ATLANTA – LSU Women’s Basketball signees Aalyah Del Rosario and Mikaylah Williams were named to the Naismith High School Trophy Preseason Watch List on Tuesday by the Atlanta Tipoff Club.
Headlining LSU’s top-ranked class is the No. 1 player in the country (AGSR, Prospects Nation and Jr. All-Star National Rankings) and Bossier City, Louisiana native Mikaylah Williams, a 6-0 guard out of Parkway High School. Del Rosario, a 6-5 forward, is considered the top post player in the country and is tabbed the No. 4 player overall by Just Women’s Sports.
Williams is the reigning Louisiana Gatorade Player of the Year after averaging 22.8 point, 8.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.2 steals, leading Parkway High School to a 34-3 record and a state championship appearance. With all-around elite talent, Williams is a natural scorer and lockdown defender whose effort and skill on both sides of the ball separate her from all the other players in the class. As a junior, Williams was a finalist for the 2022 Naismith High School Girls Basketball Player of the Year Award and she was a Junior All-America First Team selection by MaxPreps.
“Mikaylah is an incredibly special student-athlete,” Coach Mulkey. “Being from North Louisiana, Mikaylah chose to stay home and compete for championships as a Tiger. Her immense talent, combined with her unmatched work ethic sets her apart – making her the top player in the country. LSU fans you are in for a treat.”
“In order to take my game to the next level and to continue to learn and grow as a young woman, there’s only one place where I’ve wanted to be. Home,” Williams said when she announced her commitment to LSU.
Del Rosario is a five-star prospect who is the top true big in the country with a powerful inside game who can utilize the face up game. She sees the floor well and can play outside the key too. She is also a physical defensive presence who hits the boards hard. Del Rosario took home the Gold Medal from the FIBA U18 World Cup in Argentina over the Summer. During her junior season at The Webb School, Del Rosario averaged a double-double with 13.0 points per game and 11.0 rebounds per game while adding 4.0 assists per game. She was a finalist for the 2022 TSSAA Division II-A Miss Basketball Award.
“Aalyah brings a dominant inside presence to our front court,” Coach Mulkey said. “She has closely followed post players that I have coached in the past and has the capability to be the next great post player at LSU. I can’t wait to get Aalyah to Baton Rouge and get to work.”
“I selected LSU because when I first arrived in this country, my first game I watched was of Coach Mulkey’s team,” said Del Rosario, whose family is from the Dominican Republic. “I loved her style. I loved the way she coached her girls. I knew then I wanted to play for someone like her. LSU for me felt like home when I was on campus. The development that I will be able to experience from Coach Mulkey and Coach Starkey will be what I will need to one day play professional basketball. Winning a national championship is a goal of mine and I know I am with the right people to do it with.”