Sarah Strong, the country’s No. 1 women’s basketball recruit, announces college choice

The day after Connecticut saw its women’s basketball season end in the Final Four, the Huskies landed a player well equipped to get them back there next season.

Sarah Strong from Sanford’s Grace Christian School, the nation’s No. 1 recruit in the 2024 class, announced Saturday she’ll sign with UConn and play for coach Geno Auriemma.

Strong chose the Huskies over her other finalists, North Carolina and Duke, saying playing for Auriemma was the main lure.

“I can grow as a person on and off the court,” Strong said in an ESPN interview. “I’m really looking forward to being coached by him.”

This season, Strong led Grace Christian to a 30-0 record and a second straight N.C. Independent Schools 2A state championship. She averaged 21.0 points, 16.8 rebounds, 4.6 assists and 2.8 steals per game.

She was selected for the second consecutive year as North Carolina’s Ms. Basketball by the Charlotte Observer.

“She literally can play every position. She stretches the floor inside to out,” Grace Christian coach Chad Revelle said during an interview with The State a few months ago. “... It’s cliche to say that the ceiling is the roof. But you’ve got a girl that can do all she can do and stretch the floor and play one through five positions. It is pretty incredible and fun to watch.”

Strong — who carries a 3.68 GPA and has 1,951 career points and 1,363 career rebounds — was also named Gatorade’s N.C. player of the year.

Strong comes from a family of basketball players. Her father, Danny, played basketball at N.C. State. Her mother, Allison Feaster, played at Chester (S.C.) High and is the third leading scorer in S.C. state history.

Feaster became an All-American at Harvard, had a 10-year WNBA career and played eight seasons overseas. She played with current South Carolina coach Dawn Staley with the Charlotte Sting WNBA franchise, and currently works in the NBA for the Celtics.

“Sarah makes everyone around her better,” Revelle told the State. “People want to play with her, come here. She has been a draw for our school and players want to come be a part of this. She will get hers and she will score, but she passes, finds people, and I told her the great ones elevate the players around her.”

Langston Wertz of The Charlotte Observer and Lou Bezjak of The State contributed to this report.