Combo guard McDowell sets decision date; KU hoops has prospect in town this weekend
Jamari McDowell, a 6-foot-5, 180-pound senior combo guard from Manvel (Texas) High School, who recently made an official campus visit to Kansas, will announce his college choice on Sept. 24, he told On3.com on Thursday.
McDowell, the No. 141-ranked player in the recruiting class of 2023 according to 247sports.com and 143-ranked player according to Rivals.com, recently narrowed his list of prospective colleges to Kansas, Texas A&M, Xavier and Wake Forest.
McDowell has officially visited each of his four finalists. He told On3.com he plans to return to Texas A&M and Wake Forest “soon.”
Earlier McDowell also had considered Kansas State, TCU, Minnesota, Alabama, Mississippi State, Georgetown, Drake, Mississippi and others.
McDowell averaged 11.2 points, 5.3 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game in helping the Houston Defenders AAU team win the Under Armour UAA Circuit championship. He emerged as one of the better defenders on the Under Armour circuit.
Of Kansas, McDowell told 247sports.com: “They got into the mix a little late but they’re good people. I speak with coach (Bill) Self and coach (Jeremy) Case and they say there’s opportunity to come in, play as a freshman and get big minutes. Also It’s Kansas, so they have resources and it’s a basketball school so you know they’re going to invest into the team.”
He told On3.com: “Coach Self and coach Case seem to be really good people. It’s Kansas and they are telling me that they’re graduating four guards so that there’s room to come in and play early. … I mean, it’s Kansas; they’re a blueblood. They’re telling me they like my game and think I would be a good fit in their backcourt. They see me playing the 1/2.”
Elmarko Jackson sets visit date
Elmarko Jackson, a 6-3, 180-pound senior men’s basketball combo guard from South Kent (Connecticut) School, will visit Kansas on Sept. 23-25 according to Jayhawkslant.com.
He recently narrowed his list of prospective colleges to 11. They are: Kansas, Texas, Virginia, Maryland, Louisville, Notre Dame, VCU, UCLA, Villanova, Miami and Michigan.
Jackson — he is ranked No. 65 in the recruiting class of 2022 according to ESPN.com, No. 88 by 247sports.com and 141 by Rivals.com — has eliminated Kansas State, Indiana, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio State, Oklahoma, Penn State, Rutgers, Seton Hall, St. John’s, Syracuse, Tennessee, Georgetown, and Wisconsin from his list of contenders.
Kaden Cooper on campus this weekend
Kaden Cooper, a a 6-5, 180-pound senior small forward from Skill Factory Prep School in Atlanta, will visit KU on Friday through Sunday. He recently narrowed his list of prospective colleges to 10.
They are: Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas, Gonzaga, LSU, Alabama, Memphis, and Georgia Tech.
Cooper — he is originally from Ada, Oklahoma — had also been considering Missouri, UCLA, Iowa, UConn, Houston and others.
Cooper is ranked No. 36 in the recruiting class of 2023 according to Rivals.com, No. 38 by On3.com and No. 45 by 247sports.com.
He had told On3.com he’s planning on visiting LSU and Texas. He’s already visited Gonzaga and Oklahoma.
“They love my play style and they would feature me as more of a 1 and 3. They also play hard and it would be exciting to see what someone like Kansas could bring to the table,” Cooper told On3.com.
This story was originally published September 1, 2022 at 7:13 PM with the headline "Combo guard McDowell sets decision date; KU hoops has prospect in town this weekend."
