College Basketball Recruiting News - Tar Heel Times (2024)

Daily news coverage of the nation's top college basketball recruits and teams.

Top 40 junior shooting guard Jovani Ruff stays home, commits to California

Four-star shooting guard Jovani Ruff is staying home and committing to California. The 6-foot-5, 175-pound forward from Long Beach (Calif.) chose the Golden Bears over a final group of Kansas, Oregon, and USC. Ruff is ranked No. 40 overall in the 2025 class. This is the first commitment for head coach Mark Madsen and Cal in the 2025 cycle. (247 Sports)

Virginia Men’s Basketball Adds Five Transfers for 2024-25

Dai Dai Ames (Chicago, Ill./Kansas State), Carter Lang (Charlottesville, Va./Vanderbilt), TJ Power (Shrewsbury, Mass./Duke), Elijah Saunders (Phoenix, Ariz./San Diego State) and Jalen Warley (Philadelphia, Pa./Florida State) are transferring to the Virginia Cavaliers. Power is a 6-9, 215-pound forward who played his freshman season at Duke. (Virginia Sports)

Spring live evaluation periods and early travel ball season lead to 2025 On3 150 Ranking update

This ranking update saw the five-star players move from ten to 11. Welcome Chris Cenac to the conversation. The 6-foot-10 power forward from Baton Rouge (LA) Isadore Newman moved from No. 18 to No. 6 in the latest update. Cenac’s rise into the top ten has been a steady climb. He first moved into the top 25 of On3’s 2025 ratings in the October 2023 update. (On3.com)

Georgia State transfer guard Lucas Taylor commits to Syracuse basketball

Syracuse has landed a commitment from Georgia State transfer guard Lucas Taylor. Last season at Georgia State, the 6-5 Taylor averaged 14.5 points, 3.0 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game while shooting over 35% from three point range. Taylor spent his first two years of collegiate ball at Wake Forest, playing in only 27 games during those two seasons. (Cuse Nation)

Kentucky transfer center Ugonna Onyenso commits to Kansas State

Kentucky transfer Ugonna Onyenso, the top available center in the transfer portal, committed to Kansas State and coach Jerome Tang on Tuesday. The 7-foot sophom*ore averaged 3.6 points, 4.8 rebounds, and 2.8 blocks in only 18.6 minutes per game this season. Onyenso is the seventh addition for Kansas State out of the transfer portal this offseason. (On3.com)

No. 1 hoops recruit A.J. Dybantsa says he wants to be one-and-done and win an NCAA championship

AJ Dybantsa, the No. 1 basketball recruit in the Class of 2025, is beginning to hone in on colleges and is setting the bar high. After taking an unofficial visit to BYU on Monday, the 6-foot-9 Dybantsa -- who recently picked up a Rutgers offer -- says his goals including being one-and-done and contending for an NCAA championship at his future school. (NJ.com)

Top-60 prospect Jamari Phillips decommits from Arizona

Modesto (Calif.) Dream City Christian four-star shooting guard Jamari Phillips has decommitted from Arizona. The 6-foot-4, 185-pounder is the No. 51 overall prospect in the 2024 class, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies. He ranks as the nation’s No. 14 shooting guard. (On3.com)

Top 25 sophom*ore, UNC target Cole Cloer announces high school transfer

On Thursday, 6-foot-7 forward Cole Cloer, a top-shelf leaper and deft bucket-getter who projects as a potentially potent stretch-four talent at the college level, announced his transfer from Orange to Caldwell Academy in Greensboro, making the move from a public high school to a private prep academy. He's ranked No. 25 on the 247Sports 2026 Composite. (All Tar Heels)

Scouting Sadiq White and his fit at Syracuse

Sadiq White, who is ranked No. 25 in the class of 2025, is one of the most explosive athletes in the national class. He is super bouncy, able to play up at the top of the box, and quick with his second (and third) bounces. He is not only an elite lob threat, but the type of finisher who can immediately change the momentum of the game with a highlight dunk. (247 Sports)

Virginia guard Dante Harris has withdrawn from the transfer portal

Virginia guard Dante Harris is returning to UVA for one more season. According to 247Sports' Matt Zenitz, Harris, who entered the transfer portal in April, has withdrawn his name from the portal. The redshirt junior point guard served primarily as a backup point guard this season. The expectation is that Harris will likely be a walk-on next season as of right now. (Wahoos 247)