O’Mariah Gordon named Florida Dairy Farmers Miss Basketball

By Stephen Stone
Seminoles.com

Florida State women’s basketball 2021 signee O’Mariah Gordon of Bradenton, Fla., has been chosen as Florida Dairy Farmers Miss Basketball by selected coaches and media, giving her top honors in the talent-rich state of Florida.

One of the nation’s top point guards in the 2021 signing class, Gordon becomes the first player from the Bradenton area to earn the prestigious award that has been given out since 1993.

This past year, Gordon averaged 23 points, 4.8 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 2.5 steals per game. She received seven of the 24 first-place votes for the award.

Nicknamed OMG, Gordon is a two-time Florida Dairy Farmers 6A Player of the Year after winning the honor in 2020 and 2021. As a junior, she delivered 23.1 points, 6.8 rebounds, 5.8 assists, 4.2 steals and 1.0 blocked shots per game in the 2019-20 season.

Gordon put up eye-popping numbers in her sophomore year at Braden River High School, which included averaging 29.7 points, 6.6 rebounds, 6.8 assists, 5.3 steals and 0.7 blocks per game. She had a pair of 42-point performances in that impressive 2018-19 season.

Gordon signed with the Seminoles on Nov. 12, 2020, and joins 6-foot-2 forward Makayla Timpson (Blakely, Ga.) and fellow 6-foot-2 forward Mariana Valenzuela (Mazatlan, Mexico) to form a Top-12 national recruiting class that will be ready for the 2021-22 season.

MORGAN JONES NAMED

WBCA ALL-AMERICAN

Junior guard Morgan Jones has been selected as an honorable mention All-American, announced last Saturday by the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association.

The native of Jonesboro, Ga., becomes the 21st All-American in Florida State women’s basketball history. Since 2014, FSU has produced at least one All-American in each of the past eight years.

“I am so honored and humbled to be named an All-American,” Jones said. “Through the ups and downs, the doubters and every obstacle I faced, I kept my faith in God’s plan and worked hard regardless. It is a great honor and I am thankful, but it only motivates me to go harder and reach levels that I have yet to tap into.”

Jones made dramatic strides in her game as a junior, helping to leading the Seminoles to their eighth consecutive NCAA Tournament. She averaged 12.8 points, 6.3 rebounds, shot 45.4 percent (89-of-196) from the floor and added 23 steals and 17 blocks.

She is the first FSU guard to be named to the All-ACC First Team and the All-Defensive Team in the same season. She also joins FSU legends Natasha Howard, Jacinta Monroe and Brooke Wyckoff as the program’s four All-Americans who made both of those teams as well.

Jones proved to not be your average guard in 2020-21, being the first one to lead the Seminoles in rebounding since 2006 and the third ever at FSU.

In the 2020-21 season, Jones had a couple signature performances that elevated her toward the top of the ACC’s most talented players list. On Jan. 21, she recorded a phenomenal 36-point performance along with 10 rebounds in a 95-88 double overtime victory at the Tucker Center. The scoring output was the highest of any ACC player this past season.

Jones followed with a 26-point, 10-rebound game in a 68-59 win over No. 3 Louisville on Feb. 21, getting to the line 15 times and converting 12 free throws. She scored in double figures in 12 of her 18 games played, but also found ways to impact the game from the defensive end.

The Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority member and sport management major is expected to be one of the top seniors to watch in the ACC next season as FSU prepares to bring back a much-experienced roster that could compete for an ACC title.