Rivals.com has released its Top 125 boys basketball prospects for the class of 2019, and the University of Virginia has been linked with many on this list.
Five-star recruits Matthew Hurt and Armando Bacot, each of whom boasts an offer from Virginia, come in at no. 7 and no. 15. Hurt, a super-skilled 6’9” forward with a deadly 3-point shot, hails from John Marshall High in Rochester, Minnesota. UVA was one of the first to offer Hurt, coming through last year, but has plenty of company including Arizona, Indiana, Louisville, Minnesota, North Carolina, Oregon, UCLA and Wisconsin.
Bacot, who stands about 6’9” and weighs 230 pounds, attends Trinity Episcopal School in Richmond, Virginia. UVA, which offered Bacot in August of 2016, and Virginia Tech have been hot on the talented post’s trail for quite some time. Duke, a program Bacot has clear interest in having visited three times, has not offered but is showing significant interest. In addition to UVA and Virginia Tech, Florida, Florida State, Kansas, and Stanford are among the many others that have offered the talented big man.
In this February 2017 article on TheSabre.com, Bacot described the UVA program as “more like an NBA team. They play like the Spurs. They focus on defense. It is kind of like a system. I know Coach Bennett is a really good coach. He can coach just about any and everything.”
More Notables from the Rivals 125
– Hurt, Bacot, guard Scottie Lewis (Rivals No. 8 in 2019) and guard Grant Sherfield (No. 42) are rising juniors who caught the attention of TheSabre.com basketball expert Kris Wright at the 2017 NBPA Top 100. Read Wright’s entire report (which is now free) by clicking here.
– Ashton Hagans (Guard, 5-star, no. 8 overall by Rivals, Oak Hill Academy), Bacot, Josh Nickelberry (Guard, 4-star, no. 49, Oak Hill Academy), Aundre Hyatt (Wing, 4-star, no. 51, Miller School), Qudus Wahab (Center, 4-star, no. 67, Virginia Academy), Anthony Harris (Guard, 4-star, no. 92, Paul VI), Oscar Tshebwe (Center, 3-star, no. 108, Mountain Mission School) and Khyree Temple (Wing, 3-star, no. 114, Phoebus) all attend schools in the state of Virginia and are ranked on this list.
– Virginia has been connected with but does not appear to have offered 6’6” forward Christian Brown of A.C. Flora of Columbia, South Carolina. Andrew Slater of 247Sports reported UVA’s interest in the 5-star Brown, who is ranked no. 11 overall by Rivals.
– Five-star Bishop Miege (Mission Viejo, KS) forward Jeremiah Robinson-Earl, the no. 17 overall in 2019 by Rivals, showed nice feel and competitiveness at the 2017 NBPA Top 100. How much UVA is involved is uncertain, but Robinson-Earl told TheSabre’s Kris Wright last month that he was impressed with the program. He also discussed former teammate Francesco Baddochi’s fit with the Wahoos in this article.
– Virginia has been linked with class of 2019 point guard Andrew Nembhard, a native of Ontario, Canada who attends Montverde Academy in Florida. In fact, Prep Hoops reports an offer from the Wahoos. Rivals ranks the 6’2” Nembhard as a 5-star recruit and no. 21 overall in his class.
– The Cavaliers have expressed at least preliminary interest in the no. 47 player on this list, guard Bryce Wills. The 6’4” Wills hails from the same school that produced current Hoo Ty Jerome.
– Coming in at no. 90 is New Jersey guard Khalif Battle who recently visited UVA. No offer yet from the Hoos, who hotly pursued Khalif’s brother, Tyus, when he was in high school. Tyus is a rising sophomore at Syracuse.
– Aforementioned Paul VI (Fairfax, VA) guard Anthony Harris, who is ranked no. 92 on this list, attended a Virginia Elite Camp in 2015. Deuce Dean, a 6’4” guard ranked no. 100 by Rivals, recently visited UVA too. Neither has an offer at this point.
