Chanel Jemmott plays way out of her league

February 7, 2022 Andy Furman

Chanel Jemmott. Photo courtesy of Brooklyn College

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Thank-you.

That’s what every Division I women’s college basketball coach is saying today — because they no longer have to face Chanel Jemmott.

After a year at Seton Hall, the 5-9 Jemmott transferred to Brooklyn College – a jump from Division I and the Big East – to Division III and the City University of New York Conference.

“I just wanted to come home,” she told the Eagle the other day. “I was homesick.”

What she left at Seton Hall was a full scholarship and intense competition.

“My mindset,” she said, “isn’t on competition. “My focus is to be the best player I can be.”

And she’s certainly on her way to achieving that goal.

In 2019-20 she led Brooklyn with a 15.5 points-per-game average along with 9.7 rebounds.

She led the City University of New York Athletic Conference (CUNYAC) in field-goal percentage (50.1) and was second in total blocks with 46.

On January 15, 2020 she scored her 1,000th career point.

This was just the beginning – yet her coach Alex Lang wasn’t really surprised.

“Chanel has proven herself to be one of the most talented players in the nation,” he said. “Aside from her tremendous list of accomplishments, she is a tremendous person and teammate and a pleasure to coach.”

The Chanel Jemmott road to basketball success started at Brooklyn’s Leon M. Goldstein High School where she led her team with a 21 point-per-game average as a senior while winning the team MVP award.

She was a four-year starter in high school who averaged 14 points as a sophomore and over 15 as a junior.

So why wouldn’t she want to play college basketball at the highest possible level?

“There’s not much of a difference in the competition,” she said, “the major difference is the intensity level.”

Chanel Jemmott shoots. Photo Courtesy of Brooklyn College

And perhaps that intensity, more than anything, separates Jemmott from the rest.

She was recently named CUNYAC Women’s Basketball Player of the Week— for the third time — and earned Weekly Honorable Mention accolades from the Metropolitan Basketball Writers Association.

You want some numbers?

She averaged nearly a double-double with 21.5 ppg and 9.5 rebounds in two recent wins – and against CCNY she scored 18 points and grabbed nine rebounds in 22 minutes in a win. Against York, she poured in 25 points with 10 rebounds.

Consistency might be the key – along with intensity, and of course athletic skill – that propels Chanel Jemmott.

She opened the season with a 30-point, 19-rebound effort in a 97-64 win over Rosemont in November.

The Bulldogs won the early-season Alvernia Tip-Off tournament, and haven’t looked back since.

The defending CUNYAC Champions — they won the title in 2020 and there was no 2020-21 season – accumulated a record of 256-100 since 2008-09.

In nine previous consecutive seasons, the Bulldogs have won 20-or-more games.

“The program,” says Lang, “has been one of the most successful women’s programs in the New York City metro area.”

Chanel Jemmott drives toward the basket. Photo Courtesy of Brooklyn College

Jemmott would have been a senior in 20-21 and although she’s already graduated, she returned this year as a Graduate Student to play her final season of eligibility.

So, what’s next?

“After I finish this season,” she said, “I’d like to play professional basketball overseas.”

Before that she has a softball season to conquer – again.

She’s a three-year member of Brooklyn’s softball team.

“The first time I ever played softball,” said the Business Administration/Marketing major, “was at Brooklyn College.”

Division One women’s college basketball may be in Chanel Jemmott’s rear-view mirror – which makes those coaches very happy – but a professional basketball career just might be at the next exit.

“Anything is possible,” she says.

And she’s already proved that.

Andy Furman is a Fox Sports Radio national talk show host. Previously, he was a scholastic sports columnist for the Brooklyn Eagle. He may be reached at: [email protected] Twitter: @AndyFurmanFSR