Two more top girls basketball recruits in Texas are on the move and could be a part of the rash of transfers to UIL charter school Oak Cliff Faith Family Academy.
People with knowledge of each situation told The Dallas Morning News on Tuesday that five-star junior forward Amari Byles has left DeSoto and that four-star senior forward Joy Egbuna has left Mansfield Lake Ridge. Both are top-100 national recruits.
In a screen grab from a TikTok video, Byles and Egbuna are shown wearing Faith Family shirts, alongside other athletes from the school. Neither athlete responded to a message asking if they are now attending Faith Family.
Faith Family coach Andrea Robinson did not immediately respond to a phone message seeking comment.
The 6-2 Byles, an all-state selection and the District 11-6A MVP last season, is rated the third-best player in Texas and the No. 13 player in the nation in the Class of 2026 by ESPN’s HoopGurlz. Byles, who has reportedly received more than 40 college offers, averaged 17 points, 9.5 rebounds, 2.5 blocks, 4.5 steals and 3 assists for a 27-6 team that reached the Class 6A Region II final and was ranked No. 18 in the nation.
The 6-3 Egbuna is the No. 7 player in Texas and is rated the 100th-best recruit in the nation in the Class of 2025. She averaged 10.5 points and 14.2 rebounds for a 6A regional quarterfinalist team last season and has reported a slew of offers, including NCAA Tournament teams North Carolina, Ole Miss, Colorado, Louisville and Alabama.
The News had previously confirmed that six high-profile players have transferred to Faith Family, including two other top-100 national recruits — former Tennessee commit Finley Chastain from national champion Montverde Academy in Florida and Amayah “Sunshine” Garcia from DeSoto. Sisters Milania, Gianna, Natalia and Nadia Jordan from Southlake Carroll have also transferred to Faith Family after Milania and Gianna were all-state selections last season for a 6A regional semifinalist team.
Robinson, who won two state titles at both Fort Worth Dunbar and DeSoto, coached Byles and Garcia at DeSoto the last two seasons before announcing in late March that she was leaving DeSoto to become the head coach at Faith Family. Robinson was a state runner-up in 2023 and a regional finalist in 2024 with Byles and Garcia.
The University Interscholastic League prohibits students from transferring for athletic purposes, and Dallas-area coaches have voiced their concerns about the large number of transfers coming into Faith Family. Faith Family was 16-16 and lost in the third round of the 4A playoffs last season, and the UIL has moved Faith Family up to 5A for this season.
— UIL has been a mainstay in the Texas high school landscape since 1910. How does it work?
— With a school like Jesuit competing in UIL, why is the organization separate from TAPPS?
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