NEWTON, N.C. — Although 2020 has been a crazy time for everyone, former Newton-Conover High School standout basketball player Chyna Cornwell began the year leading her squad to an eventual North Carolina High School Athletic Association 2A state championship, and now she is ending it with a new experience. This time, it is at the Division I collegiate level.
Cornwell had a career year as the forward/center for the Lady Red Devils’ varsity basketball team as she posted 26.2 points per game, along with 16.7 rebounds and 1.6 blocks per game. She also joined the 2,000 point and 2,000 rebound club for an individual career (2,631 points and 2,143 rebounds).
This outing led her to become the North Carolina Basketball Coaches Association State Girls Player of the Year. She would also become the District 10 POTY twice (2019-20). Among her other high accolades were a 4-time All-South Fork 2A Conference selection, as well as the conference’s POTY in back-to-back seasons (2019-20).
She was also an NCBCA All-State first team selection for three consecutive seasons (2018-20) while playing on varsity all four years of high school. She finished her career as a multiple time conference champion and was crowned conference tournament Most Valuable Player thrice (2018-20).
Cornwell was North Carolina Miss Basketball, as well as the Charlotte Observer Player of the Year in 2020. Furthermore, she became the Associated Press’ State Girls Basketball Player of the Year during her senior campaign in 2020, along with back-to-back AP All-State selections (2019-20).
She was also a McDonald’s All-American nominee, among many more accolades she attained over the years that sum up her level of play.
Cornwell was recruited by several big name D-1 schools and was touted as a 4-star recruit. She was the No. 60 player on the ESPN Top 100 and ranked No. 14 nationally at the forward position. Some of the programs she considered attending included: Duke, N.C State, the University of Miami, Wake Forest, Boston College and Rutgers (signed her letter of intent to play here on November 18, 2019).
Flash forward to the beginning of December, and Cornwell has officially competed in her first collegiate basketball game on Nov. 27, having appeared in scarlet red instead of her previous shade.
The Scarlet Knights (1-0) opened up its 2020-21 season with a home win over Monmouth, 83-38. As for Cornwell — the 6’3” freshman forward — she was in a position she had not been accustomed to while a member of the Lady Red Devils.
She did not appear in this contest until the end of the second quarter, and she only played seven minutes overall. This didn’t matter to Cornwell, though, as she was happy with the opportunity given by legendary head coach C. Vivian Stringer.
“That moment (when I entered) in particular was definitely something I won’t forget,” she said. “It felt amazing to step foot on the court, and I felt extremely blessed to be in that position.
“The transition (from high school) has been pretty tough overall but definitely a great experience. The pace of the game, practices, just everything overall is much more faster, efficient and on point. There were some moments where it took time to adjust to Coach Stringer’s practices and expectations, but everything is starting to fall in place now.”
She said that the process of getting to know her teammates on the court has been tough, but she said that she learns something new about them every single day and vice versa.
“The COVID-19 pandemic…took away a lot of time for my team to get to know each other better on and off the court, but the process so far hasn’t been frustrating and it’s going pretty well,” said Cornwell.
“I learn something new every day in practice, and (it) can be something as little like moving faster on a 2-3 defense and why I need to move faster. The coaching staff overall wants every girl individually to learn something new every day when they step on the practice court. For the past 3 months, I am proud to say I’ve learned so much about myself and the game of basketball.”
Cornwell added that her teammates, especially the upperclassmen, gives the team talks about other squads in the Big Ten Conference and what the coaches expect out of them in specific drills and game-time situations.
“I’ve set a lot of goals for myself over the summer and during the course of being here in New Jersey as (a) college athlete, but the most important goal is to become a better basketball player, (to) earn and work hard for everything I’ve prayed for,” she said.
Cornwell has a chance to mold into an even more special player because she has the motor and the support behind her to do so. She will have a chance to continue her development in the Scarlet Knights’ Big Ten Conference opener on Dec. 11 on the road against Wisconsin.
