star point guard placed at No. 41 overall per HoopGurlz espnW. Cuse.com says that she is “considered Canada’s top point guard.” Hillsman calls Day-Wilson “very explosive.”

Amani Bartlett, a four-star forward out of Houston Christian High School in Houston, is No. 51 nationally in the 2021 cycle per ESPN and in the top 12 at her position. Hillsman says of the 6-foot-3 Bartlett, “She plays up on the rim and runs from end-to-end as fast as anybody in the country.”

Nyah Wilson is a four-star, 5-foot-8 guard rated No. 99 overall by ESPN who attends Duncanville High School in Duncanville, Texas. Cuse.com says that she is the No. 8 prospect in Texas, according to World Exposure Report.

Hillsman says of Wilson, “Nyah is a combo guard that can play both of our positions. She can shoot the ball from the perimeter and can guard all perimeter spots. Her special quality is her leadership and the way she can run a team.”

Finally, prolific scorer Julianna Walker is a 5-foot-6 guard from Annie Wright High School in Tacoma, Wash., who is ranked No. 98 in the country, according to World Exposure Report.

Per cuse.com, Walker during her high-school tenure has averaged 35.6 points, 4.9 assists and 7.7 steals per contest, which are ridiculous numbers. As she embarks on her senior year, Walker is 502 points away from the state of Washington’s all-time scoring mark.

Hillsman says of Walker, “She is going to be the kind of player that can make seven, eight threes a game if you let her get loose.”