It’s going to hurt if the Gophers don’t ultimately receive a commitment from Rochester John Marshall 2019 basketball star Matthew Hurt, but considering he’s one of the most coveted players in the country, it’s something Minnesota fans should brace for.
Hurt, a five-star recruit who 247 Sports ranks as the fourth-best player in the country in the Class of 2019, started every game to help lead Team USA to the gold medal at the FIBA Americas Under-18 Championship in Canada over the weekend.
Hurt scored 17 points on 7-of-11 shooting while adding four steals and three rebounds in Sunday’s gold medal game.
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Do the Gophers have a chance to get him?
They do, but 247 Sports’ crystal ball projection gives Kansas the best chance, and it certainly helps that Kansas head coach Bill Self coached Hurt and Team USA in the FIBA tournament.
At 6-foot-9, Hurt was unstoppable as a junior at John Marshall, averaging 33.9 points, 15 rebounds and nearly four blocks per game. And based on what he said he likes about Kanas in an interview with Rivals last month, it sounds like Hurt wants to play shooting guard in college.
“You know they are a great program,” Hurt said of Kansas. “All of these programs (recruiting me) are great, really. I think they have a pretty good usage (history) of a big guard. Look at Josh Jackson, Kelly Oubre and Andrew Wiggins, those type of players.”
In addition to Minnesota recruiting against Kansas, they’re also competing against NCAA giants like Kentucky, Louisville and North Carolina, among pretty much every other reputable basketball powerhouse in the nation.
Sooner or later the Gophers will convince a local five-star recruit to stay home, but Hurt might be next in a line that’s already seen five-star Minnesota prep stars Rashad Vaughn, Tyus Jones, Gary Trent Jr., and Tre Jones go elsewhere.
