Women's Basketball Assembles Nationally-Ranked Signing Class
Saturday, November 12, 2011 | Women's Basketball
Four heralded prep stars have signed a National Letter of Intent and announced their intentions to continue their academic and athletic basketball careers at the University of Florida, Gator women's basketball coach Amanda Butler announced.
Officially committing to the Gators for the 2012-13 season are Chandler Cooper (5-11, Guard, Clarksville, Tenn./Clarksville HS), Christin Mercer (6-0, Post, Douglasville, Ga./Douglas County HS), January Miller (5-8, Guard, Orlando, Fla./University HS) and Sydney Moss (5-11, Guard/Forward, Union, Ky./Boone County HS).
“I'm really excited about this class in every way,” Butler said of the quartet. “They have a chance to be one of the most talented classes that has ever played here. I like their personalities, they all have championship mentalities and they are all excited to be Gators and that goes a long, long way with me. All of them will be the type of players that others are definitely going to want to play with and not just because they are talented, but because of the type of people they are.
“When you assemble such quality people each with a great amount of talent, you have to acknowledge how much hard work went into that. It is a demonstration of how good my staff is and I'm really proud of them for helping us put together this class,” Butler praised.
· CHECK out a few photos from Signing Day
Chandler Cooper (5-11, Guard, Clarksville, Tenn./Clarksville HS), who ranked as high as the No. 30 overall prospect in the 2012 HoopGurlz Recruiting Rankings, is one of five players from Clarksville High School to sign a NLI to an NCAA Division I basketball program, with three to a Southeastern Conference school, during November's early signing period. Cooper already owns the program's all-time record with 177 career three-pointers. In her regimented practice routine, Cooper is said to attempt 200 three-pointers per day. She averaged 9.1 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.8 assists during her junior season when the Lady Wildcats compiled a 32-4 record and advanced to the round of eight at the state tournament for the second consecutive season under the guidance of coach Brian Rush. CHS has won the district title all three year's with Cooper on the roster, including the 2011 Region Title and Substate titles and state tournament berths in 2010 and 2011, with a 90-12 overall record. Her father Al is the coach of CHS's boy's team.
ESPN HoopGurlz's Glenn Nelson wrote, “Cooper also has the ingrained habits of a shooter. She is a case study of catching the ball into her shooting motion. She chops into the reception, plants on a lead foot with balance and fires. Even on bad catches, she has an uncanny ability to recover quickly and find her balance on long-range jumpers. Cooper also reads her inside teammates' posts and consistently positions herself in their sightlines.”
“It's fair to say that Chandler is one of the nation's best shooters among all players in this year's signing class,” Butler said. “She really established herself as one of the best, if not the best players in the entire country after the way she played this past spring and summer.
“One of the things I like the most about Chandler is that I don't think she wants the distinction of being a shooter - she is a ballplayer,” Butler continued. “She can pass, she can handle the ball, she is a great decision maker, she is long and will make a difference in our defense by getting tips and anticipating. She comes from an area where basketball is very, very well taught and I think that shows up in her game. She is a coach's daughter and that also shows in her game. Is she a great shooter? Absolutely but I think it is just the beginning. I think that there are many more ways that Chandler will contribute to us winning.”
Christin Mercer (6-0, Post, Douglasville, Ga./Douglas County HS) was honored as a 2011 Class AAAA First Team All-State performer, as she helped Douglas County High School to a 31-1 record and advance to the state semifinals for the first time in school history. The 2011 Region 5-AAAA Player of the Year averaged 14.2 points, 10.3 rebounds and 2.7 blocks per game while hitting 51.8 percent of her shots during her junior season with coach Chet Forsh's Lady Tigers.
Mercer was recognized as the Female Athlete of the Week by the Paulding Neighbor Newspaper after guiding the Lady Tigers to a 9-0 start to the 2010-11 season.
For her outstanding year, Mercer was selected for and played in the 2011 Georgia Athletic Coaches Association (GACA) Junior All-Star Game, representing the North squad that lost an 80-79 overtime thriller.
During the off-season, Mercer played UAA ball with the Douglasville Lady Tigers coached by Tanya Jackson.
“Christin is very often described as a beast and I would agree with that description,” Butler said. “She is physical, she is very versatile, can step out and shoot, can bang on the low block, she is a dynamic rebounder and is capable of handling the ball full court after she rips one off the rim.
“I love her spirit, I love her energy, I love her physicality and the way that she plays the game,” Butler continued. “She is built to play in the Southeastern Conference and is certainly capable of making a difference, whether it be in the paint or on the perimeter.”
January Miller (5-8, Guard, Orlando, Fla./University HS) verbally committed to the Gators following her sophomore season in May of 2010, when she averaged 21 points, 6.2 rebounds, 3.9 steals and 2.6 assists and eclipsed the 1,000-point plateau. Through her three years running the floor at University High School, Miller has amassed 1,507 points in addition to averaging 18.8 points, along with 6.0 rebounds, 2.6 assists and 3.7 steals for coach Jason Barnard. The three-time All-Central Florida honoree is already UHS's all-time leader scorer in girl's history and has a chance to become the school's all-time leader, needing 77 points her senior season to reach the boy's mark. Miller, who has tallied nine 30-plus point games during her prep career, holds the school record for points in a game, hitting 38 against Lakewood HS on Dec. 29, 2009. The McDonald's All-American nominee helped the Cougars win the 2009 and 2010 6A District 4 championships, the first two such titles in school history, while capturing the 2010 and 2011 6A Metro-East Conference championships, also a first for UHS, as the Cougars posted undefeated marks both years.
She participated in the 2010 and 2011 Next Level Top 24 All-Star Games held in Orlando and was a three-year invitee to the Nike Skills Camp. Miller played with the Orlando Comets AAU squad in 2009 and 2010, before suiting up for the Central Florida Elite club in 2011. During a seven-day span in 2010, Miller was a member of the 2010 Disney Sophomore Showcase and the AAU 15U national championship teams.
Both of her parents have degrees from Florida, with her mother Marlene a letterwinner of the Gator track and field team (1988-90) and her father Michael earning his undergraduate (1994) and master's (2008) degrees in Gainesville.
“January is a Gator through and through,” Butler said. “She was our first commitment which to me means she is a leader and has guts; I admired that about her from the beginning. She is a super hard worker and she cannot wait to represent Gator Nation. I cannot wait to coach her. She is a talented and strong guard, very physical in the way that she plays. She can slash, but has also worked very hard to improve her three-point shot. Quite simply she is a play maker. She makes things happen and the type of kid where the only thing she has more of than bruises by the end of a game, is points. She is the kind of kid that you have on every championship team.”
Sydney Moss (5-11, Guard/Forward, Union, Ky./Boone County HS) has been a two-time First Team All-State selection as named by the Louisville Courier-Journal and Lexington Herald, collecting honors in 2010 and 2011. She led Boone County High School to the 33rd District championship when she was named MVP in 2010 and 2011, as well as the 9th region title when she was the 2010 MVP and an appearance in the 2010 KHSAA State Tournament final, being named to the 2010 KHSAA All-State Tournament Team. Moss has amassed 2,140 points and 1,156 rebounds in her prep career, averaging a double-double in her career with 18.2 points and 10.5 rebounds. During her junior campaign, Moss averaged 22.9 points, 11.8 rebounds, 3.4 assists, 2.8 steals and 1.3 blocks, while hitting 51.4 percent from the floor, including 35.3 percent from the three-point arc.
She was honored as the 2010 and 2011 Cincinnati Enquirer Northern Kentucky Player of the Year and was named to the 2010 and 2011 Northern Kentucky Girls Basketball Coaches Association All-Star Team. The 5-foot-11 Moss earned recognition as a 2012 ESPN HoopGurlz Top 20 National Prospect.
Moss, who is a 2012 Preseason All-State First Team candidate, as well as a leading contender for the state of Kentucky's “Miss Basketball” award, appeared on the cover of and was featured in ESPN Rise Magazine (http://cheyenneellis.blogspot.com/2011/03/espn-rise.html AND http://rise.espn.go.com/all-sports-girls/articles/2011/02/24-sydney-moss.aspx ) and featured in the Feb. 7, 2011 edition of ESPN The Magazine.
“If you can name a skill, Sydney can do it as well as just about anyone in the country,” Butler said. “She is unique with her athleticism and strength and power. She is left-handed. Sydney is very, very capable of going down to the low block, as well as step out and play the two or the three. She can run the four. She can shoot it. She has tremendous feel and timing and is very, very explosive.
“Sydney can make plays that are almost impossible for someone scout and try and take away what she does,” Butler continued. “She has a tremendous spirit about her and she is excited about joining Gator Nation as well - just as all of the four players in this signing class do.”
2011-12 Florida Women's Basketball Signees
Chandler Cooper (5-11, Guard, Clarksville, Tenn./Clarksville HS)
Christin Mercer (6-0, Post, Douglasville, Ga./Douglas County HS)
January Miller (5-8, Guard, Orlando, Fla./University HS)
Sydney Moss (5-11, Guard/Forward, Union, Ky./Boone County HS)
