For Lyons Township High School rising senior Nora Ezike, new Stanford University women’s college basketball head coach Kate Paye represented a new recruiting opportunity. The 6-foot-2 standout forward already was receiving serious interest from numerous NCAA Division I programs, yet it wasn’t until May that she was contacted by the Cardinal after Paye was promoted to head coach on April 16.
“I was thinking about that school, so I was definitely excited when I first got that text,” Ezike said. By June, she had visited the California school and verbally committed officially on July 10.
On the coaching staff the past 17 seasons for recently retired longtime head coach Tara VanDerveer, Paye, 50, played for Stanford’s 1992 national championship team and was an associate head coach for the 2021 national championship team.
“I loved the campus. It was really big and I was actually surprised. I didn’t know it was the second-largest campus in the world [in land area],” Ezike said. “I loved the coaching staff. They were super-nice. I just liked everything they said and really allowed Stanford to speak for itself because Stanford is such an amazing basketball program, along with an amazing academic institution.”
Ezike was named to the IBCA Class 4A third-team all-state team this past season after averaging 15.9 points and 8.4 rebounds in helping the Lions to a third straight 4A regional title. The two-year starter and two-time All-West Suburban Conference Silver Division player was promoted to varsity midway through her freshman year.
Her single-game performances of 31 points against Glenbard West this past season and 18 rebounds against York as a sophomore are the No. 2 and 4 highest single-game performances in program history. She also has eight double-doubles.
“I call her the generational player for LT. We don’t come by athletes like Nora very often,” LTHS girls basketball head coach Meghan Hutchens said.
With three national titles and 15 Final Four appearances, Stanford is the most prominent Division I program ever to successfully recruit an LTHS player. The Lions have gone downstate four times with top-four state trophies in 1992 and 1993.
Besides her combination of height and quickness, Ezike possesses the ability to drive, dominate inside, rebound and shoot from the outside, including 13 threes last season.
“She’s developed her game both inside and outside, her explosive play to the basket,” Hutchens said. “What I’m most excited about this year is she just gets to play free. She knows where she’s playing [in college]. The pressure is off. I’ve told her, ‘You can just make your name, leave your legacy [at LTHS] however you wish.’ ”
Ezike had a great offseason with the Lions’ summer team with several other varsity returnees, such as rising juniors Emma O’Brien, who has already received two DI offers, and Gwen Smith.
When the Lions played at Batavia in the Windmill City Weekend Shootout, June 13-15, Paye could not have extensive personal contact with Ezike but watched all day and spoke at length with Hutchens.
“I always feel I’ve liked younger coaches because of the more energy I feel they have,” Ezike said. “I think [Paye] brings a lot of energy to the team, which is really nice. When I was on my visit, we talked a lot while watching a weight room workout. I was asking her questions and she was answering really openly, which was what I enjoyed.”
She didn’t start AAU play until joining M14Hoops Chicagoland after her freshman year. She was moved up to the 16-and-under team that first season and began receiving interest. Her current 17U teammates include numerous DI recruits.
Ezike also has benefitted from the basketball IQ of Stanley Boateng, her uncle.
“He’s been my trainer since the beginning and always encouraged me to work on my shot and downhill moves,” Ezike said.
“When we train for our [AAU] season, we also do a lot of personal work. Playing for M14 at that fast pace, I’d say they get you college ready.”
She is interested in majoring in finance after first considering pre-med. Her parents plan to watch as many games as possible. Many of her mother’s relatives were raised in California and live near Los Angeles, about a one-hour flight from Stanford.