KU basketball target Matthew Hurt schedules his first official visit ... to Kentucky
Matthew Hurt, a 6-foot-9, 200-pound senior forward from John Marshall High in Rochester, Minn., will visit Kentucky this weekend, ESPN.com’s Paul Biancardi reports.
Hurt, the No. 7-rated player in the Class of 2019 according to Rivals.com, is considering KU, Kentucky, Minnesota, North Carolina, Arizona, Duke, Memphis, Villanova and others.
The Wildcats will play UNC Greensboro on Saturday at Rupp Arena in Lexington, Ky.
Hurt’s dad, Richard, told Biancardi visits to KU, North Carolina and Duke will take place “in the near future.”
Hurt decided long ago he would choose a school in the spring signing period. The Kentucky visit will be his first of five.
“The reality is (the decision) could be based on what other people are doing,” Hurt’s dad, Richard Hurt, told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. “Whether that’s commitments or who is playing at a certain position, who is going to the NBA — that kind of stuff.”
Matthew Hurt’s older brother, Michael, is a junior forward at Minnesota.
“Seeing him there helps out a lot,” Matthew Hurt told the Star Tribune. “I could see myself trying to fit in that system playing with my brother. I love playing with him. How he takes care of me off the court and on the court, too. I think it would just make a big difference.”
Here’s part of ESPN.com’s scouting report on Hurt: “Hurt might not be a dynamic athlete or individual scorer but he’s skilled and versatile with a high I.Q., very mature floor game, and great overall consistency. He plays the game the right way, has further upside as his frame fills out, and should be capable of making an immediate impact at the highest levels of college basketball.”
Brakefield may reclassify
Jaemyn Brakefield, a 6-foot-8, 205-pound junior power forward from Huntington (W.Va.) Prep, who has Kansas on his “main” list of schools, tells Rivals.com he is considering reclassifying from the Class of 2020 to 2019.
Brakefield — he is currently ranked No. 22 in the Class of 2020 — says he’s hearing the most from KU, UCLA, Xavier and Mississippi. He said he’s also being recruited by Kentucky, Alabama, Florida, Auburn, Pitt and others.
“Kansas is Kansas. They are on me real hard, watching me a good amount and telling me to keep working hard,” Brakefield, who is originally from Jackson, Miss., said in an interview with Corey Evans of Rivals.com. “A lot of people say that since (Andrew) Wiggins went there that it would be a great look for me but I look past that some and see how I would really fit in and see how they play.”
Wiggins, now in his fifth season with the NBA’s Minnesota Timberwolves, attended Huntington Prep.
Of possibly reclassifying, Brakefield said: “It has gone through my mind before. I don’t think that it would be a bad move, but it would just depend on where I would end up and the options that I would have and where I would fit.”
Edwards ranked No. 3
Anthony Edwards, a 6-4 senior combo guard from Holy Spirit Prep School in Atlanta, who last week decided to reclassify from the Class of 2020 to 2019, has been given a No. 3 national ranking in his new class, by Rivals.com.
Rivals.com’s Eric Bossi lists KU, Kentucky, Michigan State, Florida State, Auburn, Georgia and North Carolina as some of the schools recruiting Edwards at this time.
Edwards averaged 22.0 points, 8.0 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game for Holy Spirit Prep last season. He averaged 21.0 points and 6.1 rebounds on the Under Armour AAU circuit last spring and summer. He hit 45 percent of his threes.
“He’s likely going to be the most heavily recruited player in the Class of 2019 from here on out,” writes Bossi. “An explosive 6-4 scorer who can create off the dribble, Edwards has a legitimate chance to compete for the No. 1 spot in 2019 and will enter the rankings at No. 3 overall in the class. He gives programs in need of a big-time shooting guard a new option in a class that was seriously lacking in them. He’s also going to cost somebody a spot in the McDonald’s All-American Game next spring.”
Evan Daniels of 247sports.com told Kentucky.com: “I don’t think he’d necessarily say that Florida State is the leader right now, but I think they certainly have a lot of buzz and momentum in the recruitment. What that means going forward, I don’t know. Now that he’s listed as a 2019 recruit, I think you’re going to see some schools really pay him a little more attention. And we’ll figure out where he’s at pretty soon.”
Gary Bedore
Gary Bedore covers University of Kansas athletics for The Star.
This story was originally published November 27, 2018 at 12:50 PM with the headline "KU basketball target Matthew Hurt schedules his first official visit ... to Kentucky."