Pitt target William Jeffress named Player of the Year by Erie Times-News

Pitt target William Jeffress was named the District 10 Boys Basketball Player of the Year by the Erie Times-News on Sunday. The honor followed a season in which the 6’7”, 195-pound forward became McDowell High School’s all-time scoring leader with 1,673 career points and concluded what the newspaper called “one of the top careers in Erie County history.”

During his last campaign with the Trojans, Jeffress averaged 24.4 points per game and led the team to the district championship game and the PIAA Class 6A quarterfinals. However, the PIAA tournament was canceled before it could reach its conclusion in order to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.

Jeffress received all-district, all-region and all-state honors on multiple occasions during a three-year high school career in which his scoring average never fell below 21.0 points per game. And in addition to his prolific scoring, Jeffress became well known for his leadership, defensive prowess, rebounding and reliable free-throw shooting.

The McDowell product was considered a consensus four-star recruit and one of the top 100 prospects in the 2021 class prior to reclassifying to 2020. Pitt coach Jeff Capel has prioritized Jeffress for more than a year, and his efforts paid off in February, as the Erie native included Pitt among his 10 finalists.

Now, a college decision from Jeffress is in the offing, but no exact date has been set. Tom Reisenweber of the Erie Times-News noted that Jeffress will make a decision “in the upcoming weeks.” And Corey Evans of Rivals reported on April 8 that Jeffress “should be committed by the end of the month.”