The NC State women’s basketball team inked two new four-star recruits on Wednesday, the first day of the national early signing period, bringing in point guard Genesis Bryant and combo guard Dontavia Waggoner.
Bryant, a 5-foot-6 point guard out of Lovejoy High School in Jonesboro, GA, led her team to a 2018 6A state championship and was named the Georgia High School Association 6A Player of the Year that same season. The No. 4 recruit in Georgia, according to ESPNW recruiting rankings, Bryant is an elite 3-point shooter, an efficient scorer and, fitting NC State head coach Wes Moore’s system, a scrappy defender.
“Genesis is dynamite in a small package,” Moore told NC State Athletics. “She has the ability to score the ball in a variety of ways. During the past two years at Lovejoy, she has been on the verge of being a very rare 90-50-40 player (FT%-FG%-3FG%). Her willingness to take a charge against any player on the court is a testament to her toughness and competitive nature. Bottom line, Gen brings a winner’s mentality to the Wolfpack.”
Waggoner is more of a combo guard in the mold of recent recruit Jakia Brown-Turner. Standing 6 feet tall, Waggoner is fast enough to handle primary ballhandler duties, but also big and strong enough to play off the ball and operate around the wing.
As a junior, Waggoner led The Ensworth School to a Division 2 state championship in 2019 and was named USA Today Second Team All-Tennessee. The No. 6 recruit in the state, and No. 4 guard, Waggoner has been named to the All-State Tournament team each year of her high school career and racked up a number of awards in 2019, including Ms. Tennessee Basketball, TSSAA State Tournament MVP and All-Divisions Girls Basketball Player of the Year.
“Dontavia’s great athleticism and strength has me excited to see just how far her game can go,” Moore said. “A prestigious Ms. Basketball winner in Tennessee, she has the skill set to get to the rim and knock down the ‘3.’ A potential defensive stopper and prolific rebounder, Dontavia is going to be a great asset on both ends of the court here at NC State.”
Bryant and Waggoner are the first two of a recruiting class that is following in the footsteps of Moore’s 2019 class, which featured two five-star recruits in Brown-Turner and Jada Boyd. The early signing period for women’s basketball closes Wednesday, Nov. 20.
