NCAA Women's Basketball Tournament - National Championship - Source: Getty

"Such a sweet person": Montverde star Saniyah Hall shares her experience playing with UConn's Sarah Strong

Modified Apr 20, 2025 01:28 GMT

Montverde (FL) five-star small forward Saniyah Hall shared her impression of UConn forward Sarah Strong from their time as teammates. Hall and Strong were both on the USA Women's U18 3x3 team that won the 2024 FIBA 3x3 U18 World Cup.

In a short clip shared by Overtimeselect on Instagram, Hall was asked what it was like playing with Sarah Strong. She said:

“First time we talked and everything, it was really cool. She's such a sweet person. But getting to see her shine at UConn is something that's really great. I'm just proud of her. I've texted her a couple of times telling her congratulations and everything. So it's been really cool.”

Strong and UConn won the NCAA national championship on Apr. 6, cruising to a comfortable 82-59 victory over South Carolina. It was the Huskies’ first natty win since 2016 and their 12th overall, becoming the first Division I program with 12 titles.

Following her junior season, Saniyah Hall has been named a MaxPreps First Team All-American as well as the National Junior Player of the Year. The award concluded an amazing season for the 6-foot-2 forward.

She played a big role in getting Montverde to its fourth straight Chipotle High School Nationals championship game and a 26-2 record. She led the team in points average with a 20.3 point per game average. She also averaged 6.7 rebounds, 3.5 assists, 2.8 steals and 1.3 blocks per game.

Saniyah Hall named on Naismith All-America First Team

Saniyah Hall’s incredible season also earned her a spot in the 2025 Jersey Mike's Naismith High School Girls All-America First Team. A native of Lorain, Ohio, Hall started her high school career at Laurel High School.

While at Laurel, she averaged 23 points and almost 10 rebounds per game as a freshman and sophomore. She transferred to Montverde ahead of her junior season. In just three years of high school, she has reached an incredible 1828 career points and 695 rebounds.

Saniyah Hall is the No. 1 prospect in the 2026 class, per the On3 Industry Ranking. She holds offers from several top schools, including Ohio State, USC, Michigan, Xavier, Kentucky, North Carolina, and so on.

While it's too early to tell, the Buckeyes are the leaders in her recruitment, per the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine, followed by USC.

About the author

Kayode is a College and High School Sports writer at Sportskeeda since June 2023. Hailing from Nigeria, he has an undergraduate degree in Linguistics and African Languages, and has previously had stints as an entertainment and politics writer for around 7 months. Adept at creating content around historical perspectives, he strives to report stories based only on verified information. His mantra is - truth is always more important than sensationalism.

A fan of the Alabama Crimson Tide football team, Kayode admires how Nick Saban developed talent at the team and delivered consistent results, and hopes that the post-Saban era is just as fruitful. He is thoroughly impressed by Johnny Manziel’s talent, and feels that Shedeur Sanders is massively underrated. Nick Saban is his all-time favorite college coach.

While Kayode believes there is little to separate college and mainstream sports, pro leagues absorbing the best athletes leads to their quality being higher. Witnessing the Colorado Buffaloes’ hot streak at start the 2023 football season was one of his all-time favorite college sports moments.

When not writing, Kayode enjoys reading and watching sports documentaries. His most recent watch was "Sir Alex Ferguson: Never Give In."

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