Honoka Ikematsu is the latest Robert Morris women’s basketball product to ink a professional deal, signing with the Yamanashi Queenbees of the Japan Women’s Basketball League. The move makes her the 23rd player under the tutelage of Robert Morris head coach Charlie Buscaglia to join the professional ranks.
The move also serves as a homecoming for Ikematsu, who is a native of Japan, as she gets the opportunity to play in the professional ranks of her home country. The Kumamoto native debuted with RMU during the 2017-18 season and became the first Japanese player in program history in the process. Her prowess from three-point range was on full display throughout that campaign, with her 65 3-pointers and .414 3-point percentage ranking inside of the top-10 in program history for a single season.
Despite a carousel of guards causing a plethora of lineup changes during Ikematsu’s time with RMU, she still managed to start in 61 of her 102 games as a Colonial and even started in all 32 games as a freshman. During her first season, she was also named to the NEC All-Rookie Team and won a pair of NEC Rookie of the Week honors.
Ikematsu heads to the JWBL after posting career averages of 6.9 points, 1.9 assists and 1.5 rebounds per game with Robert Morris. Her previously mentioned excellence from behind the arc also slots her at sixth all-time in 3-pointers made with 163.
The Yamanashi Queenbees have been members of the JWBL since 2011 and finished with a 1-19 record last season.
