After Duke commitment, 5-star Emilee Skinner focused on 3-peat with Ridgeline

LEHI — For most people, Kara Lawson is a former two-time All-American at Tennessee, a WNBA All-Star and league champion, and an Olympic gold medalist.

But for Ridgeline senior Emilee Skinner, Lawson is just "coach Kara" — and she can't wait for that title to be cemented.

The five-star Duke signee dropped 19 points, 12 rebounds and three assists with her soon-to-be head coach looking on in a 50-38 win over Riverdale Ridge (Colorado) in Friday's Holiday Hoopfest at Lehi High.

One day later, Skinner poured in 17 points with 20 rebounds, seven assists, five steals and three blocks as the Riverhawks built up a 21-8 lead early and cruised past Perry (Arizona) 57-26 to improve to 8-0 on the season.

In between the two games, Skinner sat in the stands at Lehi High with her soon-to-be college coach, talking ball and picking her brain like two longtime friends.

"Right off the bat, me and coach Kara connected in a lot of different ways," Skinner told KSL.com. "She's done a lot in her career, coached at the highest level and played at the highest level. It's a great way to go in, where she can be my mentor and challenge me. My teammates there are great, too; I'm excited to play with everyone.

"But she's also just a person, at the end of the day," the five-star combo guard added of Lawson. "He's really fun to talk to and pick her brain. She's really smart."

For Skinner, the No. 7-rated player nationally in the Class of 2025 by ESPN, committing to and eventually signing with the Blue Devils was the relief that followed a whirlwind recruiting tour.

Lawson played a key role in luring the commitment of the coveted five-star prospect by 247Sports to Durham, North Carolina, especially after the two USA Basketball alums connected early in the process.

"I really like her as a person," Lawson said of Skinner, whom she called one of the top playmakers in the 2025 class while noting her athleticism both on offense and defense. "We connected really early in the recruiting process and grew closer as the process went on. I think I have a great feel for what motivates her and inspires her. I'm really looking forward to coaching her each day and looking forward to our years together."

The 6-foot combo guard from Millville chose Duke over offers from Notre Dame, TCU, UCLA and Iowa, among others, and can now focus on her final goals of her high school career.

Most notably, the two-time 4A state champion and tournament MVP says, is the chance to run it back with a three-peat.

"I was really happy just to have it all finished going into my senior year so that I could really enjoy it and not have to worry about all the other stuff," said Skinner, who is averaging 25.6 points, 6.9 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 4.3 steals per game to start her senior campaign.

Skinner can score at all three levels. But she takes extra pride on defense, with active hands and tipped balls that she can convert into transition buckets on the other end like she did twice in the fourth quarter against Riverdale Ridge to help turn a 3-point lead with four minutes to go into a 12-point win.

"She's got great size, great vision and is a very high percentage 3-point shooter," Lawson said. "Her size and athleticism fit well into how we want to defend. On top of all that, she wants to be really good. That may seem like an empty compliment, because of course everyone wants to be good. But through her actions she shows she wants to be good.

Added Skinner: "I don't like people to score on me. It's good to put pressure on them and make them feel uncomfortable. We get a lot of turnovers. I think the more pressure we put on defense, it helps us in transition and to get the offense going."

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