Sunrise Christian Academy senior Mark Mitchell will visit KU, Mizzou a second time
Blue-chip high school basketball prospect Mark Mitchell has decided to seek a second opinion on his four finalists before announcing his college choice.
Mitchell, a 6-foot-8, 205-pound senior forward from Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, Kansas, formerly of Bishop Miege High School, tells On3.com he’s set up campus visits with Kansas, Missouri, Duke and UCLA.
Mitchell, the No. 11-ranked player in the recruiting Class of 2022 according to Rivals.com and 247sports.com and No. 30-rated player nationally by ESPN.com, visited each of those schools in June.
He actually started his second go-round of visits last weekend at UCLA. He tells On3.com he will attend KU’s Oct. 1 Late Night in the Phog as part of an Oct. 1-3 trip to Lawrence. Also, he will travel to Mizzou on Oct. 8-9 and Duke on Oct. 15-16. He told Zagsblog.com he’s planning on announcing his college choice in December or January.
Mitchell told On3.com that KU has been recruiting him the longest of any of his four finalists — since eighth grade.
“It’s almost like a home feel,” he said of KU to On3.com.
Asked if he feels pressure to choose KU, he said: “Maybe from my community, but I’d say my friends and family just want what’s best for me.”
Of MU, he told On3.com: “Cuonzo Martin is a real good guy, almost like family. Just the whole coaching staff, coach Martin and coach Marco (Harris-Stevens) and those guys ... it’s like a family atmosphere. It would just be starting something new at Mizzou.”
Some recruiting analysts believe UCLA may be the leader for Mitchell, who averaged 18.1 points, 6.3 rebounds, 1.1 steals and 0.9 blocks per game his junior year at Bishop Miege. He hit 71.4% of his floor shots, including 43.8% of his threes and 80% of his free throws.
At Sunrise, he currently is a teammate of Gradey Dick, a 6-7 senior small forward ranked No. 37 in the recruiting Class of 2022 by Rivals.com. Dick orally committed to KU on March 3.
“They (KU coaches) want me to come there with Gradey,” Mitchell told Zagsblog.com. “Me and Gradey are pretty close so we know each other’s games. We could do something special with that class and hopefully we’ll win a national championship.”
Duke lands big man Lively; KU, Kentucky pursue Bona
Dereck Lively, a 6-11 senior center from Westtown (Pennsylvania) School, who is ranked No. 3 nationally by Rivals.com, committed to Duke over Kentucky and others on Monday night. Lively’s decision means Kentucky now is focused on landing Adem Bona, a 6-10 senior center from Prolific Prep in Napa, California, who visited Kansas last weekend.
Bona has visits set for Baylor this weekend, Kentucky on Oct. 1-3 and UCLA on Oct. 22-24. He also has been planning trips to Miami and Arizona State according to On3.com.
Some recruiting analysts, however, are expecting Bona to commit to UK sooner rather than later.
“Bona is not necessarily worried about touches, shots or minutes, sources tell Kentucky Sports Radio, but he wants to feel like a top option,” writes Jack Pilgrim of KSR. “The five-star center is confident in his abilities and wants an opportunity to prove himself on college basketball’s biggest stage. He wants to play for a school that will help develop his game for the NBA. The track record speaks for itself, but Bona wants to see how his dreams could become reality in Lexington.
“Kentucky knows it can do that for the five-star center, but they have to show it now on the recruiting trail,” Pilgrim adds. “At times, Bona has not felt like the staff’s pitch has been completely clear about where he fits into things and his potential role at UK. This was magnified as the program’s fullcourt pursuit of Lively continued. (UK coach John) Calipari’s visit out West on Sunday certainly helped smooth things over, but that relationship will need to continue to build (with UK).”
Bona is ranked No. 10 in the Class of 2022 by 247sports.com, No. 17 by ESPN.com and No. 33 according to Rivals.com.
This story was originally published September 21, 2021 at 6:10 AM with the headline "Sunrise Christian Academy senior Mark Mitchell will visit KU, Mizzou a second time."
