Aaliyah Chavez commits to Oklahoma: Nation's No. 1 recruit hitches wagon to booming Sooners program

Country's top women's basketball prospect picks Sooners over Texas, Texas Tech, UCLA, LSU and South Carolina

Levi Payton | Mar 25, 2025

Monterey's Aaliyah Chavez officially committed to the Oklahoma Sooners on Tuesday, March 25. / Angela Piazza/USA Today Network via Caller-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

After months of speculation, the debate is finally over. Aaliyah Chavez will play basketball for the Oklahoma Sooners.

Chavez, a 5-foot-11 guard at Lubbock Monterey High School in Lubbock, Texas, just got the taste of her first state championship, earning UIL 5A-II finals MVP while helping Monterey hoist a state title for the first time in 44 years.

Now, she’ll chase a natty in Norman.

Tuesday’s announcement, aired live on ESPN, was one of the most anticipated commitments from a high school girls athlete in recent memory after the nation’s No. 1 recruit had one of the greatest high school basketball careers in recent memory. She picked the Sooners over Texas, Texas Tech, LSU, UCLA and South Carolina.

"First, I want to express my sincere gratitude to my family, coaches and teammates, who have supported me on this incredible journey," a very nervous Chavez said into a pair of ESPN microphones, seated in front of her family and next to the state championship trophy she just helped the Lady Plainsmen attain. "The hours and hours in the driveway or at the gym we have put in has given me a life only a few get to have.

"All the days I didn't have a good training or game, my mom letting me know it was okay and that everything would be all right," she continued. "To my eight-year-old self that decided to take this journey head-on, we made it. We did what they said we couldn't. It's been one crazy ride and I know it's only getting started.

"This commitment isn't just my decision. It's a testament to all the people who have poured into my life. I am excited to embrace the challenge ahead, to learn more from this game and to contribute any way I can to this team's success. I'm not just joining a program, I'm joining a family."

And then, after a big sigh, she the years of buildup for this day spilled out.

"And I'm ready to give my all to make this my home and bring a national championship to Norman! The next step starts now."

Read more stories about Aaliyah Chavez's historic career here and here.

Chavez told ESPN her connection with coach Jennie Baranczyk and the Sooners staff is one that goes way back. That familiarity made all the difference for Chavez, an admitted loyalist.

"You know, they have great coaches," she said. "Coaches that I've been talking to since I was in eighth grade. And [they have] such a great playing style. They match how I play. I want to play fast, and that's why I chose [Oklahoma]."

Aaliyah Chavez is pictured during second half of the first round of the NCAA Women's college basketball game between University of Oklahoma Sooners and Florida Gulf Coast at the Lloyd Noble Center in Norman, Okla., Saturday, March, 22, 2025. / SARAH PHIPPS/THE OKLAHOMAN / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The 2025 Gatorade National Player of the Year finished her career at Monterey with 4,796 points, surpassing Delta Academy’s Lindsay Roy (2008-12, Marks, Miss.) for 14th all-time nationally in career points, according to MaxPreps girls basketball records.

After ranking 16th in single season scoring as a junior with 1,324 points, the 2025 McDonald’s All-American surpassed that mark this season with 1,451 points, placing her 10th all-time. She bumped Southeast Lauderdale’s Monique Horner (2000-01, Meridian, Miss.) to 11th on the list.

The 2025 Naismith Girls Basketball Player of the Year and two-time Naismith first team All-American was the only player to crack the top 20 in all-time single season scoring since Bishop’s Destiny Littleton (La Jolla, Calif.) posted 1,366 points in the 2016-17 season.

She also joined an elite group of just five players who have appeared multiple times in the top 20, alongside Geri Grigsby (McDowell, Kentucky, 1976-77), Adriana McGowen (Goodrich, Texas, 2004-05), Victoria Vivians (Scott Central, Forest, Mississippi, 2013-14), and Mary Katheryn Govero (Mt. Salus Christian, Clinton, Mississippi, 2005-06).

Monterey's Aaliyah Chavez holds the Class 5A-II state championship girls basketball trophy on Saturday, March 1, 2025, at The Alamodome in San Antonio. Monterey defeated Liberty Hill 64-35. / Angela Piazza/USA Today Network via Caller-Times / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The No. 1 prospect in the country for a while now, Chavez was a threat to score anytime she crossed halfcourt with the ball in her hands. Over 150 career games, the two-time Texas Gatorade Player of the Year amassed 4,796 points, 1,279 rebounds, 771 assists, 476 steals, and 134 blocks.

She averaged an astonishing 31.97 points, 8.5 rebounds, 5.1 assists, and 3.1 steals per game across four seasons and scored at least 1,001 points in all four seasons.

She wasn’t just a scorer though. She set the single season assist record at Monterey as a freshman and is also amongst its career leaders in that category.

Now she joins an Oklahoma team that's on the rise. The Sooners (27-7 and ranked No. 11 in the latest AP poll) just advanced to the Sweet 16 of the Women’s NCAA Tournament for the first time since 2013 with a blowout victory over Iowa on Monday.

The Sooners have already loaded up with a solid group of 2025 recruits that includes a pair from the HoopGurlz Top 100 in No. 50 Keziah Lofton (5-foot-11 guard; Bethany, Okla.) and No. 62 Brooklyn Stewart (6-2 forward; Pine Creek, Colo.). Adding Chavez to that list is a swoon for Baranczyk and her staff.

A lethal scorer, Aaliyah Chavez was a threat with the ball anytime she crossed midcourt with the ball at Lubbock Monterey. / Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Despite remaining tight-lipped about her decision, the last few months generated a lot of speculation surrounding Chavez’s recruitment. While UCLA and LSU were believed to have taken a backseat weeks ago, South Carolina also seemingly faded in recent weeks, only to be tossed back into the mix when her family told the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal that the Gamecocks were still involved.

Oklahoma, like Texas, had been in heavy pursuit of late, and Chavez stoked speculation on Saturday when she showed up in Norman (with much fanfare) to watch the Sooners win their first-round game of the Women's NCAA Tournament, a blowout over Florida Gulf Coast.

Some took that visit as a sign she’d made her decision.

In the end, they were right.

Download the SBLive App

To get live updates on your phone — as well as follow your favorite teams and top games — you can download the SBLive Sports app:

Download iPhone App | Download Android App

Published Mar 25, 2025|Modified Mar 25, 2025

LEVI PAYTON

More national high school sports links:

Download the SBLive App