Jones chooses Stanford over UConn

No. 1 is staying home. UConn struck out in its bid to land another signature recruit as Archbishop Mitty (Calif.) guard Haley Jones announced Wednesday morning that she will attend Stanford. Jones, the top player in the Class of 2019, was also considering Notre Dame, Oregon and South Carolina, in addition to UConn.

“One of the main reasons I chose Stanford was because of the academic powerhouse that it is, and also it has the same level of (prestige) for its athletics,” Jones said on SportsCenter.

Jones’ snub means that UConn’s class for next season will likely remain at one. Ossining High (N.Y.) guard Aubrey Griffin, the No. 33 player in ESPN’s rankings, signed her Letter of Intent with the Huskies last week.

This recruiting cycle certainly is a break from the norm for the 11-time national champions, who generally have had no problem attracting the nation’s top talents to Storrs. The Huskies landed the No. 1 overall player in 2015 (Katie Lou Samuelson), 2017 (Megan Walker) and 2018 (Christyn Williams) and were hoping to headline next year’s class with Jones, who took her official visit to campus earlier this month.

Ultimately, though, Jones, the reigning California Gatorade Player of the Year, chose to stay close to home. Jones averaged 21.8 points, 10.0 rebounds and

4.1 assists per game as a junior and starred on the gold-medal winning FIBA U-17 World Cup team over the summer. Her addition gives Stanford four of the top 50 players in 2019, including Colorado forwards Ashten Prechtel (No. 16) and Francesca Belibi (No. 23) and California guard Hannah Jump (No. 50).

“I think that since it’s close to home, it just adds an extra bonus,” Jones said.

“It makes me happy that now my parents and grandparents and family friends can all come and see me for home games and hopefully get season tickets.”

Jones emphasized her relationship with Stanford coach Tara VanDerveer, saying that she used to attend basketball camps at the university.

“I don’t remember exactly what year, but we’ve been talking for a long time now,” Jones said. “I feel very comfortable with the entire coaching staff, including Coach VanDerveer. She’s a Hall of Fame coach, and I’m excited to get there and play for her.”

Her decision comes one week after another top target, Worcester Academy’s (Mass.) Aliyah Boston, the No. 3 player in 2019, went off the board to South Carolina. Earlier in the recruiting period, the Huskies also lost out on No. 2 Jordan Horston and No. 4 Samantha Brunelle to Tennessee and Notre Dame, respectively.

Where the Huskies will look to fill out next season’s roster is unclear. It likely won’t be through recruiting, as all but one of the top 100 players in next year’s class have made their decisions. Could the Huskies target a graduate transfer? Questions remain.

The last time the Huskies failed to land a player within the top 30 was 2013, when another Ossining High product, guard Saniya Chong (No. 75), committed.