Ja Morant's Sister Niya Hoops Just Like Her Big Brother, Commits To Terrible HBCU Program

As Ja Morant continues to grab headlines, his sister Teniya 'Niya' Morant made her college decision on late Wednesday night. She is headed to the SWAC and will play for Mississippi Valley State University.

Niya, a 5-foot-7 guard, did not receive a lot of offers out of high school. The Delta Devils were the first to offer her, and Grambling State made a big push down the stretch.

In the end, though, Niya decided that the first school was the right school.

Mississippi Valley State will be thrilled to have such a prominent name on the court for both notoriety, and talent. She is joining a team that was absolutely terrible last season.

The school is located in Itta Bena, Mississippi, right in the heart of the Delta, hence the name.

(Google Maps)

Its women's basketball team went 2-27 during the 2022/23 season — with one of those two wins coming against 900-student Tougaloo College, an NAIA program. Their only D-I win came against New Orleans (which won just eight games) by four in overtime and they went an imperfect 0-18 in conference play.

They won just four games in both 2021/22 and 2020/21, and won just 10 games combined in the three years before that. Yikes.

Niya Morant will hope to be the Devilettes' much-needed spark.

Both Jamie and Tee Morant hooped in college, and their athletic gene pool led their children to do the same. The two siblings play with very similar style.

Niya's game looks a lot like Ja's. She averaged 11.7 points, 1.5 steals and 4.7 rebounds per game at Houston High School in Germantown (Memphis), Tennessee last season and her highlight tape is saucy.

Niya plays with a lot of grit and emotion, while dicing up defenses and finishing hard through contact. Sound familiar?

Ja played his college basketball at Murray State and went on to be drafted No. 2 overall. Niya is headed to Mississippi Valley, which isn't quite the same as her brother's former mid-major program, but comes with the same path.

She will have to show out at a program that doesn't often get looks to one day play in the WNBA. And in the age of the transfer portal, Niya may not stay in the Delta for more than a year or two.

Regardless of how things play out, Niya is going to be a big part of a roster that was not only abysmal last season, but returns just six players. She likely slates to be in the starting lineup right away!