Betnijah and Yolanda Laney: A basketball family

Betnijah Laney is a six-foot junior guard/forward and star player for the 14-2 Smyrna Eagles.

Her first cousin, Crystal Ross, also a junior, is 6-foot-4 and can play. The family is straight out of the Philadelphia tradition of hard-nosed basketball and they don’t play around on the court or in the classroom.

“My mother told me that basketball means nothing if you don’t get good grades,” said Laney. “I try not to get overexcited about basketball and the opportunities out there for me. I want to be in a position to choose a college so my grades have to be right.”

Her mother, Yolanda, played for University City High School and was on the Cheyney University team (28-3) that went to the women’s very first Final Four under head coach Vivian Stringer in 1982, losing to Louisiana Tech in the championship game. Stringer is now the head coach at Rutgers.

“Vivian is a godmother to Betnijah and so is my teammate from that Cheney team, Debra Walker,” said Yolanda Laney.  “And if you ask about two, you can throw in some junior godmothers as well. She has visited Virginia, Connecticut, Duke, Penn State, Rutgers and others. All unofficial but in the end it will be her with guidance from Debra Walker who will make the decision.”

Yolanda Laney, an assistant city attorney for Atlantic City, smiled and said: “Yes, it is a tough town.”