Entering the 2020-21 high school basketball season, Ashlon Jackson was already used to having all the attention on her.
She’s been the highest-recruited girls player in Southeast Texas as long as she can remember. Her first two high school seasons lived up to the hype, as she quickly became a star, not just locally, but nationally, putting up stellar numbers and helping turn Hardin-Jefferson’s program into a powerhouse.
That’s why before her junior season began this past winter, Jackson made a decision to prioritize different parts of her game that might otherwise go unnoticed, like leadership and sharing the basketball. The new focus fueled Jackson’s efforts this season as the Beaumont Enterprise Super Gold Girls Player of the Year.
“I think I matured and realized that I didn’t need to go out and score 20 or 30 points every game,” said Jackson, a Duke University commit. “My focus was just playing all-around basketball and doing what my team needed to win.”
Hardin-Jefferson certainly did a lot of winning this season.
The Hawks went 29-1, with their only loss coming to Canyon in the Class 4A state title game. Jackson was the main cog in that success, averaging 22.6 points, 5.8 assists, 4.6 rebounds and 4.9 steals per game.
An even bigger contribution might have been Jackson’s ability to bring the team together. Every Hawk was held accountable, and it started with Jackson.
“No one got their feelings hurt,” Jackson said. “And if I was hanging my head, they got on me quick, too. That’s just how it was. It’s a sisterhood.”
Jackson committed to Duke in early January, choosing the Blue Devils over a top-five list that also included the University of Conneticut, Oregon, Stanford and Louisville.
She described the recruiting process as “bananas” and eventually committed to Blue Devils coach Kara Lawson on a Zoom call.
“I just couldn’t find anything wrong with the school or the program,” Jackson said of Duke.
“Everyone was just going crazy when I told them.”
After the 56-55 loss to Canyon in the title game, Jackson took a week off then got right back to work for her playing for her AAU team, SA Finest. This will be her last summer playing for the team as she prepares for an important senior year.
“I want to win a state championship and be a McDonald’s All American, so there’s still a lot of work left to do,” Jackson said.
mfaye@beaumontenterprise.com
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