Shay Ijiwoye: From playing with the boys to Stanford commit
PHOENIX, Ariz. (BVM) 鈥� Desert Vista senior point guard Shay Ijiwoye is used to facing difficult competition thanks to her team鈥檚 high standing in Arizona and her play at national powerhouse Arizona Elite Prep. Playing against the best on the basketball court was ingrained early in Ijiwoye鈥檚 basketball career as the young hooper was thrust into the sport playing alongside boys.
鈥淚 played with the boys in the fourth grade, fifth grade and sixth-grade summer so for two and a half years I played with the boys,鈥� Ijiwoye said. They鈥檙e bigger, faster and stronger so you have to bring your game up to another level. At the time, I was actually one of the tallest on the team so I played the post so you can imagine me, a girl playing boys, battling down there and rebounding and stuff. I think it helped with my overall toughness which obviously has translated to the girls side with being aggressive.鈥�
That toughness helped the 5-foot-6 point guard blossom into a star on the girls side of things at the high school level, being ranked as the No. 44 player in the nation by , and with that came the opportunity to play at the collegiate level. On Sept. 1, Ijiwoye committed to the Stanford Cardinal program, keeping one of the best female basketball players in the West.
鈥淚t鈥檚 a world-class education and people come from all over the world to get that education so it鈥檚 kind of an opportunity that doesn鈥檛 come around very often,鈥� Ijiwoye said. 鈥淣ot only that, but basketball too. Everyone there is super serious, whether it鈥檚 getting to the next level or winning a national championship, they鈥檙e just winners. The whole coaching staff knows how to win, they鈥檝e won many years in a row, they鈥檝e had great careers themselves too so just a lot of learning on and off the court.鈥�
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With the Cardinal, Ijiwoye feels she will have the opportunity to contribute early.聽聽
鈥淚f you watched them this past year, they didn鈥檛 really have a point guard, Talana [Lepolo] was their point guard but she was a freshman and kind of got thrown into the fire and the 2023 class they didn鈥檛 get a true point guard,鈥� Ijiwoye said. 鈥淚 know I am coming in and I will have the opportunity to definitely make an impact my freshman year at the point guard position. I think what Talana and I do is pretty similar as far as how well we pass the ball, get people involved and push tempo and things like that.鈥�
As a leader for her Thunder squad last year, Ijiwoye averaged 13.3 points, 3.1 steals, 3.0 rebounds and 2.3 assists while shooting 73% from the field and 44.3% from three-point range as Desert Vista finished 28-3 and as the inaugural Arizona Interscholastic Association Open Division girls鈥� state champions.
鈥淓nding up being ranked No. 12 in the country, competing at nationals and obviously winning the first-ever open division championship in Arizona we kind of turned a lot of heads and I鈥檓 grateful that I got to do it with such great people,鈥� Ijiwoye said. 鈥淚鈥檓 just excited for this last year and continuing that winning tradition.鈥�
While Ijiwoye made a name for herself on the basketball court, she did get support from an unlikely source鈥揾er godsister, WNBA veteran Kristine Anigwe. Growing up in Arizona, Ijiwoye鈥檚 parents befriended the Anigwe family and once she started playing basketball, she immediately knew where to go for help.
鈥淏efore I even started playing we all would hang out together and I knew she played at Cal and was playing well and I think that kind of sparked my interest a little bit,鈥� Ijiwoye said. 鈥淗aving an inspiring figure to look up to that you know is really great, especially to answer your questions like shooting questions or about the recruiting process.鈥�
Even though Ijowye signed with Cal鈥檚 rival, Stanford, the two are still close.
鈥淪he was just happy for me and happy for my family,鈥� Ijiwoye said. 鈥淪he was proud of me.鈥�
But before Ijiwoye makes her way to Stanford, she will have one final season with the Thunder. Her goal is to ultimately leave an impact beyond the basketball court.
鈥淥bviously I want to win a state championship again, compete on a national level and it would be cool to get those end-of-the-year accolades, but I think the biggest thing is leaving an impact on the program,鈥� Ijiwoye said. 鈥淚 want to make an impact on the others around me and for people to remember me for the person I was more than the player. I just want to continue to build the culture we鈥檝e been building for generations to come.鈥�
