Alabama women's basketball commit Ace Austin named MaxPreps state player of the year

Alabama women's basketball commit and Spring Garden standout Ace Austin was named the MaxPreps Girls Basketball Player of the Year for Alabama on Tuesday.

Austin earned the award after averaging 20.2 points, 7.2 rebounds, 7.1 assists and 3.5 steals per contest. She led the Panthers back to the state title game before pouring on 35 points in a 60-31 win over Marion County last week. She scored 57 points with 22 rebounds, 11 assists and nine steals over two games in the AHSAA Final Four, as the Panthers repeated.

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Austin has helped lead the Panthers to three basketball titles in five seasons and added a volleyball title this fall. She earned Gadsden Times All-area for volleyball for her efforts. For her career, Austin has scored 2,958 points to go with 1,076 rebounds and 1,188 assists. She is one of five players in the AHSAA history to go over 1,000 assists.

Austin committed to the Crimson Tide before starting the basketball season, a week after coach Kristy Curry was in attendance for the state volleyball finals. Ace, a junior, will sign with the Crimson Tide during the next signing period and will enroll ahead of the 2025-26 season.

On the boys side, Caleb Holt, a sophomore from Buckhorn, took home the honor from MaxPreps. He averaged 20.2 points with 9.5 rebounds while leading the Bucks to a repeat title over Mountain Brook in Class 6A. Holt is a target for Alabama and Auburn basketball.

Maxwell Donaldson covers high school sports and Jacksonville State athletics for the Gadsden Times. Find him on Twitter/X @_Max_Donaldson and contact him atMDonaldson@gannett.com.