Mulkey adds another piece to her 2021-22 roster with signing of Amani Bartlett, nation’s No. 51 rated player

Newest LSU women's basketball commitment Amano Bartlett of Houston with NBA great Kevin Durant at the Nike National Championships in Chicago in 2018. Photo courtesy: Amani Bartlett Twitter.

Her recruiting process included a commitment to Tennessee and a signature on scholarship papers with Syracuse.

Despite those previous events Amani Bartlett’s process found a new destination Saturday – one that turned out to be logistically closest to her home in Cleveland, Texas.

Bartlett – a four-star, 6-foot-3 forward in the Class of 2021 – revealed on her Twitter page that she committed to LSU where the standout of Houston Christian will join a recruiting class that includes four high school signees and a pair of transfers.

“Next chapter,” Bartlett proclaimed, wearing an LSU uniform superimposed over an LSU logo.

LSU released the signing of Bartlett on Monday.

“Amani’s size and skill set will allow her to contribute to our team in a variety of ways,” LSU head coach Kim Mulkey said in the school release . “We’re excited to have her join our Tiger basketball family!”

Mulkey had already secured signatures from graduate transfer and former Destrehan High graduate Moon Ursin and sophomore transfer Hannah Gusters – both of whom followed her from Baylor.

Mulkey said during a July 6 edition of Tiger Rag Radio that three of the six players (she didn’t say which ones) signed under former LSU coach Nikki Fargas would be part of her first roster in Baton Rouge.

Bartlett originally committed to Tennessee as a freshman in 2017 but later rescinded that pledge. She later committed to Syracuse (over LSU, Texas, Texas A&M, Houston, Florida State Oklahoma and SMU) where she signed during the NCAA’s early signing period last November. But with a recent coaching change that resulted in the resignation of Quentin Hillsman after 15 years and hiring Aug. 3 of Vonn Read as acting head coach, Bartlett announced she was reopening her process and was considering Auburn, Mississippi State, Texas Tech, Wake Forest and Kansas State before ultimately choosing LSU.

Bartlett is the No. 51st player in the ESPN HoopGurlz recruiting rankings and No. 12 rated forward. She’s regarded for her athleticism that enables her to run the floor extremely well and play defense where she once blocked 11 shots in a game.

Bartlett overcame an ACL injury during her junior season to reach the 1,000-point milestone in her career in January. She helped Houston Christian to the championship game of the 2020-21 season.

Going into her sophomore season Bartlett was rated the state’s No. 4 players by Dave Campbell’s Texas Basketball. She was named the Southwestern Preparatory Conference MVP and VYPE High School Sports Magazine that year.

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