There is no shortage of outstanding news on Imani Tilford. Since our 2014 feature, the 5’ 5” point guard has been seasoned by two years on the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets, but let’s not get ahead of ourselves.
Before making a name for herself in Georgia, Tilford hailed from Woodlands High School, ranking 67th in Elite Prospect’s top 100 players in ’14, 24th-highest point-guard recruit by ESPN Hoopgurlz, and graduating as the all-time leading scorer of her high school, accounting for both boys and girls, with 1,789 points.
Now, Tilford has proven her ability, having started in all 33 games of the 2015-’16 Yellow Jacket season, while balancing the course load of Tech’s Literature, Media, and Communications program.
“Coming from high school, the intensity of college is a big step up,” says Tilford. “But with tutoring sessions and library hours, it’s very manageable.”
Back in ’14, Tilford wanted to work on both her left-hand dexterity and her pull-up jump shots before hitting the Atlantic Coast Conference the subsequent year. Her practice has paid off, no doubt, as he increased her per-game scoring from 1.7 points to 4.7 her sophomore year. She also leads the Jackets with 61 steals, and is one of four players on the team with 60-plus assists.
As Georgia Tech stood at 7th place this past season, Tilford and her team have no shortage of fans. But every athlete needs her personal devotees, Tilford makes sure to recognize hers, who happen to be her family. “My mom, my uncles, and my cousins,” she confirms. “They come every game that they can make it to.”
