Since the establishment of Title IX, women’s basketball has continued to make strides as attendance and viewership of women’s basketball have risen over the recent years. Amiah Simmons started playing basketball in the fourth grade and fell in love with the game as her father passed on her passion for the sport. During her first three years at Blue Valley Southwest High School, Amiah helped lead the school to multiple Kansas State High School Athletic Association (KSHSAA) finals appearances including the 2018-19 team that claimed the championship along with first of two Sub-State Championships, led all of 5A in scoring with 18.2 PPG in her junior season as well as scoring at least 20 points in seven games, seven games with at least three steals, and named All-State Honors. Along with basketball, Simmons participated in track during her freshmen year, where she made All-State Honors and placed fifth in the 100-meter hurdles in the KSHSAA State Championships. After three years at Blue Valley Southwest, Amiah transferred and played at Osawatomie High School for her senior year. During her one year at Osawatomie, Simmons was a multi-athlete star and one of the top recruits from Kansas as she played basketball, volleyball, and ran track. Amiah made an immediate impact on Osawatomie's basketball team as she averaged 34 points per game, secured 23 points in the State All-Star Game, and was named both All-State and Tri-County Player of the Year. Simmons also helped the high school volleyball team to the Pioneer League Championship, respectively placing 3rd in the 100 hurdles and 5th in the 300m hurdles at the State Championship for Track & Field, and earned both Honor Roll and National Honor Society recognition along with a 3.9 GPA. 

Amiah began her collegiate career at Biola University where she dominated her first and only year at Biola with 17.4 PPG, scoring double-doubles eight times, scoring 20 plus points multiple times in the 26 games she started of the 29 games. Simmons's immediate impact with Biola led her to be named PacWest Freshmen of the Year and Second Team All-PacWest Team. After one year with Biola, Amiah transferred to Alabama A&M. During her first year at Alabama A&M, Simmons averaged 10.1 PPG, 5.3 board per game, and 24 minutes per game along with recording double figures in scoring 15 times, three double-doubles including 25 points and 18 rebounds game performance against Mississippi Valley State, shot 36% from the field in the 16 games she started of the 29 games in the 2022-23 season. Amiah flourished the following season by starting all 31 games as she scored in double-figures 26 times including a 30-point performance with 5 three-pointers in a victory against Florida A&M, a career-high 34 points performance against UAPB in the 2024 SWAC Tournament, and hitting the 1,000 points milestone which led her to secure multiple SWAC Player of the Week accolades, SWAC Co-Impact Player of the Week, SWAC All-Second Team, SWAC All-Tournament Team, and the 2024 Division I HBCU All-America Second Team. In March 2024, after two seasons with Alabama A&M, Simmons announced her decision to enter her name in the transfer portal with one more year of eligibility to play. 

When it comes to balancing academics and athletics, time management and being disciplined are key. Amiah details how balancing academics and athletics can be difficult at times but also manageable. “Balancing sports and academics can be challenging, but if you are disciplined and make both (school and basketball)  your top priority, it is manageable,” Simmons states. “I make sure to focus on performing my best on the court and use my resources to help me with my academics and maintain good grades.” As a psychology major, Amiah sees the study major being applied to basketball as it is more than just the physical aspect. “I use it in my sport because you have to have peace mentally to perform on the court,” Simmons described. “It's more than just athleticism and physicality.”

The viewership for Women’s Basketball continues to rise as 14.2 million people watched the 2024 Women’s Final Four match-up between UConn and Iowa as it was recently announced as the most-watched women’s basketball game in history. Simmons describes that she sees the game of Women’s Basketball increasing through the support and the media that Women’s Basketball is receiving. Amiah sees herself continuing to be around the sport of basketball as she states that she plans on playing overseas after graduation. “I plan on playing overseas after I graduate,” Simmons exclaims. “I would like to stay around college basketball and continue my career as an influencer.”

“Work hard when no one is watching and don’t settle!” That is one of the key pieces of advice that Amiah gives to the athletes who want to take their talent to the next level. “Put in more work than others around you to separate yourself,” Simmons states. Amiah also reminds the younger players to not let anyone stop their dreams and to always put their faith in God first. “Don’t let anyone hinder your dreams, only you can stop you from where you want to go,” Amiah states. “Always put God first and give all your worries to Him.” When it comes to sports and life, support is essential. The support from family means everything. For Amiah, she credits her father as being her role model in sports as he was the one to introduce the game of basketball to her. Along with her father, Simmons describes both of her parents as her role models in the aspect of life. “My role model when it comes to life is both of my parents because of the way they have pushed through the storm and stayed together,” Amiah states. “I look up to them for that and I want the same thing.” 

Amiah’s journey is one that inspires what it means to take the leap of faith and bet on yourself. When asked about what makes her story stand out, Simmons answers it with grace and confidence. “Something that stands out about me and my story is that I wasn't highly recruited and I went a different route than most. I started at Division II and transferred to Division I after having to prove myself at D2,” Amiah explains. “It gave me a different level of hunger. I am grateful for my path and I trusted God through it all. “Before I went into my freshman year I got my first tattoo of a bible verse, "We can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps.’ (Proverbs 16:9). Looking in hindsight it explains my whole journey and I had to have faith and trust in God. And He never failed me.”

To learn more about Amiah and her story, be sure to follow her on Instagram: amiahsimmonss