Kayla Jones, NC State Wolfpack, Ryan Wilson, Spectacular Magazine
Sports

NC State’s Kayla Jones Named to McClain Award Watchlist

Lawrence Davis III @LawDavis13 @SpecMagSports

SPRINGFIELD, Mass. – Following her stellar 2020-21 campaign, NC State women’s basketball graduate forward Kayla Jones was named a watch list candidate for the 2022 Katrina McClain Award, an honor that recognizes the top power forward in women’s NCAA Division I basketball.

Jones is coming off the best season of her four-year career with the Wolfpack and elected to use her extra season of eligibility to return in 2021-22.

The Janesville, N.C., native was honored as a First Team All-ACC honoree by the league’s head coaches last season after posting averages of 11.9 points, 7.1 rebounds and 2.8 assists per game. She was one of just three players in the ACC to put up such numbers in those three categories.

Dubbed the glue of an NC State squad that won its second ACC Tournament in a row and earned a No. 1 seed to the NCAA Tournament, Jones scored in double figures in 15 games last season. She surpassed the 20-point mark four times in 2020-21, including a career-high performance of 25 points in the Pack’s comeback win at Boston College. Jones showed tremendous versatility and led the team in points three times, rebounds 10 times, assists seven times and steals six times. She stuffed the stat sheet in multiple games and flirted with a triple-double in the Pack’s home game against Wake Forest (12 points, 11 rebounds, seven assists).

Over the course of her career, Jones has compiled 763 points, with 593 of those coming in the last two seasons. After averaging 4.7 points per game as a sophomore, she upped that number to 10.0 as a junior and 11.9 as a senior. Last season, Jones also shot 48.8 percent (103-of-211) from the field and 42.3 percent (30-of-71) from three-point range for the best shooting marks of her career.

Wolfpack fans are encouraged to participate in this year’s Fan Voting during each of the three rounds. In mid-February, the watch list will be narrowed down to 10 players. In March, five finalists will be presented to Ms. McClain and the Hall of Fame’s selection committee. Details for the presentation of this year’s Katrina McClain Award winner will be announced at a later date.

For more information about the award and to vote beginning Oct. 29, visit HoopHallAwards.com.