Shay Ijiwoye is Arizona’s top freshman prospect and is highly ranked among the nation's finest ball players, and her character is even higher than her on court skills.
Shay has been playing 17u basketball since she was 12, and since she was 12, she has been able to not only compete, but, in most cases, control the court against other players usually 4-5 years older than her. That’s quite a statement for an athlete, and a statement that the world should pay attention to.
Her father told me “She’s grown up with Arizona Elite and we love them.”
I recently watched Shay compete and show dominance on the court. It was clear from the warm-ups that Shay is a leader and floor general. Watching the game, I noticed that Shay rebounds, boxes out, pushes the tempo, draws the defense, directs and finds teammates, knocks down shots and can turn on the jets and get to the rim. Shay really is a complete player.
I watched the game from an ear-shot away from her parents, which could be anywhere in the gym, and learned a bit about her family and the support she has from family and teammates.
The Arizona Elite Prep group sure seems to play as one unit from the court to the stands. Coach Brian Porth had been telling me that was the dynamic they try to achieve program-wide, which in my opinion makes a whole extra level of support for these young athletes. The more I learned about the Arizona Elite, the more I respect and appreciate what they do with these young athletes.
I reached out to Shay and was greeted with welcome, kindness and appreciation from her and her family, as we talked on speaker for an hour or so. It became clear as to just how humble this young lady is, in spite of being Arizona’s top 2024 prospect (Rated Top 20 Nationally in the 2024 Class), a ranking she wants to improve each and every year. We discussed her daily routines, current offers, her path traveled thus far, her goals and even her top school targets. I won’t tell you just yet about that list, but let me tell you that this young lady has serious offers from in-state college programs, to Ivy League college programs, and will share her news when the time is right.
