Avery Gordon had a couple priorities as she constructed her recruiting checklist. The nationally-ranked Brownsburg center wanted a school with strong academics — she plans to major in biology and eventually enter the medical field — and she wanted to stay in the Big Ten. That was the conference she had grown up with and even if she chose an out-of-state school, she could still be close to family.

Purdue met both requirements and Gordon had been "considering them for a while," but it wasn't until she visited campus over the weekend that she was fully sold. "Once the visit was over, I was like, I don't think it could get much better than this," she said.

Sunday afternoon, Gordon made things social media official: She's verbally committed to Purdue.

"Once I met everyone and saw what the academics look like, I was like, OK, I don't think I could like a place better than this," said Gordon, who was scheduled to visit another school next weekend. "And if I did go on more visits or continued talking with other coaches, I felt like I would just be running through the motions. So I decided I just wanted to be here at Purdue."

In hindsight, it seems like Gordon was destined to be a Boilermaker.

She grew up in Wabash, a town of about 10,000 people located about 75 minutes northeast of West Lafayette. It's a farm town, so Purdue was the school for basically everyone, explained Gordon, who went to Mackey Arena a few times herself when she was younger. "It was really cool to be a part of that."

The interest between Gordon and the Boilermakers was mutual and immediate.

Coach Katie Gearlds and her staff were the second to offer Gordon a scholarship, and remained committed to building their relationship with her. Gordon said Purdue never missed an AAU game and always had a coach there to watch her. "It felt like they valued me," she continued. "It felt really special and I really wanted to be able to play for them."

More: South Bend Washington-to-Purdue pipeline continues as Kira Reynolds commits to Boilermakers

Rated a four-star recruit and ranked 42nd nationally by ESPN, the 6-6 Gordon overcame a nagging injury last season to shoot 58% from the field and average 18 points, 9.0 rebounds and 3.0 blocks per game for Brownsburg. She was advanced for her age in terms of handling the physicality in the post, embracing it as an opportunity to get stronger both physically and mentally.

Coach Debbie Smiley praised Gordon's coachability and growth last season, citing her touch around the basket and improved footwork. "I'm just really proud of the way (Gordon's developed)," Smiley said.

Gordon enters this season injury-free and is eager to continue improving her outside game.

"I still want to improve as a post player, like playing with my back to the basket, but I also want to get better at defending the forwards, the guards," Gordon said. "I'll continue to work on my footwork and stuff like that, and maybe do some outside work on the offensive side — being confident enough to take those outside shots so I can be more of a threat in other ways."

As for the Boilermakers, this is their second nationally-ranked recruit of the week, with Gordon's commitment coming just a few days after South Bend Washington junior forward Kira Reynolds, who's ranked No. 59 by ESPN. They added Maryland transfer Mila Reynolds (SBW) and nationally ranked 2024 point guard Jordyn Poole (Fort Wayne Snider) earlier this year.

Gordon played with Poole during the Indiana All-Stars Futures Game over the summer — "I loved it," Gordon said — and had a chance to talk with freshman forward Amiyah Reynolds (SBW) during her visit. "I clicked with them a lot," she said.

"I really value them as players and they're both really talented," Gordon continued. "And Kira Reynolds, we're both tall and I feel like we could work so well together. Jordyn Poole is such an amazing passer, so I would never have to worry about not getting the ball. I'm really looking forward to being able to play with them."

More: Purdue offered Jordyn Poole early. Now nationally ranked guard is committed to Boilermakers

Brownsburg opens the season on Oct. 31 at Warren Central. The Bulldogs host IU commit Faith Wiseman and Indian Creek on Nov. 25 as part of the Sneakers For Santa Shootout.

Follow Brian Haenchen on Twitter at @Brian_Haenchen.

This article originally appeared on Indianapolis Star: Why Avery Gordon committed to Purdue women's basketball