Class of 2024 Top Prospect Mikayla Blakes Commits to Vanderbilt

<!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>We, along with the rest of New Jersey and almost assuredly a good bit of the country, has been waiting with baited breath to see where Rutgers Prep senior guard [player_tooltip player_id='325201' first='Mikayla' last='Blakes'] was going to commit to today. The top prospect in our PGH New Jersey Class of 2024 rankings had gotten her selections down to seven schools: Stanford, Rutgers, UCLA, Tennessee, Wisconsin, Indiana and Vanderbilt.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>On Monday afternoon, she made her choice on the SportsCenter Next socials in front of family, friends, teammates and the media, choosing the Commodores and the Southeastern Conference (SEC). While we get to see Blakes finish out her high school career this season, the No. 10 prospect in the country according to ESPN is going to Nashville.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Her choice, basketball-wise, might seem perplexing to some as coming into the season, Vanderbilt hadn't had a winning season since the 2015-16 campaign, going 18-14. However, this season has been unlike the past decade or so for the Commodores, currently sitting fourth in the SEC with a 17-3 record overall and a 4-2 record in conference play.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Vanderbilt seems well on its way to its first NCAA Tournament appearance in a decade and first 20-win season since the 2012-13 season. For a near 30-year stretch between the 1985-86 season and 2013-14 season, the Commodores missed the NCAA Tournament just twice, making 27 out of 29 tournament appearances, and it seems they're right back to creating a new postseason appearance streak.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Adding a piece like Blakes is going to assure that's more than just a possibility in the future as the guard has been one of the best all-around players in the state over the past four seasons. She's a member of the 1000 point club and 1500 point club for the Argos, averaging 18.8 PPG in 87 career high school games. Blakes has also knocked down just over two three-pointers a game and averaged 3.3 APG and 3.4 SPG overall.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph --> <!-- wp:paragraph --> <p>Blakes has seven 30-point games to her name and has played against not only the best teams in New Jersey, but the best teams in the country during this four-year stretched. She's hung with the best of them and dominated against top talent, a battle-tested individual that's beyond ready to play at the next level. What better place to do that than the home of the last two national champions: the SEC.</p> <!-- /wp:paragraph -->