No. 1 recruit Williams commits to Mulkey, LSU

Mikaylah Williams, the top-ranked recruit in the Class of 2023, according to ESPN HoopGurlz, has committed to Kim Mulkey’s LSU program, she announced Friday.

Williams, a 6-foot-1 guard from Bossier City, Louisiana, chose LSU over Ole Miss, Baylor, Duke and Texas A&M.

“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 in her video announcement. “I’ve decided I’ll be attending the Louisiana State University.”

Grateful for the process and excited to announce where I will be playing college basketball! @playerstribune pic.twitter.com/eWRqa6R7YU

— Mikaylah Williams (@mkwill12_) June 24, 2022

Williams won gold with Team USA in the 2021 FIBA 3×3 U18 World Cup, where she was MVP, and recently earned a spot on the U.S. team for the FIBA U17 World Cup, which will compete July 9-17 in Hungary.

She was named the Gatorade Louisiana Girls Basketball Player of the Year in March after averaging 22.8 points, 8.0 rebounds, 3.7 assists and 2.2 steals as a junior at Parkway High.

With Mulkey in her second season in Baton Rouge, the Tigers are looking to propel themselves back into the conversation as title contenders and to return to the Final Four for the first time since 2008. LSU fell to Ohio State in the second round of the NCAA tournament last season.

With a host of seniors departing the program, Mulkey was active in the transfer portal, bringing in Angel Reese from Maryland, LaDazhia Williams from Missouri, Kateri Poole from Ohio State, Jasmine Carson from West Virginia and top juco transfer Last-Tear Poa from Northwest Florida State College to join a 2022 recruiting class ranked No. 17 in the nation by ESPN.