Buff Announces Incoming Class for 2019-20 Season
WEST HAVEN, Conn. – New Haven head women's basketball coach Deborah Buff has announced six players to fill out the team's incoming class for the upcoming 2019-20 season. The group includes four incoming freshman and a pair of transfers, including five from New York and one from Connecticut.
Aliyah Wright Aliyah Wright comes to New Haven after graduating as the all-time leading scorer in program history at Colonie Central High School. The Albany, N.Y. native is a three-time conference all-star and was named the 2018 Section 2 Most Valuable Player.
Coach Buff on Aliyah: "Aliyah comes from an outstanding high school program at Colonie Central, where she is their all-time leading scorer. She has a very high basketball IQ so she'll fit right in with our system, she can push the tempo as point guard, and is a very good passer that can assist and score the ball. She comes from a winning high school program and is really going to compete at the point guard position."
Kameryn King Connecticut native Kameryn King is a reigning all-state and academic all-state selection out of Mercy High School. She was named the 2019 Hartford Courant Player of the Year and was also a New Haven Register All-Area and All-State honoree. She was named to the USA Today All-USA Connecticut Girls Basketball Team in 2019 and is a two-time all-conference selection.
Coach Buff on Kameryn: "Kam is a guard that we're really excited about. She comes from a very good high school program that wins. She's a scoring guard, but can also play the point. We see her as a shooter that can play off the bounce. She's been driving the ball a lot better as well. She has a very high basketball IQ and is multi-dimensional as a guard."
Aurora Deshaies The 2019 Liberty Central Player of the Year and a candidate for CNY Section 3 Big School Player of the Year, Aurora Deshaies was also a 2018 third team all-state honoree and a four-time first team all-league selection. She scored over 1,000 points in her career, good enough for third all-time in school history.
Coach Buff on Aurora: "Aurora came from a great high school program, and a very highly respected AAU program. She hasn't been playing basketball very long, but she'll compete at the post position. She an enforcer that's strong, can rebound, and runs pretty well for a post. I think she's just going to get better with time because she hasn't been playing basketball that long. She comes from a great, very athletic family, so we're very excited to have her here."
Alyssa Stevenson Hailing from upstate New York, Alyssa Stevenson is a three-time Frontier League All-Star, three-time New York State Section 3 All-Star, and helped lead South Jefferson Central High School to the New York State Section 3 championship title and New York State Regional championship title in 2018-19…She was also was a three-year member of both the tennis and lacrosse teams.
Coach Buff on Alyssa: "She played AAU with Aurora on a program that we really respect what they do on and off the court. She's a post player that runs well, has a lot of strength and can shot from the outside as well. She gives us a lot of depth at the post position and is another player that went all the way to the semis of the state tournament, so she's had a lot of success as well."
Read full bio here Jasmine White Joining the Chargers as a Division I transfer from La Salle out of the Atlantic 10, Jasmine White appeared in 42 games over the last two seasons for the Explorers, averaging 1.2 points and 2.0 rebounds in 10 minutes of action per game. She scored six points in a game last season against UMass and a season-high seven rounds against Howard. A graduate of St. Anthony's High School, she helped lead the team to three straight Long Island Catholic School Championships.
Coach Buff on Jasmine: "Jasmine was a late transfer to us who played in the Atlantic-10. We are ecstatic about getting her because she is a great person with a great family, she catches the ball like no other, and has great hands around the rim. But, what makes her really dangerous is she can step out and hit the three, so she can play the four or five. She is a highly-skilled post player who knows how to kick it out, and will give us minutes right away."
Bionca Chambers A transfer from Felician, Bionca Chambers was a Third Team All-CACC selection this past season. She was named Second Team All-Met Div. II by the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association (MBWA) and scored in double-figures 19 times, eclipsing the 30-point mark on three occasions. In 2018-19, she ranked 12th in the CACC with 13.8 ppg, chipped in 4.8 rebound and was second in the conference and sixth in the region with 2.7 steals per game…She was named the MBWA Player of the Week (1/27) and the CACC Player of the Week (1/28) after scoring 34 points at Post (1/22) and 19 points at Goldey-Beacom (1/26).
Coach Buff on Bionca: "We got Bionca late as a transfer from Felician. We felt we needed an athletic guard. She has played multiple positions and can leap out of the gym, which will really help us on the rebounding end. She can slash, drive, and is another up-tempo kid. We're excited to see how she develops in our program with the individual workouts. She's bringing in an athleticism that we need at the guard positon, and can play the one, two or three for us."