Stanford's Semifinalists

STANFORD, Calif. – Stanford signees Fran Belibi and Haley Jones are two of 10 players selected as a semifinalists for the 2019 Naismith Trophy High School Girls' Player of the Year the Atlanta Tipoff Club announced Friday. Stanford is the only school with multiple players on the list.
 
Belibi, a 6-foot-1 forward, is the No. 23 prospect in the espnW HoopGurlz Top 100. In her first three seasons at Regis Jesuit in Aurora, Colo., she started 54 of 78 games played and amassed 938 points, 674 rebounds, 120 assists, 153 steals and 162 blocked shots.
 
In 22 games this season she's averaging 22.3 points, 12.0 rebounds, 2.2 assists, 3.5 steals and 2.5 blocks and has been featured on SportsCenter a number of times for her viral dunks.
 
As a junior in 2017-18, Belibi averaged 13.7 points, 8.3 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 2.6 steals and 1.6 blocks in helping lead her team to a 24-4 record and state runner-up finish. A year prior she averaged 15.7 points, 11.6 rebounds, 1.6 assists., 2.6 steals and 3.2 blocks to help the Raiders to a 20-7 mark and the state tournament semifinals.
 
When Belibi was a sophomore, she became the first girl to dunk in a Colorado high school game on Jan. 6, 2017. She began playing basketball in September 2015 and averaged 6.3 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.5 blocks that freshman season.
 
A USA Basketball veteran, Belibi won gold medals with the United States at the 2018 FIBA U17 World Cup and 2017 FIBA?Americas U16 Championship. This past summer at the World Cup in Minsk, Belarus she averaged 8.0 points and 5.7 rebounds. She averaged 4.8 points and 5.8 rebounds at the Americas U16 Championship in Buenos Aires, Argentina.
 
The nation's consensus No. 1 recruit, Jones is the first top prospect to sign with Stanford since Chiney Ogwumike came to The Farm as the top player in the country in Nov. 2009.
 
The 6-foot-1 Jones is averaging 26.2 points, 12.3 rebounds, 4.6 assists, 3.8 steals and 2.8 blocks in 24 games thus far for Archbishop Mitty in San Jose. She averaged 21.8 points, 10.0 rebounds and 4.1 assists as a junior  and was named the 2017-18 California Gatorade Player of the Year and earned All-America honors from USA TODAY and MaxPreps.
 
This past summer, she won a gold medal with the United States at the FIBA U17 World Cup in Minsk, Belarus, alongside Belibi. Jones was named to the all-tournament team after averaging 10.9 points, 4.3 rebounds and 3.1 assists in seven starts for Team USA.
 
Both Belibi and Jones along with fellow signee Ashten Prechtel, the No. 16 overall player in the class, are on the West Team for the 2019 McDonald's All American Game on March 27 in Atlanta. Of Stanford's 24 McDonald's All-Americans all-time, nine will be on the team together next season. The Cardinal's incoming class, which also includes five-star talent Hannah Jump from nearby Pinewood School, is ranked second nationally by espnW HoopGurlz.
 
Chiney Ogwumike is Stanford's only previous winner of the Naismith Trophy High School Girls' Player of the Year award, taking home the honor in 2010.