Sacred Heart’s ZaKiyah Johnson, a top-five national prospect, updates recruiting timeline

Kentucky’s most sought after basketball prospect in the class of 2025 is planning to make a college commitment prior to her senior year of high school.

Sacred Heart Academy guard ZaKiyah Johnson, the No. 5 recruit in the country, is having quite the week. On Thursday, she was named the Kentucky Gatorade Player of the Year (for the third consecutive season) and then contributed 18 points, six rebounds, five assists, two blocks and two steals to the Valkyries’ 57-46 comeback defeat of George Rogers Clark in the first round of the Mingua Beef Jerky Girls’ Sweet 16 State Basketball Tournament.

The Valkyries were in the hunt for what would be a history-making fourth straight state championship, and, with Johnson as the team’s leading scorer for three consecutive seasons, Sacred Heart was favored to accomplish just that.

In her junior year with the Valkyries, Johnson is averaging 18.9 points on 48.4% shooting, and grabbing a team-high 7.3 rebounds per contest. She has scored more than 2,500 career points.

So, naturally, most of the sport’s biggest names are vying for her commitment, and have been since Louisville’s Jeff Walz made Johnson her first scholarship offer back in seventh grade. In fact, Johnson has received more than 30 scholarship offers, including from nearly every team to reach a national championship game this century.

Last November, Johnson announced a list of 12 finalists via social media: Arizona, Connecticut, Georgia, Louisville, LSU, Mississippi State, Notre Dame, Ohio State, Southern California, South Carolina, Tennessee and UCLA.

Following the Valkyries’ first-round victory Thursday, the Herald-Leader asked Johnson about a timeline for her commitment, and if Kentucky’s recent announcement that women’s basketball head coach Kyra Elzy was relieved of her duties had any impact on her list.

“I’m planning on making my decision at least before the next season, my senior year,” Johnson said. “But all the Kentucky stuff ... I haven’t let it affect me or I haven’t been thinking about it too much. I was kind of waiting when the time comes to figure out what I wanted to do there.”

When asked if there was anything UK could do as far as a choice in head coach that would increase her interest in the program, Johnson didn’t know.

“I don’t know, yet. I’ll figure it out,” Johnson said.

Johnson is one of three in-state recruits rated in the top 40 of the high school class of 2025 alongside Bethlehem guard Leah Macy (No. 8) and George Rogers Clark forward Ciara Byars (No. 37).

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