Jamya Miller has had hopes and dreams of one day playing college basketball.
Last week, she turned that dream into reality when she signed a letter of intent to attend Salem University in Salem, West Virginia, and play basketball.
“I just thought it was the best fit for me,” the Seymour High School senior said. “They play fast-paced, and I like that.”
Salem is an NCAA Division II school. Cody Gilmore is the women’s basketball head coach.
Miller said she hasn’t had a chance to visit the campus, but she did a virtual tour.
She played one year of AAU basketball in 2020. Most of her teammates were from Indianapolis.
“It helped me get more comfortable with handling the ball, handling more pressure because there is a lot of pressure in AAU,” she said.
Owls head coach Jason Longmeier said Salem is going to be happy with the type of kid they are getting.
“They’re getting a hard worker. They’re getting somebody who has really come a long way in the last two or three years in her game,” he said of Miller.
He said her quickness on defense is definitely her strong point.
“I thought defensively, she was one of the better players we’ve had here since I’ve been here, especially when it comes to locking down her man and being able to take care of that part of the game,” he said. “Defensively, she has been tremendous.”
Miller said she likes playing man-to-man defense and pressing.
“I guarded the person bringing the ball up. I tried to force her one direction,” she said of her time playing for the Owls.
Offensively, Longmeier said Miller kept getting better.
“At the beginning of her career, we thought she struggled to score the basketball, but as she continued to work, she was able to get to the rim a lot more and had some confidence knocking down shots,” he said. “Her ball handling is really solid when she has confidence with it, and the more practice she puts into that and the more she gets out there and gets to hone those skills, I think that will be a big plus for her, as well.”
Miller, who will be a point guard for Salem, said she always looks for the open teammate, but she also likes driving to the basket. Her high-point game last winter was scoring eight against Greenwood, and she scored seven against Jennings County in the sectional.
She said she improved her outside shooting.
“At first, I wasn’t comfortable with it, but now, I’m better at shooting outside shots,” she said.
Miller said she liked the family atmosphere of playing with the Owls.
“I liked that we were like a team and we did everything together,” she said.
Longmeier said Miller played a big part in what the Owls accomplished the past couple of years, and he expects her to contribute at the next level.
“I think they’ll be happy with what they’re getting,” he said. “She is a kid that is going to come in and work hard to continue to get her skills the way they need to be in order to help them.”