Florida State women’s basketball picks up commitment from Mariana Valenzuela

Florida State has added a second player to the 2021 class. Mariana Valenzuela from Mazatlan, Mexico by way of Montverde Academy has chosen to play her college ball in Tallahassee. Valenzuela is a 6’2 forward who is ranked 95th overall (19th forward) in the 2021 class by ESPN’s HoopGurlz.

Valenzuela has an excellent offensive game down-low featuring impressive moves in the post along with a soft jumper to keep the defense honest. However, her best skill may be her rebounding. Valenzuela is a serious glass eater who is capable of posting double-doubles on a regular basis. In the 2019 FIBA U16 Americas Championship Valenzuela averaged 13.3 points and 15.3 rebounds for Mexico. In six games she had four double-doubles including a pair of over 20 rebound games. She followed that up in the 2019 Centrobasket U17 Championship averaging 14.4 points and 11.4 rebounds. Valenzuela notched double-doubles in all five games with her best effort coming against Barbados putting up 20 points and 12 boards in only 15 minutes.

Valenzuela joins fellow 4-star Makayla Timpson in FSU’s 2021 class. This is an impressive recruiting bounce back for Florida State. Two weeks ago the Seminoles had gone almost two calendar years without securing a commitment from a high school player. Now the Noles have a pair of top 100 prospects at a position of need. New coach Ivey Slaughter will certainly have some real talent to work with in her return to Tallahassee.