Haylen Ayers, the No. 1 shooting guard in the nation in the Class of 2027, is set to announce her college decision on Monday night.

Will it be the UConn Huskies or Vanderbilt Commodores? Will she choose a historically great program or to stay in her home state?

Amid the pursuit by some of the best women’s basketball programs in the nation, Ayers whittled her list of finalists to just UConn and Vanderbilt in August, despite not having made an official visit to either campus.

Ayers initially had designated five finalists: UConn, Vanderbilt and fellow Southeastern Conference schools Texas and Kentucky, and Duke of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

She visited Vanderbilt on Oct. 24 and UConn last weekend.

Her commitment – to somewhere – was expected in this time frame, with the early signing period open just from Nov. 11 to 18.Hayken

The 247Sports composite lists Ayers as the No. 1 shooting guard, the top player in Tennessee and overall No. 3 in the nation. In the latter category, her name stands just behind those of point guard Kaleena Smith from Southern California and Ivanna Wilson-Manyacka, a small forward from Potomac, Md., who plays at The Bullis School.

Both Smith and Wilson-Manyacka are listed as 5-star prospects, just like Ayers, a 6-foot-1 guard who plays at the University School of Jackson. They both are No. 1 at their positions.

Wilson-Manyacka has UConn on her list of five finalists. The Huskies already have signed Sydney Savoury from Belleville. Mich., listed by the composite as the No. 2 shooting guard and No. 5 overall player in the 2027 class.

Ayers was a member of the 2026 FIBA U18 Women's AmeriCup team that beat Canada to win the AmeriCup tournament in Irapuato, Mexico, in June. She averaged 8.2 points, 4.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists per game over five games.

The Tennessee Secondary School Athletic Association named Ayers the state’s “Miss Basketball” in Division II-A for each of the past two seasons, and as a sophomore, she earned Gatorade Girls Basketball Player of the Year for Tennessee.

Ayers’ mother, then known as Ashley McElhiney, also was a Tennessee Gatorade Girls Basketball Player of the Year following the 1998-99 season. Ashley went to Vanderbilt and played in 132 games over four seasons (1999-2003). The point guard averaged 8.3 points and 5.1 assists in 132 games.

A commitment from Ayers would be enormous for Vanderbilt, which is coached by Shea Ralph, who comes from Auriemma’s coaching tree. She played at UConn from 1996 to 2001, winning a national championship as a junior, then was an assistant coach for 13 seasons.

From 1986 to 2014, Vanderbilt was a perennial women’s NCAA Tournament team, missing just two March Madnesses before beginning an unimpressive stretch. The Commodores didn’t make the tournament again until the 2024 event in Ralph’s third season.

She has a coaching record of 106-64 and is leading a program that is on the rise.

Should she choose Vanderbilt, she would create a family tradition with her mother, and there is something special about that.

The current Vanderbilt roster has no players from Tennessee. Ayers would be welcomed warmly immediately. And with Vanderbilt located about two hours from her current school, extended family members and friends would have a chance to watch her play.

What basketball-obsessed boy or girl doesn’t dream at least once about playing in the Basketball Capital of the World? Given that the school is on the short list, Ayers certainly has.

UConn can offer something no other school has: a legacy of championships – a dozen in all. The Huskies are watched closely by WNBA teams because of the program’s ability to send pro-ready players to the league.

The WNBA concluded its 30th WNBA season two weeks ago when the Golden State Valkyries won their first title – with four former Huskies on the roster.

UConn is the leader in first-round draft picks with 29 all-time.

The other schools in the top 10?

Tennessee, 21; Stanford and South Carolina, 15; Duke, 12; UCLA, Baylor and Notre Dame, 11; Maryland, 10; North Carolina and LSU, nine.

No school has produced more No. 1 overall picks than UConn’s seven: Sue Bird (2002, Seattle Storm), Diana Taurasi (2004, Phoenix Mercury), Tina Charles (2010, Connecticut Sun), Maya Moore (2011, Minnesota Lynx), Breanna Stewart (2016, Seattle Storm), Paige Bueckers (2025, Dallas Wings) and Azzi Fudd (2026, Dallas Wings).

At this point, with plenty of time until the 2028 draft, Sarah Strong is among the players in contention for the No. 1 pick.

Ayers and her team lead off a girls-boys doubleheader at her school on Monday at 7 p.m. ET. Afterward, at 9:30 p.m., she will make the announcement in the USJ Blankenship Theater on campus.