Minnesota prep forward/KU recruiting target Matthew Hurt sets decision date
Kansas recruiting target Matthew Hurt, a 6-foot-9 senior forward from John Marshall High in Rochester, Minn., will announce his college choice on April 19, he tells USA Today from Atlanta, where he will play in Wednesday’s McDonald’s All-America game.
“My birthday is on April 20 so I’m gonna do it the day before,” Hurt, the No. 7 rated player in the recruiting Class of 2019 by Rivals.com, said Monday.
He said he’s mainly focusing on KU, Kentucky, Duke and North Carolina. Yet Memphis and Minnesota are also on his list. His brother, Michael, is a junior forward at Minnesota.
“I do not know where I’m going yet,” Hurt said to USA Today. “The coaches have done a really good job of recruiting me. They haven’t been over the top with it and I appreciate that. I can only pick one school, and I know that I’ll be happy with my decision in the end.”
Hurt averaged 37.0 points and 12.0 rebounds a game his senior season. He is Minnesota’s career leading scorer among large-class players (3,819 career points).
Hurt averaged 15.0 points and 4.0 rebounds a game last summer for KU coach Bill Self’s USA Basketball Under 18 team that won the FIBA Americas U18 title in Canada.
Hurt’s dad, Richard, told the Lexington Herald-Leader his son likely will attend a school that has a standout point guard.
“If you’re a guy that doesn’t have the ball in your hands a lot, you want to know who’s going to be facilitating for you,” Richard Hurt said. “And if Ashton (Hagans, UK guard) stays, obviously that’s a big checkmark in favor of Kentucky. The same thing could be said about Tre Jones at Duke, Coby (White) at North Carolina. Devon Dotson is probably going to stay (at Kansas).”
Richard added: “He’s going to do what’s right for him. He’s going to make the best decision for him. He’s going to evaluate all the things he needs to evaluate. And he’s still doing that. There really is not a quote-unquote leader at this point. I think he can see himself going to all four of those schools, easily.”
Achiuwa hasn’t set decision date
Precious Achiuwa, a 6-9 senior forward from Montverde (Fla.) Academy, who is ranked No. 16 by Rivals.com, tells Rivals.com from McDonald’s camp in Atlanta that he has heard the most from KU, North Carolina, Memphis and Georgia.
Achiuwa told Rivals.com he enjoyed his visit to Kansas.
“They played Kansas State so that is a big rivalry game. The fans are really energetic and probably the wildest fans that I have ever seen,” Achiuwa told Rivals.com. “They actually might have the craziest fans in college basketball. That was a good game and it was exciting to see in person.”
Rivals.com’s No. 16-rated player nationally has not yet set a date to announce his college choice.
“Sometime in April or May, I don’t know right now. I am not in a rush right now and I am not really bothered by it all. I am laid back and I am just calm with this all and confident in everyone in my circle and we are just going to go with what we feel like is best for me moving forward with my career,” Achiuwa told Rivals.com.
Achiuwa, who is originally from Mali, will play for the World team in the Nike Hoop Summit on April 12 in Portland, Ore.
This story was originally published March 25, 2019 at 5:47 PM with the headline "Minnesota prep forward/KU recruiting target Matthew Hurt sets decision date."