SIAC basketball announces women's honors

SAVANNAH, Ga (February 26, 2023) – The Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SIAC) has announced its annual men’s basketball awards to cap the 2022-2023 regular season. The league’s head coaches and sports information directors voted on this year’s all-conference teams, which feature ten student-athletes.

The 2023 TIAA SIAC Basketball Championship, presented by Cricket, will take place February 25 — March 4 and will be hosted by Savannah State University.

The 2023 TIAA SIAC Women’s Basketball All-Conference Team is headlined by a Tuskegee duo in redshirt senior forward Ashiala Jackson, who was voted 2022-2023 TIAA SIAC Player of the Year, and graduate student guard JuToreyia Willis, who earned the 2022-2023 TIAA SIAC Defensive Player of the Year award.

Last year, Jackson and Willis earned 2021-22 Player of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year awards and 2022-23 Preseason Player and Defensive Player of the Year honors. This season, they have been the leaders for the Golden Tigers scheme guiding their team to the No. 1 seed in the West Division and a spotless conference record entering the championship tournament.

During the regular season, Jackson averaged 15.1 points per game over 26 games. She shot 47.3 percent (155-of-328) from the field and 71.6 percent from the free-throw line making 3.2 per game. The Indiana native averaged 9.8 rebounds per game for the Golden Tigers this season. Jackson continued to show why she is the reigning Player of the Year, scoring in double figures in 19 games, including five 20-plus nights and a season-high of 30 against Albany State in November. The forward also recorded 13 double-doubles on the year and led the conference averaging 9.8 per game, with 1.9 steals and 0.5 blocks per contest. The senior grabbed five or more rebounds in 24 contests, with her lowest total being three in 12 minutes of play. Jackson has been named Player of the Week multiple times, along with BOXTOROW National Player of the Week and HBCU National Player of the Week. She is also creeping up on a prestigious milestone of 1,500 points and 1,000 rebounds in her career.

In 22 games, Willis posted 13.0 points, 5.7 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per contest while shooting 47.2 (135-of-286) percent from the field, 22 percent from long range, and 71.6 (54-of-75) percent from the charity stripe on the year. The reigning Defensive Player of the Year dominated that side of the ball, averaging a team and league-high 3.3 steals along with nearly a block a game. Willis reached the double-digit point mark in all but three games, grabbed four or more rebounds in 18 games, and multiple steals in 22 games, including a career-high ten against Spring Hill (February 11).

Harris has been Miles’ top player in her first season in Fairfield. She leads the team in scoring (15.8) – which is third in the SIAC. Her 395 points through 24 games are second in the league, and she leads the conference in 3-point field goals by a wide margin. Additionally, she is top-10 in assists (2.8, 9th), 3-point field goal percentage (.366, 3rd), steals (2.3, 4th), and free throw percentage (.765, 7th) – the only player in the conference who can make that claim. She has 21 games in double-figure scoring, including a season-high 29 against Clark Atlanta in November. The Alabama native has made at least two 3-pointers in 19 games, including a 7-of-8 performance against Stillman and six 3-pointers in both games versus CAU.

Lee is one of Miles’s top players off the bench, averaging 3.8 points, 3.6 rebounds, and 1.3 steals in 17.0 minutes per game. Her best performance came in a win over Central State, with 14 points and 12 rebounds.

Powell has led the Golden Tigers to one of their most successful seasons in program history, currently 23-3 overall and undefeated in conference play. Tuskegee is a perfect 12-0 at home on the year and also picked up a pair of crucial non-conference wins against Delta State (November 11) and Mississippi College (November 12) to start the year. Her squad ranks atop the SIAC in assist-to-turnover ratio, assists per game, scoring offense, scoring margin, steals per game, three-point percentage defense, and turnover margin. They also rank first nationally in three-point defensive percentage, fourth in turnovers forced per game, fifth in steals, and in all of Division II in offensive rebounds per contest.

The Elite 14 award recognizes the student-athlete who has reached the pinnacle of competition at the SIAC championship level in their sport while also achieving the highest academic standard among their peers. Four student-athletes will receive this honor after receiving a 4.0. Naja Fenelo (Kentucky State),JuToreyia Willis (Tuskegee), Karyn Knight (LeMoyne-Owen), and Mahogany Randall (Benedict)are the second recipients of this award in their respective sports.

(complete team listed below)

2023 TIAA SIAC Women’s Basketball All-Conference Team

presented by Cricket

First Team

Nyla Allen	Guard	Freshman	Savannah State	Jacksonville, FL
Ashiala Jackson	Forward	R-Senior	Tuskegee	Merrillville, IN
Iemyiah Harris	Guard	Sophomore	Miles	Anniston, AL
Kailyn Nash	Guard/Forward	Sophomore	Central State	Muskegon, MI
JuToreyia Willis	Guard	Graduate Student	Tuskegee	Chattanooga, TN

Second Team

Diamond Jones	Guard	Senior	Fort Valley State	Evergreen, AL
Tyashia Bostick	Guard/Forward	R-Junior	Spring Hill	Charleston, SC
Corriana Evans	Guard/Forward	Junior	Clark Atlanta	Griffin, GA
Amari Heard	Guard	Senior	Savannah State	West Point, MS
Kayla Simmons	Forward	Senior	Lane	Brandon, MS