Ridgeway star Hasina Muhammad set to face South's best

article and image from CommercialAppeal.com

As a player on the Memphis Elite Daniels AAU team, Hasina Muhammad was accustomed to participating in the Deep South Classic each spring against some of the top girls from across the country.

On Saturday, the Ridgeway senior will join 21 of those top-ranked prep players at the 12th annual Deep South Classic -- only this time she will be a participant in the fourth annual Fila All-American Basketball Game. The game will be played at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with tipoff at 9:30 p.m. CDT.

Muhammad, an Auburn signee, will play on the West team.

''There's girls that I've played against for years on the AAU circuit, and I have some friends in Florida that will be playing,'' Muhammad said. ''I'm just real excited because I get to know those people.''

The rosters are comprised of players slated to attend 19 universities. Muhammad is the only representative from Tennessee.

''It's an awesome experience for her,'' Ridgeway coach Tonya Willett said. ''It gives her an opportunity to see the competition she will have to play against next year at Auburn. Obviously, she was asked to play in a game of that caliber with those top-tier players, which is awesome. She was extremely excited.''

In leading the Roadrunners to a 20-9 record in her senior season, Muhammad averaged 17.8 points, 7.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 3.9 blocked shots and 2.6 steals. At 6-feet, Muhammad is projected to be a wing player at Auburn.

Willett said Muhammad was Ridgeway's most valuable player since her sophomore season. And she expects her former star to have the same type of impact at Auburn, where they are comparing her to former Auburn star DeWanna Bonner, now a member of the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA.

''The thing that I like most about Hasina is the fact that she's a kid with great character,'' Willett said. ''I think basketball skills fade after a while. But to have a kid with the character that she has, I don't think that she's been tainted that much. I've coached some kids that have been real cocky and not coachable. Hasina wants to get better. And it's hard to find that kid. She's gotten all of the national attention and she loves her teammates still. She's still unselfish. It's hard to find that kid.

''She has consistently shown the fact that she wants to get better. I think she has room to grow and I think that she will just because of her character. Obviously she has an innate talent to play basketball. But she has a strong attitude that's going to help her to reach very high heights.''

Muhammad, who also participated in the Tennessee Athletic Coaches Association's All-Star game in Murfreesboro in March, said she plans to enroll at Auburn June 23.

''I'm excited, and I'm ready to work hard,'' she said.