From left to right: Mackenzie Latt, Diona Johnson and Saadia Timpton
Davidson W. Basketball Signs Three For 2014-15 Season
11/25/2013 4:35:00 PM | Women's Basketball
Gavin McFarlin - Assistant SID
DAVIDSON, N.C. – Head coach Michele Savage announced today her fourth recruiting class with the signings of Mackenzie Latt, Saadia Timpton and Diona Johnson to national letters of intent for the 2014-15 campaign.
"I'm excited about this 2014 recruiting class," said Savage. "This class is very talented and an athletic class that will enhance our future in the A-10. Aside from being talented players, they are quality ladies who are tremendously competitive. All three really know the game well and all of them will have a chance to contribute right away."
Latt, a 6-1 forward, hails from Sussex, Wis., where she has rewritten the Sussex Hamilton High School record books. Latt, the daughter of Deean and Scott Latt, holds the all-time scoring record as she enters her senior year with 1,135 points.
As a junior, Latt was named a unanimous Division I first-team All-State choice by the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association after averaging 19.2 points, 6.2 rebounds and three steals a game. She helped the Chargers to their first Greater Metro Conference title in 2011-12 and they went on to repeat in 2012-13. Latt is also a member of the WI ABC Knights AAU team, which was coached by her mom, Deean.
"Makenzie is a strong fundamental forward who makes everyone around her better," said Savage. "She is one of the top players in Wisconsin and she will be able to come in and play different positions for us. She can face up and play the perimeter, but also because of her size, she will add to our scoring and rebounding inside."
Other accolades during a successful junior campaign consisted of All-GMC First Team, All-Area Milwaukee Journal Sentinel First Team, All-Waukesha Freeman area First Team and first-team AP All-State. Latt was the MVP of the Hank Raymond Holiday Tournament and earned all-tournament honors at the Ashwaubenon Holiday Tournament.
The forward was nominated and earned National Guard Athlete of the Week in November of 2012. Latt was a NOW Suburban Player of the Year and named to the USJN All-Star Team Mid-America Challenge in Champaign, Ill.
Latt was inducted into the Hamilton High School Honor Society in 2013. Her sister Danielle is a sophomore on the basketball team at Evangel College in Springfield, Mo.
A local product from Myers Park in Charlotte, Timpton has had an outstanding prep career under the guidance of head coach Barbara Nelson. As a junior in 2012-13, she averaged close to 13 points a game, five rebounds and just over three steals and three assists a game as her team went 29-1. Timpton has played with the Wallace Prather Atlanta Celtics AAU organization coached by Renardo Hudson.
Timpton, the daughter of Bridgitte and Don Timpton, has been three-time North Carolina SW4A All-Conference First Team pick, while earning Myers Park Offensive Player of the Year honors in 2012. She was a CPI Security Athlete of the Week last year and earned North Carolina Basketball Coaches All-District Team honors in 2012. A co-captain in 2011-12, Timpton was named to the Glaxo-Smith Kline Holiday Invitational All-Tournament Team in December in 2011.
"Saadia is a tremendous athlete and a great defensive player," said Savage. "She's intense and that will contribute not just in games, but in practice. Saadia has tons of potential and a great upside to her game. She has the ability to score in the open and off her defense. I expect her to adapt quickly to the next level."
Timpton, who's sister India plays at UNCG, was invited to the NIKE Girls Skill Academy in both 2011 and 2012. She was inducted in to the National Junior Honor Society in 2010. Timpton, who earned the Delta Sigma Theta Youth Excellence Award in 2010, was a Rho Psi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority,Inc. Miss Debutante Runner-Up in 2013.
Johnson comes to Davidson from Gates Chili High School in Rochester, N.Y., where she has had a solid prep career. Under coach Tara Graziadei, the 5-foot-9 guard averaged 18 points a game during the 2012-13 season. She earned first-team all-county honors and was a All-Greater Rochester First Team member. Last year saw Johnson scored a career-high 35 points in the Binghamton Tournament, setting a single-game school record with seven three-pointers.
The daughter of Donnarae and Rodney Johnson, Diona was a two-time player of the week, including after she scored 27 and 29 points, respectively, in the state qualifier and state championship semifinal games. She was named to the section V championship and regional championship all-star teams.
"Diona is a savvy guard with a high basketball IQ," said Savage. "She's one of those people who helps keep a basketball team together and makes it click. Diona is a very versatile player that can play either the one, two or three spot. She has the potential to be very successful at the college level. She is a solid rebounder from the guard position and has a scorer's mentality."
From 2010-13 Johnson was a member of the Rochester Revolution AAU team coached by Teri Proietti. The team won the AAU Division II National Championship in 2012.
Academically, Johnson has excelled in the classroom. She is a member of the National Honor Society (2013) and PACA (Peers Against Chemical Abuse). The guard is a three-time Black Scholar Award winner, sponsored by the Urban League of Rochester.
Davidson begins a six-game homestand this coming Saturday, Nov. 30, when it host Gardner-Webb at 2 p.m.
"I'm excited about this 2014 recruiting class," said Savage. "This class is very talented and an athletic class that will enhance our future in the A-10. Aside from being talented players, they are quality ladies who are tremendously competitive. All three really know the game well and all of them will have a chance to contribute right away."
Latt, a 6-1 forward, hails from Sussex, Wis., where she has rewritten the Sussex Hamilton High School record books. Latt, the daughter of Deean and Scott Latt, holds the all-time scoring record as she enters her senior year with 1,135 points.
As a junior, Latt was named a unanimous Division I first-team All-State choice by the Wisconsin Basketball Coaches Association after averaging 19.2 points, 6.2 rebounds and three steals a game. She helped the Chargers to their first Greater Metro Conference title in 2011-12 and they went on to repeat in 2012-13. Latt is also a member of the WI ABC Knights AAU team, which was coached by her mom, Deean.
"Makenzie is a strong fundamental forward who makes everyone around her better," said Savage. "She is one of the top players in Wisconsin and she will be able to come in and play different positions for us. She can face up and play the perimeter, but also because of her size, she will add to our scoring and rebounding inside."
Other accolades during a successful junior campaign consisted of All-GMC First Team, All-Area Milwaukee Journal Sentinel First Team, All-Waukesha Freeman area First Team and first-team AP All-State. Latt was the MVP of the Hank Raymond Holiday Tournament and earned all-tournament honors at the Ashwaubenon Holiday Tournament.
The forward was nominated and earned National Guard Athlete of the Week in November of 2012. Latt was a NOW Suburban Player of the Year and named to the USJN All-Star Team Mid-America Challenge in Champaign, Ill.
Latt was inducted into the Hamilton High School Honor Society in 2013. Her sister Danielle is a sophomore on the basketball team at Evangel College in Springfield, Mo.
A local product from Myers Park in Charlotte, Timpton has had an outstanding prep career under the guidance of head coach Barbara Nelson. As a junior in 2012-13, she averaged close to 13 points a game, five rebounds and just over three steals and three assists a game as her team went 29-1. Timpton has played with the Wallace Prather Atlanta Celtics AAU organization coached by Renardo Hudson.
Timpton, the daughter of Bridgitte and Don Timpton, has been three-time North Carolina SW4A All-Conference First Team pick, while earning Myers Park Offensive Player of the Year honors in 2012. She was a CPI Security Athlete of the Week last year and earned North Carolina Basketball Coaches All-District Team honors in 2012. A co-captain in 2011-12, Timpton was named to the Glaxo-Smith Kline Holiday Invitational All-Tournament Team in December in 2011.
"Saadia is a tremendous athlete and a great defensive player," said Savage. "She's intense and that will contribute not just in games, but in practice. Saadia has tons of potential and a great upside to her game. She has the ability to score in the open and off her defense. I expect her to adapt quickly to the next level."
Timpton, who's sister India plays at UNCG, was invited to the NIKE Girls Skill Academy in both 2011 and 2012. She was inducted in to the National Junior Honor Society in 2010. Timpton, who earned the Delta Sigma Theta Youth Excellence Award in 2010, was a Rho Psi Omega Chapter of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority,Inc. Miss Debutante Runner-Up in 2013.
Johnson comes to Davidson from Gates Chili High School in Rochester, N.Y., where she has had a solid prep career. Under coach Tara Graziadei, the 5-foot-9 guard averaged 18 points a game during the 2012-13 season. She earned first-team all-county honors and was a All-Greater Rochester First Team member. Last year saw Johnson scored a career-high 35 points in the Binghamton Tournament, setting a single-game school record with seven three-pointers.
The daughter of Donnarae and Rodney Johnson, Diona was a two-time player of the week, including after she scored 27 and 29 points, respectively, in the state qualifier and state championship semifinal games. She was named to the section V championship and regional championship all-star teams.
"Diona is a savvy guard with a high basketball IQ," said Savage. "She's one of those people who helps keep a basketball team together and makes it click. Diona is a very versatile player that can play either the one, two or three spot. She has the potential to be very successful at the college level. She is a solid rebounder from the guard position and has a scorer's mentality."
From 2010-13 Johnson was a member of the Rochester Revolution AAU team coached by Teri Proietti. The team won the AAU Division II National Championship in 2012.
Academically, Johnson has excelled in the classroom. She is a member of the National Honor Society (2013) and PACA (Peers Against Chemical Abuse). The guard is a three-time Black Scholar Award winner, sponsored by the Urban League of Rochester.
Davidson begins a six-game homestand this coming Saturday, Nov. 30, when it host Gardner-Webb at 2 p.m.
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