Courtney Blakely exemplifies what it means to be a top-notched point guard; through her steadfast leadership, her skillset, and her ability to be that floor general at an elite level.

Today we were honored to interview Hammond Bishop Noll’s 2021 Courtney Blakely. She is strong, resilient, fierce, determined, compassionate and loyal. She cares about her teammates, her AAU program, High School program, and most importantly her relationship with God. After watching Blakely this summer, talking with several people at her high school and in the community, I can boldly state that she is the total package both on the court and in the classroom. This summer she was a high level distributor on the offensive end and makes the right pass putting her teammates in great postions to score. She has a great handle and a variety of change of pace moves.

Today though, let’s move on to the interview.

World Exposure: Let’s get things started by getting to know you a little bit.
Courtney Blakely: Sounds Good.

World Exposure: When did you started playing basketball?
Courtney Blakely: I started playing when I was two years old. I always remember having a basketball around and I would pick it up and play with it.

World Exposure: Any College programs you watched growing up that you wanted to go to and play?
Courtney Blakely: I wanted to play for UConn, that was my favorite team when I was younger.

World Exposure: Most memorable moment that you had as a player?
Courtney Blakely: In 7th grade we lost in the championship game and the following year we won the championship. In the game I made two half court shots and one was a buzzer beater to win the Championship.

World Exposure: Tell us about your relationship with your mother. She was a great player at Iowa and went on to play in the WNBA, what are some things that you picked up from her to help improve you as a player? 
Courtney Blakely: She gives me tips on how to finish at the rim and when get into the paint by attacking. Also, she gives me tips on how to be an elite player and picked up her work ethic for sure and coachability.  

World Exposure: What AAU program do you play for?
Courtney Blakely: An EYBL team called Midwest Elite

World Exposure: What is your favorite tournament?
Courtney Blakely: Nike Nationals in Chicago

World Exposure: What are some of your strengths?
Courtney Blakely: Going to the basket and finishing wither either hand or passing it to my teammates.

World Exposure: What do you think you improved on during the summer?
Courtney Blakely: My shot. The ability to knock down 3pt shots if defenders decided to go under ball screens or left me open on the perimeter by stepping off of me because of my 1st step.

World Exposure: Do you consider yourself a true point guard?
Courtney Blakely: Yes. I absolutely love playing this position and the opportunity to be a leader on the court and to be an extension of the Head Coach.

World Exposure: When do you think you started getting into your own. 
Courtney Blakely: I would say last year as a sophomore even though I had some big scoring performances my freshman year. I think my sophomore I was more consistent with my performances and leadership.  

World Exposure: What are some of your current accolades that you have?
Courtney Blakely: I was named All-Conference, All-State 2017-18 (17.3 ppg, 3.7 apg, 3.5 rpg, and 3.4 spg), IBCA Small School All-State 2018-2019, All- Area, IBCA Top 100, and a candidate for Junior IN All-Stars. I helped lead my team to a Greater Shore Conference Title and to a Class 2A regional final.

World Exposure: What are some of your individual goals for this year?
Courtney Blakely: Becoming a 2, 000 point scorer, as of right now I am sitting at 1,020 total points. Also, I want to be named Supreme 15 All-State and Junior IN All-Star.

World Exposure: What are some of your goals for your team this year?
Courtney Blakely: Helping my team win the State Title.

World Exposure: What do you love about playing at your High School? 
Courtney Blakely: The coaching staff, my teammates, and the fans are very supporting. The coaches push us to become better people and players and allows us to work through mistakes.

World Exposure: Tell me about your current GPA and intended Major?
Courtney Blakely: Currently I have a 3.7 GPA and my intended major is accounting/ Finance. 

World Exposure: What other schools are showing you a lot of interest?
Courtney Blakely: Georgetown, Texas Tech, North Carolina State, Indiana State, Minnesota, and Iowa

World Exposure: What schools have you taken unofficial visits too?  
Courtney Blakely: I have taken visits to Michigan and Iowa

World Exposure: How did your visit go to Michigan?
Courtney Blakely: I really enjoyed the players and coaching staff. They were extremely nice and the atmosphere for the football game was amazing.

World Exposure: What other schools would you like to visit? 
Courtney Blakely: I would really like to visit Cincinnati, Notre Dame, Duke, South Carolina, Oregon, Tennessee, and Baylor but I would not rule out any schools that have interest in me.  

World Exposure: Are you in a rush to make decision on your future school?
Courtney Blakely: Not really. I just want to a part of a winning program that pushes their players to be their very best on and off the court.

World Exposure: What will a Division 1 program going to get when you arrive on campus? 
Courtney Blakely: They are going to get a player that is going to do anything they can to help the team win, a good student, a driven player that is self-motivated to learn and achieve greatness.

World Exposure: What are some of your future goals after college?
Courtney Blakely: I would like to play in the WNBA and overseas, then do something with accounting. 

World Exposure: If there is one thing in the world that you can change, what would it be?
Courtney Blakely: My relationship with God is very important to me and if I could change anything in the world it would be some people’s perspective about the church. It would be to lead them to experience that church is not a boring place, but it’s a fun place and exciting.

More about Courtney Blakely
Favorite Food: pepperoni pizza from Tomato Bar Restaurant
Music: Whitney Houston's I Wanna Dance With Somebody
What do you like to do outside of basketball? I really like to go roller skating, watching the Blacklist, and reading The Naturals. 
If you could go anywhere in the world, where would you go? Hawaii.