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Home > SECWB News & More! > SEC Teams > Florida > Florida's 2007-2008 Freshman Class
Florida's 2007-2008 Freshman Class
by LeAnne Harrington, SECWB.com
Posted: November 1st, 2007 @ 11:53pm
When new head coach Amanda Butler took over the reigns of the Florida women’s basketball program in April 2007, she hit the ground running. First on her agenda was to make sure the players recruited by former coach Carolyn Peck were still on board to play Gator-ball, Butler-style. Although one recruit opted to sign elsewhere, here’s a look at the new players that will be donning the orange and blue in Gainesville this season.
Ebonie Crawford is a 6’3” center from Decatur, GA who prepped at Paideia High School and played AAU ball with the Georgia Hoopstars. Ranked the #33 center in the nation by All Girls Report in 2006, she was ranked the overall #114 player in the nation on Blue Stars Top 200 list in 2007. Crawford averaged 9 points and 10 boards a game as a senior and served as team captain. As a three year starter, she led her high school team to three consecutive Class 2A state tournament berths, was named All-State Honorable Mention by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution her senior season and was also nominated to play in the McDonald‘s High School All America game. In addition, Street and Smith named her an Honorable Mention All-America in both 2006 and 2007. Crawford will give Florida some much-needed height in the paint and her strength could make her a go-to player early. Florida coach Amanda Butler states: “One of the qualities that jumps out at me regarding Ebonie is her maturity. She does things the right way and wants to be a leader…She’s strong, can push people around and gives us presence in the paint that didn’t exist last year.” Crawford will be majoring in Criminolgy and plans to pursue a career as a forensic pathologist.
Ndidi Madu is a 6’2” center from Antioch, TN (a suburb of Nashville) who played at Antioch High her freshman year before transferring to McGavock Comprehensive High School for her final 3 seasons of prep basketball. Madu scored 1,137 points in only three seasons at McGavock, and averaged a double/double her junior season, scoring 14 points and pulling down 10 rebounds a game. Ranked #101 in Blue Star’s 2007 rankings of the Top 200 players, Madu gives the Gators some additional height in the paint, but is more of a slashing type rebounder and Butler will be looking to her for defensive stops. Madu played summer ball for the Tennessee Flight Silver, which was recognized by HoopGurlz as one of the top three travel teams in the country. Madu, who is Nigerian, is majoring in Social and Behavioral Sciences and hopes to one day own her own accounting firm.
Kerri Simpson, a 5’9” guard from Charleston, TN played at Cleveland High School, where her senior class compiled the all-time winningest record in CHS history, going 112-27 in four years. Simpson’s stellar stats over that four year period: 3rd all-time leading scorer with 1,540 points, 4th all-time leader in steals with 250, and 7th all-time leader in rebounds with 516. The CHS Lady Raiders began the 2007 season ranked #11 in the nation by USA Today, and finished with a record of 32-3 and ranked #5 in the state of Tennessee. Simpson averaged 10.5 ppg her senior year, was named to the All-District team, and played in the East-West All Star Game. In addition, she was named one of the top 12 prospects in Tennessee by Rick Bolus’ High Potential Basketball Recruiting Service. Simpson also competed for the Tennessee Flight Silver travel squad along with fellow freshman Ndidi Madu. Simpson is known for her great work ethic and her ability to get to the basket, and she brings excitement when she steps on the court. Scout.com called her “a cat-quick guard who plays great on-ball defense. She has very good athleticism and can guard elite-level perimeter players. She’s aggressive and can get into the paint as well as knock down open threes.”
In addition to these three freshman signees, Coach Butler was able to land Lonnika Thompson, a juco player from New Orleans, LA who played her freshman year at Trinity Valley Community College in Athens, TX, where she led her team to their sixth consecutive Region XIV Conference Championship. At TVCC, Thompson, a 5'4" guard, averaged 12 points and 6.2 assists per game and was named to the Women’s All-Region XIV and All-Conference teams. An outstanding prep player at McDonough 35 High School in New Orleans, she and her family were forced to evacuate due to Hurricane Katrina and she began her senior season at Jonesborough High School near Atlanta, but was able to return to McDonough 35 where she helped her team to the Louisiana State 5A championship game. Thompson has three years of eligibility remaining, beginning with the 2007-2008 season, and is expected to make an immediate impact due to her strength, speed and experience. Coach Butler said, “I think she has the ability to become a phenomenal defender and (is) exactly the type of player I hated to have guarding me when I played.”
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