University of North Carolina Athletics
Incoming Tar Heel Recruits Shine On Postseason Circuit
April 27, 2007 | Women's Basketball
April 27, 2007
The three incoming members of the 2011 North Carolina women's basketball class aren't waiting until college to start piling up the accolades - using this spring as a showcase for the incredible talents they promise to bring to Chapel Hill starting this fall.
First, it was at the Powerade Jam Fest, which opened up the festivities at the McDonald's All-American Game in March. That's where Italee Lucas, a 5-8 guard from Centennial High School in Las Vegas, Nev., and HoopGurlz.com's No. 6-ranked player overall in the 2007 class, displayed her sweet shooting stroke in claiming the title in the girl's Three-Point Competition. Not to be outdone by her future Carolina backcourt partner, Cetera DeGraffenreid, a 5-6 guard from Smoky Mountain High School in Sylva, N.C. and the nation's No. 14 recruit overall, flashed her own shooting skills in pairing with Duke-bound Nolan Smith to win the Team Ball Competition.
The two women also put up solid performances in the McDonald's Game itself, held at Freedom Hall in Louisville, Ky. DeGraffenreid recorded nine points, six rebounds and three assists in 20 minutes of action for the East Team, while Lucas tallied three points and six rebounds of her own in 17 minutes for the West.
Just days later, both girls found themselves at the WBCA High School All-America Game, held March 31 in Cleveland as part of the Final Four. Coach Sylvia Hatchell, who was in town coaching the 2006-2007 Tar Heels, made the trip to the arena to watch her future pupils, and they didn't disappoint. Playing together on the White team, Lucas posted 12 points and DeGraffenreid chipped in with 10 of her own.
Also getting in on the honor parade this spring is the third member of the class to sign a national letter of intent to play for UNC, Rebecca Gray, a 5-10 guard from Scott County High School in Georgetown, Ky. Scott was recently named Miss Basketball as the top player in the state.
The North Carolina signee finished her six-year career at Scott County with 2,907 points, 706 rebounds, 380 steals and 493 assists, making her the all-time leading scorer in school history. The Lady Cards went 107-17 starting with Gray's freshmen season, and held the No. 1 ranking for much of this season before falling to No. 2 Lexington Catholic in the first round of the 11th Region Tournament. They finished with a 25-4 record, and Gray led the way, averaging 25.6 points, 6.3 rebounds, 4.8 assists and 4.2 steals while hitting 88.9 percent of her free throws.
