The college basketball spring evaluation “live period” is in full swing, and all of the various class of 2019 IU recruiting targets are in action. Below we summarize some of the key news and notes from the first weekend of activity involving the players that IU has offered and/or been involved with recently with in-home and other visits.
You can click on each player’s name for more TDH coverage.
Hurt is a 6-10 prospect from Minnesota and he’s the #4 recruit for 2019, according to 247 Sports. He played in Indianapolis over the weekend at the Adidas Gauntlet.
247 Sports had this observation regarding his play over the weekend:
Hurt was clearly the most talented player in the gym on Saturday. While he didn’t bring it every single possession, he did dominate when he wanted to. Hurt was really good shooting the basketball, and then when he was asked to create off the bounce he did just that with a level of success. He needs to continue to be stronger with the basketball, but the skill level and overall scoring ability is quite impressive.
In an interview over the weekend Hurt indicated that he would not be looking to finalize his college decision until around this time next year. Indiana is competing with all of the top national programs including Kentucky, Duke, North Carolina, and Kansas. At least one observer thinks Indiana is in good shape, but without any substance behind this, take it for what it’s worth:
Don't celebrate yet Hoosier fans but a source close to the IU program told me today that IU has the inside track with three 5* juniors: 6-9 Matthew
Hurt (MN), 6-9 Trayce Jackson-Davis (IN) & 6-8 Trendon Watford (AL)— Rick Bolus (@HPBlueChip) April 22, 2018
Stewart is a 6-9 center originally from New York. He currently plays at La Lumiere in Indiana and he is a 5-star. He played in Dallas at the Nike EYBL over the weekend.
247 Sports did a profile on his play, noting that at least in one game he was the best player on the floor.
Stewart mentioned several schools that are recruiting him in the story but did not make note of Indiana. Indiana visited Stewart just a little over a week ago.
Watford is a 6-9 wing from Alabama. Watford is also a 5-star that played at the Nike EYBL this past weekend for the Georgia Stars.
Based on several accounts Watford was strong over the weekend, averaging 18 points, 8 rebounds, and shooting 49% from the field.
You can see an interview with Watford from Dallas where he discussed the 2nd Indiana visit and his assessment of where things stand with Indiana and other programs.
Jackson-Davis, a 6-9 forward out of Greenwood, Indiana, ran with the Indy Heat in Dallas at the Nike EYBL over the weekend.
He averaged 16.8 points, 8.2 rebounds and 1.2 blocks on the weekend.
You can watch Jackson-Davis and his Indy Heat teammate Keion Brooks, Jr. hook up on this play:
OH GOOD PASS BOY ? @indy_heat @INDYHEAT17UR pic.twitter.com/R8pKLLYQ7S
— Overtime (@overtime) April 22, 2018
(video via @overtime on Twitter)
Carton is a 6-3 4-star point guard out of Iowa that Indiana offered just over a week ago. He played over the weekend in Texas at the Lone Star Invitational with the Quad City Elite.
He opened a lot of eyes with 25 points, 8 assists, and 5 rebounds against RAS Milwaukee, and he showed that he knows how to finish at the rim:
DJ Carton (@DJCarton) is at it again!! ???♂️?♂️#NY2LABASKETBALL2K18 @ny2lasports @ny2labasketball pic.twitter.com/fjJnW6Vb2g
— Movement Hoops (@MovementHoops) April 21, 2018
(video via @MovementHoops on Twitter)
This piece had Carton as one of the top performers on the weekend, along with Keion Brooks…
Brooks led the Indy Heat in scoring, averaging 21 points per game, 6 rebounds, and he shot 63% from distance (12 for 19) in four games.
Brooks had this to say over the weekend about Indiana in another article on 247 Sports when asked about his visit with the Indiana coaching staff:
“It was more cordial than some of the others because they’ve been recruiting me for a long time now,” Brooks said of his in-home with the Hoosiers. “It was more laid back. It wasn’t strictly business. We were able to have a casual conversation.”
You can also watch a video here where he discusses his recruitment:
Ramsey is a 6-5 combo guard that IU offered last week. Ramsey is originally from Texas but he now plays high school ball in Florida. He played for Drive Nation at the Nike EYBL in Dallas this weekend.
Ramsey averaged 13 points while shooting 42% overall and 23% from distance over the weekend.
Tre Mann is another guard that Indiana offered last week. He hails from Florida and played at the Nike EYBL in Dallas for E1T1 United.
Mann averaged 17 points while shooting 41% from the field and 31% from distance.
Indiana has not yet offered the 6-4 combo guard out of Indianapolis, but they recently made an in-home visit. Franklin played at the Nike EYBL in Dallas for the MeanStreets. He averaged 9 points and 3.3 rebounds.
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Main photo credit – Indiana Basketball Source
