DURHAM, N.C. — Head coach Trisha Stafford-Odom has announced the commitment of six recruits to play basketball and study at North Carolina Central University in 2022-23, including Kimeira Burks, Kimia Carter, Tanyia Gordon, Jerni Kiaku, Chukwudima Okoh and Teneil Robertson.
 
NCCU's newcomers feature five transfers from a trio of Florida colleges and one high school player who signed her National Letter of Intent (NLI) to play with the Eagles.
 
NC Central Women's Basketball Recruits (alphabetical)…
 
Kimeira Burks is a 5-8 guard transfer from Chicago, Illinois. Burks is coming to NCCU after playing last season at Daytona State College, where she averaged 11.8 points, 3.7 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game. Burks was named First Team All-Central Conference as she ranked in the top-25 of the FCSAA in scoring and top-20 in 3-point field goal percentage (27.3%). For the Falcons, Burks reached double-digit points in 15 games, including a season-high 20 points twice. Burks began her collegiate career at University of Illinois Chicago, where she played in all 30 games as a freshman, including 28 starts and averaged 7.9 points, 4.2 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 1.0 assists per game.
 
Burks played prep basketball at both Harlan and Kenwood High Schools. She was a team captain and was first team all-state and all-conference while also advancing to the state championship game.
 
"Kimeira is a strong shooting guard with range to envy and the skill set to create better shots for herself and others," said Stafford-Odom. "She is an aggressive rebounder and a fearless defender. We will be a more potent offensive team with 'Mera' on the floor, because her defender should never help."
 
Kimia Carter is a 5-10 guard transfer from Chattanooga, Tennessee. She was an ASUN All-Freshman Team honoree as a rookie in 2019-20 at Stetson University before playing 12 games last season at Florida Atlantic University. Carter was named ASUN Freshman of the Week four times for the Hatters as she played in all 30 games and averaged 8.9 points, 2.4 rebounds and 1.3 assists per game that campaign. At FAU, Carter bucketed an average 5.8 points per game in her dozen contests, including a career-high 21 points against Alabama A&M University. She shot 43.8-percent from the field, including 45.5-percent from three-point distance with the Owls.
 
Carter averaged 31.2 points per game as a senior at Brainerd High School and was a finalist for the Tennessee Miss Basketball award (Class AA) as an all-district and all-region honoree. She scored over 2,000 points in her prep career and was a member of the National Honor Society and SGA.
 
"Kimia comes to us, experienced and packaged with undeniable scoring ability," said Stafford-Odom. "She is a big, agile guard with impressive footwork. Watching opponents plot defensive schemes for Kimia will be entertaining."
 
Tanyia Gordon is a 5-10 forward transfer from Plant City, Florida. She garnered First Team All-Central Conference honors last season at Daytona State College after ranking second on the team in scoring and rebounding. Gordon shot 66.1-percent from the field on the way to 11.9 points per game, while also averaging 5.6 rebounds and a team-best 3.7 steals per game. Her 81 steals for the Falcons led the FCSAA. She also had game-high totals of 20 points, 15 rebounds and eight assists last season.
 
Gordon started her collegiate career at Florida Atlantic University, where she played a total of 30 games for the Owls and averaged 5.1 points and 3.0 rebounds per game. She was a FHSAA All-State Team honoree at Tampa Catholic High School.
 
"Tanyia's ceiling is set high with great reason," said Stafford-Odom. "The maturity of her game and her elite athleticism will be the reason she is our stat leader in a few different categories. The swiftness in which TG shifts from defense to offense is a beautiful thing."
 
Jerni Kiaku is a 5-7 guard from Garner, North Carolina. In her accomplished prep career as a four-year team captain at Garner Magnet High School, Kiaku accumulated numerous awards including three-time conference player of the year, four-time first team all-conference and three-time all-district. Kiaku averaged 24.4 points, 5.1 assists, 4.1 steals and 2.9 rebounds per game as a senior and is the all-time career points leader for the Trojans with 2,240 points. She collected State Championship Most Outstanding Player honors while leading her team to an Eastern Regional championships and a 4A state championship runner-up finish in 2021. Kiaku is also a four-time academic all-conference honoree and Beta Club member.
 
"Jerni holds megastar status," said Stafford-Odom. "She plays the game to dominate both sides of the court and is one of the subtlest and humble threats I have ever had on my roster. She is torch-like fast with offensive pace, and comes with a winning mentality."
 
Chukwudima "Blessing" Okoh is a 5-11 forward from Houston, Texas. Okoh has played the last two seasons at Daytona State College and has averaged 6.0 points, 5.9 rebounds, 1.2 blocks and 1.0 steals per game over those 31 total games with a collegiate career shooting percentage of 63.3-percent. Okoh, who was selected to the NJCAA All-Star Game, has game-highs of 18 points, 13 rebounds and four blocks.
 
Okoh was a 40-percent field-goal shooter in her prep playing days at Cypress Lakes High School.
 
"The luxury of adding such versatility on the floor instantly elevates our winning appeal," said Stafford-Odom. "Blessing's length and mobility will help close gaps in our defense and create matchup problems when it's our time to attack."
 
Teneil Robertson is a 5-4 guard transfer from Chicago, Illinois. Robertson will be joining the Eagles after playing three seasons at Stetson University. In her time with the Hatters, Robertson, who earned ASUN Honor Roll prestige, saw action in 78 games and accumulated 287 points, 222 rebounds, 112 assists and 60 steals.
 
In high school, Robertson was first team all-city, first team all-conference and second team all-state at Harlan High School, and was part of a state runner-up finish. She played her senior season at Phillips Academy and she won an AAU national championship in 2018 with the Illinois X-citement.
 
"Toughness and tenacity define Teneil," said Stafford-Odom. "The confidence she plays with comes from her physical ability to punish defenders and get to her preferred spots on the court. The game experience 'Tippy' has and her willingness to vocalize her commands will prove beneficial in enhancing our on-court flow."