Broadford basketballer Georgia Knight has secured an offer to play college basketball in the United States.
The scholarship will see Knight leave Australian shores later this year, to begin her first semester at the Colby Community College in Colby, Kansas, in August.
A long-time lover and player of team sport, Knight made the switch from netball to basketball in 2019 after watching her younger brother play for Wallan. She initially played rep for the Wallan Under 16s, and prior to Covid-19 lockdowns, was part of Wallan’s first Youth League Women’s team.
Though Knight was unable to play most of the games in Wallan’s Youth League Women’s team due to lockdowns, her passion for the sport remained. Two years later, she moved to the Collingwood Basketball Association to play for the Division Two Women’s and Under 18s Victorian Championships (VC).
Run by Basketball Victoria, the VC sees the best Under 12 to Under 18 players and teams hail from across the state to compete in the most challenging and competitive junior basketball division in Australia.
Knight spoke highly of her time in the VC, stating the game offered a taste of high-grade competition.
“I played against some of the best players in the state,” she said.
Following on from her participation in the VC, Knight was then signed to a basketball recruitment company which saw her embark on a three-week long tour of the United States. Knight said that it was during the tour that she realised her calling to play the sport at a professional level.
“I decided that this [was] something I wanted to do,” she said.
“I had a few offers from different schools at different levels all across the US, but decided to commit to Colby Community College on a full scholarship.”
Knight will study in the United States for two years, where she hopes to earn another scholarship to a Division One or Division Two school for her remaining two years of eligibility.
“At the moment I am feeling quite excited to go. It has been something that I have dreamed about doing ever since I have been told by coaches that I have the skill to go to college a few years ago,” she said.
The Review would like to wish Knight every success as she embarks on this new chapter of her life, and hopes to hear many stories about her time in the United States.
